In the fashion world, we have seen everything from haute couture collections to custom jewelry lines. Shoes of all kinds have been produced too, and usually tend to offer an interesting story—whether futuristic athletic shoes are being customized for runners, or designers are 3D printing elegant ballet flats or outrageous looking high heels.
Now comes the latest in casual cool from PEAK, an international company headquartered in China, known for its extensive sports products. The ‘Alien Beast’ is a new pair of shoes just released by PEAK, and they do have an enticing look—not to mention that edgy name! And while often marketing may be what it’s all about in the fashion and footwear realm, they have continued to refine their development of sneakers (check out their unique basketball and volleyball shoes launched over the past few years).
With the Alien Beast model, PEAK designers embraced the classic “art imitating nature” technique, invoking the influence of exotic animals from China. The design is both striking and alluring due to the sharp edges and corners, and stark lines.
With a detailed design, PEAK meant to imitate both bone spurs and scales, melding a wing shape onto the heel to complement the upper portion—suggesting the opportunity for flight, as well as that of a dragon’s face staring at you. Bringing the designs to life with bionics and integrated into one piece—rather than “spliced” into sections, the goal of the team at PEAK was to create a smooth look, while offering comfort to the consumer. Even with their beastly name, the 3D printed shoes are somewhat delicate, featuring a smooth texture and anti-skid soles.
Overall, the PEAK collection targets consumers engaged in running, tennis, basketball, and football. They offer a wide range of products which are manufactured conventionally but continue to move toward fully 3D printed products. This has been a trend for a smattering of footwear manufacturers, to include some major players like Adidas—ambitiously planning for mass 3D printing automation, only to kill off some of their Speedfactories last year. As other companies like PEAK continue to be optimistic about 3D printing in footwear (in small volume so far), only time will tell whether it is a novelty or truly a technology that can be integrated into and transform this type of manufacturing.
PEAK was founded in 1989 and operates a network of 6,000 stores around the world dedicated to sales of shoes, sports clothing, and accessories. They have also been very involved with athletes worldwide—from medal-winning Olympians to basketball players and soccer players.
Alien Beast footwear went on sale August 12th in Beijing, with only a limited amount of 299 pairs available for sale.
3D printing—specifically with the use of BCN3D’s 3D Sigma and Sigmax printers—has allowed Spanish footwear multinational, Camper, to journey down paths they never expected with their line of footwear; experiencing so many of the benefits of this progressive (and often seemingly futuristic) technology they are now able to create designs that previously may have been impossible—not to mention the element of flexibility they are enjoying with materials, as well as the ability to fabricate new iterations on the spot.
Based on the Island of Mallorca, in Spain, Camper’s team has become immersed in 3D printing and additive manufacturing, with creativity flowing daily amidst their on-site desktop printers. In a recent case study, they explained that with the ‘giant leap’ into 3D printing, their team was able to enhance their design capabilities, along with ‘streamlining the creative processes of future collections.’
Each set of footwear is designed a year ahead of time, and the Camper team states that their shoes offer a geometric complexity, requiring technology capable of manufacturing their men’s, women’s, and children’s collections with great accuracy.
“Working with a 3D printer is very useful because if we have an idea in mind, together with a technician, we can obtain quick and direct results for the dimensions of components. This enhances our ability to be reactive,” said Job Willemsen, Senior Designer at Camper.
The 3D Sigma and Sigmax printers allow the Camper team to use materials flexible and capable enough of rendering extremely realistic prototypes. They can design products more rapidly, with even higher quality. The need for molds is eliminated, and intricate design elements can be integrated into new products.
“Because we have a dual-extruder system, we can use water-soluble print material. As a result, we can work with more complex geometric shapes and reduce design time for the collection,” said Jordi Guirado, Product Engineer at Camper.
The design process at Camper these days involves the team getting together and discussing new shapes for designs—each day—with their technical department. The team then creates 3D printed models, which are ready by the next day. This level of speed registers in stark comparison with more conventional methods that meant models and prototypes might not be ready for up to a month. Now, decision-making amongst the team is more rapid, and both designs and the impending results are greatly improved. Products are lightweight, ergonomic—and accommodate what customers are requesting these days.
