Lectra, the world leader in integrated technology solutions dedicated to the soft goods industries, announces the launch of new versions of DesignConcept Auto (V4R1) and DesignConcept TechTex (V4R1), dedicated to the automotive industry and to manufacturers using industrial fabrics. The new DesignConcept Auto and DesignConcept TechTex solutions: a novel approach to 3D/2D design and product development DesignConcept Auto and DesignConcept TechTex are Lectra's flagship solutions for textile-based product design and development. Equipped with this solution, users can create virtual models, run feasibility analyses, develop templates, and estimate costs, resulting in reduced time-to-market of finished products. One of the many significant benefits of these new versions is their automatic marker-making module which calculates estimates of fabric consumption and related costs according to the customer’s business model. These calculations are carried out during the design phase and hence very early in the design and development process. With DesignConcept Auto and DesignConcept TechTex, Lectra alone offers the automotive and industrial fabrics industry this particularly innovative approach. The new automatic marker-making module provides project leaders with valuable and detailed information about the different fabric savings possible for each design option, thus allowing them to make the wisest decisions. When this module is used in conjunction with feasibility analyses, companies equipped with DesignConcept can shorten production cycle times through perfect project management with respect to the business model chosen initially and to the company’s main criteria—cost, quality, time-to-market.