FUSION MAS Technology: Wind Tunnel Development of Multidirectional Aero Shape Technology

Source: FUSION / MAS Technology Blueprint
Format: Technical Development Documentation
Published: 7 October 2026
Type: FUSION Research · Aerodynamics · Textile Engineering · Wind Tunnel Testing
Topics: MAS Technology · Multidirectional Aero Shape Technology · Aerodynamics · Aero Fabrics · TEMPO! Wind Tunnel · Drag2Zero · Simon Smart · Triathlon · Cycling · CdA · Wind Tunnel Testing

FUSION has documented the development and selected wind-tunnel testing behind MAS Technology, Multidirectional Aero Shape Technology, a new aerodynamic textile platform developed to perform across changing airflow directions, speeds and body positions.

The technology represents a different approach to one of the established principles in aerodynamic sportswear: the use of parallel-ribbed fabrics.

Parallel ribs can be highly effective when airflow meets the surface at the intended orientation. But an athlete does not remain at one angle to the wind. Airflow changes continuously around the arms, shoulders and torso as speed, wind direction, yaw angle and body position change.

MAS Technology was developed around that problem.

From parallel ribs to multidirectional surfaces

Instead of relying on a single dominant rib direction, MAS Technology uses a three-dimensional chevron-inspired textile structure containing surfaces at opposing angles.

The objective is to make the aerodynamic behaviour of the textile less dependent on one particular airflow orientation.

FUSION's testing showed that traditional parallel structures can perform strongly under favourable airflow conditions, but become more sensitive when their orientation relative to the airflow changes substantially. The multidirectional MAS structure is designed to interact with airflow across a broader range of incoming angles.

This is the principle behind the name:

Multidirectional Aero Shape Technology.

Explore FUSION MAS Technology

Engineering the textile according to the airflow

MAS Technology is not based on applying the same textured fabric across an entire garment.

Air behaves differently at different points around an athlete.

The front of an arm experiences different flow conditions from the side or rear. The torso creates another aerodynamic environment. Speed and body position change these conditions again.

FUSION therefore develops MAS as a zonal aerodynamic system.

A proprietary textile construction technique makes it possible to engineer three-dimensional surface geometries directly into the fabric and tailor them to different areas of the garment.

The structures are designed to interact with the boundary layer around the athlete, support flow attachment and reduce the sensitivity of the surface to changing airflow conditions.

The principle can be reduced to one sentence:

The air behaves differently at every point around the athlete. The textile should respond accordingly.

Developed from aerodynamic research by Simon Smart and Drag2Zero

The development has roots in aerodynamic garment concepts originally created by Simon Smart of Drag2Zero.

FUSION subsequently developed the geometry into new textile structures through several years of work with its supply chain and aerodynamic testing in the TEMPO! Wind Tunnel at FUSION headquarters in Denmark.

This development process has resulted in a family of MAS fabrics that can be adapted to different body zones and aerodynamic speed ranges.

It also connects MAS Technology with a wider aerodynamic development environment around FUSION that includes professional triathlon, professional cycling, athlete-specific testing and continuous product development in the company's own wind tunnel.

Tested against an established aerodynamic benchmark

An important part of the MAS development programme was the choice of benchmark.

The technology was not simply compared with conventional smooth sportswear fabric.

For direct sleeve comparisons, FUSION used a 7 mm parallel-ribbed fabric that had previously been one of the company's strongest-performing aerodynamic materials and had also been used in suits developed for WorldTour cycling.

That creates a significantly more demanding comparison:

new aerodynamic technology versus an already proven aerodynamic solution.

In one series of nine back-to-back test pairs, MAS sleeves produced an average improvement of 0.0026 CdA, corresponding to approximately 3.2 watts at 45 km/h, compared with the 7 mm parallel-ribbed benchmark.

The purpose of the development, however, was not simply to produce one favourable number at one speed.

Aerodynamic performance across changing speeds

One of the key development principles behind MAS Technology is the width of its aerodynamic operating window.

In aerodynamics this can be described through the drag bucket, the range of conditions in which a surface maintains comparatively low drag.

A material may produce an excellent aerodynamic result at one specific velocity, yet lose much of that advantage when the speed changes.

For an athlete, that is an important distinction.

Racing does not happen at one constant velocity. Speed changes with terrain, accelerations, corners, wind conditions, race dynamics and changes in body position.

MAS Technology was therefore developed to maintain aerodynamic performance across a broader range of conditions rather than simply targeting one theoretical optimum.

In the documented speed-sweep testing, MAS showed an aerodynamic advantage over the 7 mm parallel-ribbed benchmark at every tested speed from 36 to 58 km/h.

The development objective is simple:

Not only to be fast at one point, but to remain fast across the conditions an athlete actually encounters.

Aerodynamic clothing as a complete system

The development work also demonstrates why FUSION does not treat aerodynamic performance as a property of one fabric alone.

During development of the new TEMPO! PRO Tri Suit, individual elements including sleeve structures, side panels, shoulder construction, panel length and zipper positioning were tested separately.

For example, the documented testing found a rear zipper faster than the front-zip configuration for both athletes included in that comparison, with an average difference corresponding to approximately 1.9 watts at 45 km/h.

But these individual improvements cannot simply be added together.

Changing one part of a garment can influence airflow elsewhere. Individual tests are therefore used to identify promising solutions before those elements are evaluated together as a complete aerodynamic system.

This distinction is central to FUSION's aerodynamic development philosophy.

The objective is not to create a collection of isolated "aero features".

It is to engineer how the complete garment, textile surfaces and athlete interact with the airflow.

From material testing to a complete TEMPO! PRO Tri Suit

The MAS programme ultimately contributed to the redevelopment of the 2027 TEMPO! PRO Tri Suit.

A documented same-day comparison between the 2026 and 2027 suits on one athlete at 6° yaw showed lower CdA for the 2027 MAS Technology suit at all three tested velocities of 43, 47 and 50 km/h.

The measured differences corresponded to approximately 5.5 watts at 43 km/h, 1.9 watts at 47 km/h and 11.6 watts at 50 km/h in that specific test.

These results should be understood as one athlete-specific test rather than a universal watt-saving claim.

The wider significance is that the complete suit could be tested as a system after the individual construction choices had first been investigated independently.

Tested with world-class athletes

Professional athletes have been integrated into the development process throughout the programme.

The MAS documentation includes work involving athletes such as Magnus Ditlev, Sam Laidlow, Katrine Græsbøll, Daniel Bækkegård, Tristan Olij, Kristian Høgenhaug and Menno Koolhaas, alongside FUSION test riders.

The published data represents only a selection of the overall development programme. Hundreds of hours of testing in the TEMPO! Wind Tunnel form the wider foundation behind the final technology.

The athletes are therefore not simply used to validate a finished product.

They are part of the product-development process.

The MAS Technology Blueprint

To make the development process and selected test results accessible, FUSION has published a dedicated MAS Technology Blueprint Notebook.

The document includes:

• the aerodynamic reasoning behind multidirectional textile structures
• the comparison with conventional parallel-ribbed aero fabrics
• the principles behind zonal fabric engineering
• selected back-to-back wind-tunnel tests
• CdA data
• speed-sweep testing
• garment-construction comparisons
• zipper-position testing
• complete-suit testing

The Blueprint provides the underlying technical context behind the technology rather than reducing MAS to a single performance claim.

Read the full FUSION MAS Technology Blueprint

For an introduction to the technology, its construction and its use within FUSION performance apparel:

Explore FUSION Multidirectional Aero Shape Technology