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Textile and Clothing Industry:
Award-winning motorcyclewear adapts
to weather conditions
MOTORCYCLIST ATTIRED IN THINKING OUTFIT
It is stylish, comfortable and safe, intelligent and thinking.
It keeps out water and breathes. It is strong and it is also
warm or cool, whatever is required. The Smart Rider’s
Outfit (SRO) is already on the market and being worn by ‘Easy
Riders’ all over the world.
The motorcyclist is particularly vulnerable to rapidly changing
weather conditions. It was from this starting point that designer
Jasmine Julin-Aro began to familiarize herself thoroughly
with the motorcyclist’s needs. Innovative design and
brilliant implementation led to the creation of the Rukka
/ L-Fashion Group Oy’s thinking outfit. In 2003 it won
first prize in an international design competition arranged
by Design Forum Finland and the Fennia insurance group.
The award-winning outfit has two parts. The exterior is made
of friction-resistant, waterproof but breathing Gore Tex 3-layer
laminate. The Aramid fibre used is the strongest textile fibre
in the world and is found in bullet-proof vests. The thermal
properties of the outfit are adjustable according to the user’s
personal microclimate, thanks to the Outlast material. In
the detachable AirVantage inner section there are chambers
that can be filled with air, which makes the jacket warmer.
In hot conditions the jacket, if necessary, becomes cooler.
The elevated collar reduces the noise inside the helmet, and
the two-fold cuffs open so that gloves can be attached. The
shoulders, elbows, knees, legs and pelvis are shielded by
breathing protectors patented by Rukka.
Jasmine Julin-Aro says that design of the motorcyclewear,
as with other sports clothing, originates from the person
inside it. “A piece of clothing should not interfere
with performance; it must support and even improve it.”
Increasing interest in safety
The outfit is already on the market, and it has rapidly become
a significant export for Rukka, which has been making motorcyclewear
since the 1950s. Feedback is being collected all the time,
but even now it can be said that the latest innovation has
met with an excellent reception. The most important export
countries for the SRO are Germany and Sweden. The outfit is
also sold in Austria, the USA, Canada, Denmark and Norway.
The Smart Rider’s project is expected to reach its peak
in 2009.
The outfit’s jacket costs about 1,300 euros and the
trousers 900 euros. In Europe the outfit is sold by leading
motorcycle businesses in the countries concerned.
“We believe motorcyclists will be more interested in
safety in the future. Our basic philosophy, ‘active safety’,
provides a large number of opportunities to develop things,”
says Hannu Malinen, Rukka’s brand manager.
The market for motorcyclewear is growing, because more motorcycles
are being sold. The L-Fashion Group has a strong foothold
in the sale of outfits, especially in Europe. Rukka is one
of the three major European producers and the L-Fashion Group
one of the biggest clothing manufacturers in Scandinavia,
its turnover being 170 million euros in 2002.
Photo: The Rukka Smart Rider’s Outfit is primarily
innovative motorcyclewear that combines the user’s needs,
new technologies, design and implementation.
Published 2004
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