Sports apparel manufacturer Goldwin and biomaterial research company Spiber are teaming up to deliver a new prototype ski jacket. This garment features Qmonos construction, a protein material that takes inspiration from spider silk, and it is the first of its kind. Produced without the need for petrochemicals, this material could revolutionize the production industry.

Qmonos is still in the testing phase and not ready to go to market. Goldwin and Spiber are burning the midnight oil to bring this new fabric technology to the public, and will be displaying it at the Outdoor Retailer and Snow Show in Denver at the Goldwin booth. The event runs from January 25-28, and a representative from Spiber will be available for discussions.

The coming together of Goldwin and Spiber follows the time when the former opened its new research and development facility, the Goldwin Tech Lab, in November. Located in Oyabe City, Toyama Prefecture, Japan, the R&D is in full swing and we will soon see the results. Among the Tech Lab’s first objectives was to produce the Qmonos prototype on an actual manufacturing line, thus validating the technology.

The lab houses various facilities, including the Archive Gallery, Quality Inspection Office, Stable Environment Room, Scanner Studio, CAD Room, Prototype Room, Exercise Research Room, Artificial Weather Room/Rain Chamber, and the Meeting and Presentation Space. All together, these rooms showcase the company’s history while contributing to quality control and development of current and future products.

Goldwin’s home is in Oyabe City, where the company was originally formed. It is also the location of the Goldwin Technical Center (GTC), which is where most of the company’s R&D takes place. The Tech Lab will augment the company’s activities and bring further advances.

“At Goldwin Tech Lab, Goldwin will endeavor to develop products that incorporate new and unique values, by taking full advantage of the R&D capabilities Goldwin has fostered in the 67 years since the brand’s establishment, as well as the product development expertise, which combines human insights with advanced intelligence aided by state-of-the-art instruments, and Goldwin’s unique and comprehensive inspection system, which ensures high quality and reliability,” the company wrote in a release.

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