It's stated in the passage that between the Middle Ages and the mid-19th century ……

The contemporary system of industrialized clothing production did not exist before the mid- 19th century. Although important advances in the mechanization of spinning and weaving had occurred earlier, clothes making continued to be a hand skill. Except for the introduction of metal needle in the Middle Ages, no new technology had been successfully utilized until Isaac M. Singer designed a sewing machine in 1851. By the end of the 19th century, the basic conditions and technologies for the creation of a giant clothing industry were present.