“With various 3D printers on site, Camper’s designers now have new designs literally in the palms of their hands. This is a huge advantage for designers because they can now validate volumes, dimensions and geometric shapes that they could not visualize with a digital model. If designers can print a shoe model in 3D the next day, the design team can take their creative potential further,” said Xavier Martínez Faneca, CEO of BCN3D. “With collaboration, they can really achieve the product they are looking for.”
Camper has been around since 1975, created by Lorenzo Fluxa. His goal was to create footwear unlike any other—with his foundation rooted in the shoemaking business of his family—beginning with his grandfather in 1877, who brought the first sewing machines to Mallorca. Fast forward to the present, and Camper shoes are still made in Mallorca. The team crafts about 500 models each season—with one difference these days: they are in stores in over 40 countries!
While I’m not much for recreational jogging these days, I’ll always remember my first real running shoes – a pair of dark gray Sauconys, which I got to pick out from the store when I made the track team in seventh grade; a short-lived activity, as I was neither fast enough for sprinting nor strong enough for shot put. Shoes have changed dramatically since then in their looks and features. Manufacturing processes have only recently begun to change with new weaving techniques, more use of polymers, and 3D printing. With the way things are going these days, it may not be long before everyone’s favorite pair of athletic shoes is of the 3D printed variety, no matter which manufacturer they come from.
Back in 2015, Boston-based athletic leader New Balance announced that it was teaming up with 3D Systems to create the first 3D printed running shoe. The company released its Zante Generate shoe a year later, and while it wasn’t the first 3D printed shoe ever created, it was the first to be made commercially available.
Now, New Balance has launched a brand new premium 3D printing platform, called TripleCell, which is powered by SLA technology from Formlabs and a completely new material.
“3D printing is changing how companies approach manufacturing, with this announcement New Balance is pioneering localized manufacturing. By eliminating the dependence on molds and direct printing for both prototyping and production, their team shifts from months to hours in the development and production cycles,” said Dávid Lakatos, Chief Product Officer of Formlabs. “We’re moving towards a world where design cycles are closing in on the whim of the consumer and it’s exciting to be on the frontlines of this with New Balance.”
It all started last year, when the two Massachusetts companies announced an exclusive relationship focused on creating high performance hardware and materials, in addition to a manufacturing process for athletic footwear. They wanted to create a 3D printing production system, with unlimited design freedom, that would open up opportunities for innovation in the athletic footwear sector – a high inventory, high volume business that involves plenty of craftsmanship and manual labor. But as more people clamor for customized products, it’s getting harder to produce them without embracing modern technology.
Katherine Petrecca, New Balance General Manager of Footwear, Innovation Design Studio, said in a Formlabs blog post, “We saw innovation with 3D printers and materials and started to envision the future of how this could come together in consumer products.
“When you’re able to use techniques like 3D printing to turn to more of an on-demand manufacturing model, that’s a game changer. There are advantages both for the consumer and for New Balance as a manufacturer. On the consumer side, the ability to design and what you can fabricate with printing is well beyond what we can do with molding. It really opens up a lot of opportunity for us to make better parts than we’re making now with foam and plastic.”
Formlabs worked closely with New Balance to develop a production system to bring TripleCell to life
New Balance realized it would need a specific material that didn’t yet exist in the industry. The new TripleCell platform can deliver components that are pretty close to traditional performance cushioning, thanks to the proprietary photopolymer Rebound Resin that was developed as a result of the partnership. Rebound Resin was designed in order to make resilient, springy lattice structures with, according to a Formlabs press release, “the durability, reliability, and longevity expected from an injection molded thermoplastic.”
“TripleCell will deliver the industry’s pinnacle expression of data to design with seamless transitions between variable properties underfoot. This new, cutting edge, digitally manufactured technology is now scaling exclusively within New Balance factories in the U.S. further establishing us as a leader in 3D printing and domestic manufacturing,” said Petrecca. “Formlabs has been an integral partner to bring this to life. We’re really going to be able to disrupt the industry not only in performance, but also in athlete customization and speed to market.”
Rebound Resin has a higher tear strength, energy return, and elongation than any other Formlabs SLA material. Most foam components in current footwear are made with compression or injection molding, which limits design possibilities. But using 3D printing for prototyping and production has allowed New Balance to open brand new opportunities in the fabrication of its footwear.
