Sona College of Technology’s Fashion Technology department, has emerged as a front-runner in preparing technically skilled, design-savvy, and creative fashion technologists.

Since the department’s inception in 2005, it has nurtured a talent pool of over 1100 BTech graduates—each one successfully placed, year after year. This unbroken 100 per cent placement record across 17 graduating batches stands as a testament to the department’s academic rigour, a creativity-fuelled learning environment, and an industry-aligned curriculum.

Additionally, 25 doctoral scholars have graduated from the college.

Sona Fashion Technology alumni today occupy critical roles across leading garment manufacturers, fashion retailers, buying houses and textile mills. Top recruiters include Arvind Mills, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, Decathlon, Gokuldas Exports, H&M, Page Industries and Shahi Exports.

A vibrant ecosystem of innovation and research at the Salem campus has led to the creation of patented technologies for the athleisure industry, healthcare delivery, and smart textiles.

“Fashion Technology’s legacy of success stems from Sona College’s culture of academic rigour, student-driven innovation, and deep industry engagement, in addition to the interdisciplinary strength drawn from our electronics, electrical, and IT departments,” said Prof Dr SRR Senthilkumar, Principal, Sona College of Technology.

“In a defining push into smart textiles, our department has developed advanced multilayered knitted and woven fabrics aimed at improving healthcare outcomes through wearable technologies. By embedding electronic systems into fabrics, we have pioneered garments that monitor physiological parameters and support therapeutic care,” added Dr D Raja, Professor and Head of the Department.

These systems employ conductive materials such as silver-coated, copper-coated as well as core-sheath yarns—enabling high-performance sensing and signal transmission while ensuring flexibility and comfort.

Sartoria, the department’s annual national symposium, serves as a vibrant platform for students to demonstrate their technical expertise, creativity, and innovation. Through competitions and interactive sessions—such as Fashion Illustration, Miniature Garment Designing, Wealth from Waste, Draping Competition, and Styling Challenge—students sharpen their craftsmanship, aesthetic sensibility, and subject knowledge.

Research Focus

The department’s research strength during 2024-25 was supported by grants exceeding Rs five crore from national agencies such as the National Technical Textiles Mission, the Department of Science and Technology, AICTE, the Institution of Engineers, and SIDBI. Notably, student-led projects alone have attracted over ₹30 lakh in funding.

To date, the department has filed 30 patents, eight of which have been granted. Among them, three innovations are at advanced stages of commercialisation:

·        A Dynamic Sweat Transfer Tester for multi-weave fabrics for athleisure

·        A textile-based sensor for measuring human breathing patterns using conductive stretch fabrics

·        A modified industrial sewing machine designed for differently abled users

With over 270 Scopus-indexed publications, including 16 authored by students, the department demonstrates a strong scholarly culture. Seventy-five per cent of its faculty members hold doctoral degrees.

International collaborations include a dozen research projects with institutions in Japan, Malaysia, and Canada.

Accolades

The Fashion Technology department is a four-time winner of the AICTE-CII Best Industry-linked academia award and has also been honoured with the AICTE-CII Mentor Award for its outstanding contributions to industry-academia collaboration.

As per MDRA industry survey 2024 the Fashion Technology Department of Sona College of Technology ranks No 2 in Tamil Nadu and No 13 nationally outside of the government supported National Institutes of Fashion Technology.

Textiles Waste to Wealth Projects

As part of its mission to promote sustainability, Sona College’s Fashion Technology Department is executing two ‘Waste to Wealth’ research projects funded by MSME and SIDBI (2024–26).

The projects recycle pre- and post-consumer textile waste into rigid panels and composite plates—eco-friendly alternatives to wood.

Developed under the College’s Women Technology Park, the initiative uses solar drying to reduce carbon footprint and supports women entrepreneurs in adopting circular economy models. By transforming discarded textiles into utility products, the department advances environmental responsibility and promotes long-term ecological balance.

Advanced Lab Infrastructure

The department’s cutting-edge facilities include a Pattern Making Lab, Garment Construction and Apparel Machinery Lab, Fashion CAD Lab, Chemical Processing Lab and a Textile and Garment Quality Evaluation Lab.

The Advanced Technical Textile Lab is equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation including a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), ultrasonic sewing machines, computerised flat knitting machines, and a lab coater—providing students with access to world-class textile research infrastructure.