Engineering a new approach to bra fitting

We often say at The Engineer that engineering intersects with people’s lives in many ways that are overlooked by the public, particularly when reporting on efforts to inspire young people to consider engineering as a career. But Bella Trang Ngo is taking that to a level we have not encountered before. While it’s true that clothing design and manufacture is an overlooked sector of engineering, Ngo is using some of the most advanced weapons in the engineering armoury to ensure that one particular item of clothing fits better. Namely, bras.

Considering the gender make up of UK engineers (just 12.37 per cent are female) it’s likely that many people reading this will not realise how serious or widespread the problem of ill-fitting bras is.

According to Ngo, around 80 per cent of women wear bras that do not fit properly, and the consequences can be severe. It’s not just a matter of the discomfort we all encounter when clothes don’t fit properly. If bras provide inadequate support, whether this is because they are too large or too small, the mechanical stress and loading this causes on the body can lead to poor posture, chronic back and shoulder pain and even migraines.