“What we could do to date is engineer the outside of the shoe and rely on the inherent properties of the material to provide all the performance benefits we’re looking for,” explained New Balance Senior Additive Manufacturing Engineer Dan Dempsey. “Any degree of what you could consider customization is disparate pieces of foam glued or molded together, with a lot of assembly steps on the back end. Using additive manufacturing, we can essentially vary the lattice structure to really change localized properties inside of a single form, giving us the ability to engineer throughout the entire volume of the shoe; we can design a system from the inside out.”
Using the new TripleCell platform for both prototyping and manufacturing allows the creation of shoes with a high cushion zone, which transitions to an area of high stability, within a single design, using a single material. It also helps decrease the time to market.
“The traditional timeline for our product cycle from paper initiation to delivery in market is 15-18 months. And when we’re building tools and waiting for foam or rubber parts, we’re looking at 4-6 week lead times. By eliminating molds, we can save months of development time,” said Petrecca. “TripleCell technology makes it possible to easily produce multiple designs at the same time, reinventing the traditional iterative testing approach. We had the ability to generate and edit thousands of options before landing on the high-performance, running focused structures you see today.”
This week, New Balance launched the first product from its new platform – the limited edition $185 990 Sport, which is now shipping and features TripleCell technology in the heel for a cushioning experience on par with its classic silhouette, but is 10% more lightweight than the 990v5 shoe.
The $175 FuelCell Echo shoe will come in September, and the first full-length high performance running product will launch in 2020.
Petrecca said, “The TripleCell 3D printed components deliver more lively, spring-like cushioning than you’ve ever experienced in foam, with the ability to ultimately be produced on-demand in our own facilities in Massachusetts.”
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Dow, known for their historical innovations in chemicals, is lending their expertise to the ECCO Shoes’ QUANT-U line as they partner in creating a new system of shoe-making. Also collaborating with Dassault Systèmes, this power punch of leading companies presented the latest trend in materials, technology, and footwear in Japan recently at the ECCO Shoes’ Spring-Summer preview.
The QUANT-U customized footwear was introduced to other industry peers and experts, writers, stores, and fashion enthusiasts in the Asia-Pacific realm. ECCO’s independent cross-disciplinary design studio, Innovation Lab (ILE), heads up this new experimental line, offering customer-specific fit and consequent comfort—along with performance. 3D printing is the technology behind the project, and Dow’s liquid silicone rubber is the material making it possible.
Known as SILASTIC 3D 3335 Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR), Dow’s new 3D printing material is used to create shoes formed from the wearer’s ‘individual biomechanical data,’ featuring silicone midsoles that adapt to the customer’s shape and typical movements. This form of LSR was created by Dow specifically for 3D printing. Featuring a low viscosity, the versatile silicone results in smooth fabrication processes, accompanied by the requisite high resolution and accuracy.
The footwear team also expects its future customers to benefit from:
Elasticity and recovery
Optimized energy return
Cushioning
Added foot stability
Photo courtesy of QUANT-U
What also sets this new 3D printing venture in fashion/accessories/shoes apart from the others is the timeframe: less than one hour to create, in-store. Overall, the project between all entities culminating in the retail QUANT-U product took two years of development—with a recent press release stating that this brings together 50 years of footwear knowledge on ECCO’s part, and over 70 years in silicone elastomer experience from Dow. While SILASTIC brand silicone rubber was created by Dow over 45 years ago, this type of modern elastomer is helpful in rapid prototyping, the fabrication of complex geometries, and suitable in industrial applications like consumer goods, automotive, electrical, and more.
Photo courtesy of QUANT-U
“The QUANT-U collaboration showcases one of the infinite opportunities SILASTIC 3D-printable liquid silicone rubbers are opening up for designers seeking part design flexibility and the processing advantages of additive manufacturing along with the performance advantages of silicone rubber,” said Charlie Zimmer, global marketing director for silicone elastomers with Dow Performance Silicones.
Fashion and clothing designers around the world are enjoying countless new opportunities today thanks to 3D printing, and the same goes for a variety of different footwear—whether in ballet shoes, high heels, running shoes, or other unique products and projects like QUANT-U–which seem poised to change the face of shoe shopping for consumers open to progressive technology.
The QUANT-U shoes will be available for the first time from the general public on the 20th of April.
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Product solutions company Jabil has been increasing its focus on additive manufacturing over the past few years, recently going so far as to introduce its cloud-based Jabil Additive Manufacturing Network. The company’s additive manufacturing offerings are broad, but currently Jabil is focusing on one area in particular – footwear. 3D printing is becoming a bigger part of the footwear industry, as everything from running shoes to ballet slippers are enhanced with the technology. Now Jabil wants to become a leader in 3D printed footwear, despite some stiff competition.
3D printed footwear really started with the production of 3D printed insoles, which Jabil had a hand – or a foot – in at an early stage. The company wants to take things a step or two further, though, with the production of 3D printed shoes and even, as one representative suggested, a fully 3D printed ski boot. Jabil named several advantages of 3D printing in footwear, including:
Customization
The problem with the current footwear standard is that shoes are made as not quite one size fits all, but a few sizes fit all. Shoe companies offer a range of sizes, but people’s feet come in all shapes, which don’t always conform to a standard size 8 or 9. 3D scanning and 3D printing allow shoes to be made to order, perfectly fitting each customer’s unique foot size and shape. This also greatly helps people who have orthopedic needs, whether they’re suffering from diabetes or back problems.
On-Demand Local Delivery
People in remote countries are often lacking in proper footwear, but 3D printing can produce shoes as-needed anywhere in the world. This is also important when considering the military, where durable, comfortable, well-fitting footwear is critical. A 3D printer could go a long way toward providing military personnel with new boots whenever and wherever they need them.
Flexibility in Materials
3D printing materials have come a long way, and the selection of flexible materials is greater than ever before. Jabil suggests taking advantage of Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM) to create insoles, outsoles and other footwear components using materials such as EVA, PU and TPA.
Better Functionality
[Image: Reebok]
3D printing, simply, can create better shoes. With advanced materials available, shoes can be made to be more flexible, durable and functional no matter the application, whether military, athletic, orthopedic or simply leisure. They can be made to last longer, saving money and resources in the long run.
Jabil has a lot of competition in the 3D printed footwear market, as more and more traditional footwear brands begin to turn towards additive manufacturing and completely new companies dedicated to 3D printed footwear spring up. But Jabil benefits from years of expertise in 3D printing, and a knowledge of how to leverage the technology to quickly and thoroughly meet customers’ needs. Jabil offers parts production of performance footwear components such as insoles and midsoles, and uses DfAM to create parts consolidation and unique geometries. Its design services include topology optimization, as well as distributed production in local markets.
You can contact Jabil directly to find out more about its footwear and other manufacturing solutions.
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We’re starting out with a lot of business news in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs, and then finishing up with something cool (pun intended) to get you through the weekend. Link3D launched its new Production Planning System for AM workflows, Carbon has a new medical-grade material, and there’s new 3D printed footwear on Kickstarter. Several US sleep experts have joined the Oventus medical advisory board, HP’s MJF technology is being used to make assemblies, and GKN Aerospace is improving its production times with Stratasys technology. Bradley Systems has suggested using its Yellow Magic 7 to clean your SLA 3D printers. Finally, a mechanical engineer and 3D printing blogger has created a retro air cooler.
Link3D Launches Production Planning System
New York City-based Link3D, which offers a centralized software platform for the industrial 3D printing workflow over external or internal additive manufacturing, has just announced the availability of its Production Planning System (PPS) and Advanced Build Simulation. PPS, an AM scheduling solution meant to enhance the company’s software for shop managers and application engineers, can further optimize AM workflows, helping 3D printers to run more efficiently and automate various tasks, like tracing and tracking a build’s genealogy, planning out each step of a build, managing scheduling, facility capacity, and production dispatching, and forecasting accurate production lead times.
“Our comprehensive predictive models are made to forecast AM production and costing outputs by accounting for labor, hardware model, AM technology, post-processing and including material science variables like specific gravity and viscosity. Link3D PPS utilizes machine learning algorithms to make recommendations for placing work orders on the correct machines based on machine availability to achieve real-time distributed manufacturing,” said Shane Fox, the CEO and Co-Founder of Link3D.
Link3D PPS will use blockchain technology to trace and track all of the data logged and generated, so organizations can validate and certify their production processes.
Carbon Introduces New Medical-Grade Material
This week, Carbon announced the launch of its first medical-grade 3D printing material, a two-part, white polymer resin called Medical Polyurethane 100 (MPU 100). The material is made for drug- and skin-contact devices, medical system components, single-use medical device, and surgical instrument applications. The material is sterilizable, biocompatible and has good mechanical strength. MPU 100 has good abrasion resistance, is compatible with common disinfectants, and works with the company’s Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) technology to produce rigid, isotropic plastic parts.
“The life sciences and medical device industries show enormous promise for using 3D printing for production at scale, and we will continue to prioritize the development of next-generation materials in this segment,” said Jason Rolland, Vice President of Materials at Carbon.
Carbon is offering MPU 100 in 800 ML cartridges to its customers in Europe, the US, and Canada. You can learn more about the new medical-grade material at Carbon’s booth #431505 in the West Hall at IMTS 2018 next week.
Unis Brands Starts 3D Printed Footwear Kickstarter
Earlier this week, Unis Brands began a Kickstarter campaign for its line of user-customizable, 3D printed footwear. The line includes two different styles of sandals: the U-Straps and the U-Slides, both of which will be available, in limited quantities, to early campaign backers for just $75 and $100, as opposed to the regular retail price of $140. The 3D printed U-Straps and U-Slides offer custom sizing, as customers provide the exact length and width measurements of each foot. The sandals are made with flexible 3D printing filament for a comfortable fit, and each one has five components, including the logo, buttons, cushion, upper, and midsole, that can be customized with different patterns and colors.
Unis said, “After getting my start in footwear by taking popular sneakers apart, customizing them, putting them back together and then selling them on eBay, I’m excited to announce my first line of sandals on Kickstarter. With five different user-customizable areas, and with individually 3D-printed shoes based on each customer’s exact foot measurements, we are creating footwear that is truly one-of-a-kind.”
All of the company’s recyclable shoes are made in the US on 3D printers designed and built by CEO and founder Nicholas Unis.
US Sleep Experts Join Oventus Medical Advisory Board
Brisbane medical device company Oventus, known for its FDA-approved, 3D printed sleep apnea device, recently announced that it had appointed a Medical Technology Advisory Board (MTAB) of international sleep experts. The board will assist and guide the company on the development and commercialization of its Sleep Treatment Platform. The MTAB, a US-based consultative advisory body, will report to Oventus CEO Dr. Chris Hart, and provide guidance and input into the company’s clinical, developmental, and commercial strategy, which is currently focused on introducing its products to the US.
The following top sleep physicians and advisors in the US have been appointed to the Oventus MTAB for a three year term, which is renewable by mutual agreement:
Lee A. Surkin, MD, FAASM
Richard K. Bogan, MD, FCCP, FAASM
Jerry Kram, MD, FAASM
Mark Hickey, MD, FAASM
Mark A. Rasmus, MD, FAASM
Daniel B. Brown, Esq
Myra G. Brown
Aerosport Modeling & Design Making Assemblies with HP’s MJF Technology
The company uses MJF 3D printing to fabricate assemblies, such as a Butterfly Valve one made of PA 12 Nylon. The original assembly came in 30 pieces and took half an hour to assemble. But by using HP’s 3D printing technology to make it, the total number of pieces was reduced to just four, with only three minutes of assembly. This helped Aerosport lower its production costs by 70%, and its production time by an astonishing 90%.
GKN Aerospace Improving Production Times with Stratasys 3D Printing
3D printed tooling made on the Stratasys F900 Production 3D Printer.
This week, Stratasys announced that GKN Aerospace, which serves over 90% of the world’s aircraft and engine manufacturers, is removing design constraints and improving production times for many tooling applications after integrating 3D printing at its Filton manufacturing site. In an effort to lower lead times for production-line tools and create complex parts that can’t be completed with traditional manufacturing, GKN Aerospace invested in a Stratasys F900 Production 3D printer. This decision helped the company achieve “unprecedented levels of design freedom,” as well as a 40% decrease in material waste; production has also gone from several weeks to only a few hours.
Tim Hope, Additive Manufacturing Center Manager at GKN Aerospace, said, “Since integrating the F900, we have dramatically reduced production-line downtime for certain teams and are enjoying a newfound freedom to design complex tools.
“We can now cost-effectively produce tools for our operators within three hours. This saves critical production time, and by printing in engineering-grade thermoplastics, we can produce 3D printed tools with repeatable, predictable quality every time. All while matching the quality of a traditionally-produced tool, and reducing the costs and concessions compared to equivalent metallic tooling.”
Bradley Systems Wants You to Clean Your SLA 3D Printer with Yellow Magic 7
If you’ve got an SLA 3D printer that needs a good cleaning, Bradley Systems, Inc. wants you to consider using its Yellow Magic 7 (YM7) cleaner, as opposed to Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA), which is also called isopropanol and dimethyl carbinol. The company first heard about people using its cleaner, which was originally formulated as a flexo UV ink and varnish cleaner for printing human and pet food packaging, to clean parts for SLA 3D printers on a Formlabs forum, and has since started offering 1 gallon jugs of YM7 on Amazon…and this decision is garnering it some pretty positive reviews.
“Until now, IPA has been the go-to cleaner for this application because it gets the job done. The downside is that IPA is a flammable chemical compound with a strong odor. This means you’ve got to make sure you’re wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) and storing it properly so you don’t accidentally blow yourself up. As for the smell… well there’s not much you can do there,” the company wrote in a blog post.
YM7, unlike IPA, is biodegradable, non-toxic, and has little odor. It’s not a fire hazard, as it’s water based, and it also performs well in an ultrasonic cleaner. It’s also versatile enough to clean a multitude of different 3D printer parts and accessories, like rollers and rubber pads.
“So, what we’re seeing so far is that you can still get the job done using Yellow Magic 7 without the stink or the potential of blowing up your co-workers or family. Which is nice.”
Mechanical Engineer Builds 3D Printed Retro Air Conditioner
While 3D printing is a relatively modern technology, it can be fun to use it to recreate your favorite retro items from the past, like arcade games, original Apple computers, FM radios, and television sets…even scuba helmets! A mechanical engineer named Juan, who owns a YouTube channel and blog titled Govaju 3D Printing, has worked in the 3D printing world for eight years, 3D printing is not only his work, but also his hobby and passion. Recently, Juan decided to get back to the past by creating a 3D printed retro item of his own.
“I recently created this video of a project that I’ve been working on for a few months, it’s a retro air conditioner,” Juan told 3DPrint.com. “It is printed 100% in 3D with the lulzbot taz 6 and with wood filament and PLA.”
Take a look at the video to see the project come together!
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I can’t imagine walking in the new 3D printed high heels from design studio Ica and Kostika, but that doesn’t make them any less fascinating to look at. Called the Mycelium Shoe, the high heels’ texture does resemble some sort of mushroom, while their shape looks like a kind of curved shark fin sprouting from the ends of the wearer’s legs. More than one commentator on the design has brought up Lady Gaga, and they certainly are Gaga-esque, if not exactly something you’d expect to see on the average person. Don’t get your hopes up about seeing them in person anywhere, actually, because they’re being sold as a limited edition of only five pairs.
The silvery platform heels, despite their intimidating appearance, are designed for comfort – as much comfort as towering, shark fin-shaped heels can offer, anyway. Like other 3D printed shoes, they are customized to the wearer, who downloads an app and takes a series of pictures of their feet. The interior cavity of the shoes is then designed to perfectly fit the wearer’s feet. The rest of the shoe is 3D printed and finished using automotive-grade technologies, which is saying something – shoes and automotive technology don’t generally go together.
The Mycelium Shoe is the first piece being introduced by the brand new Ica and Kostika, which was founded by Ica Paru and Kostika Spaho. The shoe will be part of an ongoing collection called Exobiology.
“Humans have been creators since the dawn of time — it is our very nature — and we want our art to embody our evolutionary story from our past to our future,” the studio states. “Fusing the latest in 3D printing and data capturing technologies, we created not just a shoe, but a story of continuity and innovation, and this is our first step.”
High fashion isn’t often synonymous with comfort, so it’s intriguing to think about 3D scanning and 3D printing being used to make avant-garde, sculptural pumps like these ones wearable. So far, there have been two types of 3D printed footwear – that which is designed for comfort, like customized insoles and athletic shoes, and that which is designed for artistic effect, to show off the incredible geometries and bizarre designs that 3D printing is capable of easily creating and that other technologies might not be able to manage. You don’t often see the two types combined, and that’s true of all fashion – the more artistic-looking it is, the less wearable it tends to be. Might these shoes be the exception? I can’t say without trying them myself, and as I am not Lady Gaga, that’s not likely to happen.
The Mycelium Shoe certainly is something to look at, however – futuristic and almost dangerous-looking with its sharply pointed backs. I admit to being deeply curious about who the five people will be who buy these heels – they’re certain to turn heads if they wear them out and about on the streets. If shoes like these can actually be made comfortable, who knows – we may end up seeing more unconventional-looking footwear being worn by actual everyday people in the future, and 3D printing will almost definitely be a large reason for that.
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Multiple major shoe manufacturing corporations have been turning to 3D printing over the last couple of years. While 3D printed shoes aren’t filling shoe stores just yet, companies are being attracted to the technology for its design potential and customization possibilities. Now we’re in the age of the small series of exclusive 3D printing shoe. Earlier this year, Nike introduced the first shoe with a 3D printed upper, while New Balance has led the way with the first partially 3D printed shoe to be made commercially available. And in 2016, Reebok introduced the Liquid Speed shoe, which uses liquid developed by BASF to draw a frame directly onto the shoe. This allows for a tighter fit, and it’s pretty cool-looking, too.
The technique also does away with the traditional mold-driven process, which is expensive and time-consuming, and allows for localized production. Currently, nearly all athletic footwear is made in Asian factories due to the labor-intensive nature of the mold process, but thanks to Reebok’s 3D printing technology, the Liquid Speed shoe can be made anywhere, including in the company’s Liquid Factory, which is located in Rhode Island.
“The point of automation is to shorten the production cost and enable that automation,” said Chau Nguyen, Market Segment Manager for Footwear, PM North America, BASF. “So instead of a person sitting there and putting a sole on, they were able to dispense it in 3D on the part itself— that saved a lot of time.”
Reebok approached BASF, which it had worked with before, about creating a polyurethane material that it could use to create a unique outsole. BASF formulated a urethane-based liquid that could be drawn on to create an outsole that melds with the lacing on the shoe.
“We provide the material to Reebok that has the required rheology and reactivity to produce a part with no molds,” said Nguyen. “Look at it as if drawing with ketchup. When you draw with this material, it’s already curing, it’s already started to solidify.”
Comfort is key in any shoe (except some formal wear), but especially running shoes, where performance depends largely on how comfortably the shoe fits. The design of the Liquid Speed shoe allows for an especially secure and comfortable fit, according to Nguyen.
“In this case the outsole has wings on it and it wraps around to the sides of the shoe. You have tension at the top of your foot, and usually all of the materials are combined together,” he explained. “Well, in this case you have material attached to the sides, the medial and the lateral parts of your foot, so you get a more custom fit.”
Nguyen also calls the shoe the first high-rebound outsole. Until now, most outsoles have been made from rubber, but the polyurethane allows for better rebound.
“When you’re running, a certain amount of energy is going to the ground,” he said. “So, when you hit the ground, in this case, it absorbs the energy and then it returns it, that’s why it’s called high rebound.”
When the Liquid Speed shoe was first released in November, only 300 pairs were made, and they sold out within hours for $189.50 each. The first batch was so limited because Reebok was borrowing lab time, but now that it has opened its own Liquid Factory, there will be more extensive releases in the future. Reebok is working on additional footwear products with help from BASF, as well.
“The various chemistries provided by BASF—we have separate chemistries for cushioning, durability and support— are central to these creations,” said Bill McInnis, Head of Future at Reebok.
So keep an eye out for Liquid Speed to reemerge on the market before long, as well as some new developments from Reebok. As 3D printed shoes become more easily and frequently made, costs will likely go down as well, making them more accessible – Liquid Speed shoes are already relatively inexpensive compared to some of the other 3D printed shoes that have been released. Many of these other shoes have been made specifically for professional athletes, but Reebok seems to have the average consumer in mind.
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3D-printable liquid silicone rubbers are opening up for designers seeking part design flexibility and the processing advantages of additive manufacturing along with the performance advantages of silicone rubber,” said Charlie Zimmer, global marketing director for silicone elastomers with Dow Performance Silicones.
