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AI becomes a serious tool

W.L. Gore & Associates believes a recent project involving AI and its versatile Extraguard safety footwear upper material points the way to a huge range of design possibilities. Materials innovation developer W.L. Gore & Associates has carried out a series of early investigations into the potential that may exist for using artificial...
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17 May 2024
Performance provides the buzz - footwearbiz, world footwear Performance provides the buzz
Changes to materials and construction are crucial in creating shoes that will provide athletes with performance gains. What this means for sustainability strategies is a separate question.
10 May 2024
Biomaterials for footwear - footwearbiz, world footwear Biomaterials for footwear
Maria José Ferreira, CTCP/BioShoes4All Consortium, Portugal
03 May 2024
PrimeAsia looks towards a bright future - footwearbiz, world footwear PrimeAsia looks towards a bright future
The leather manufacturer has set out an ambitious new strategy to give its clients access to verified data to weave into their own carbon reduction and sustainability targets.
26 April 2024
A limitless source of raw material - footwearbiz, world footwear A limitless source of raw material
Algae blooms have become a major environmental problem and their explosive growth can be linked to increasing global temperatures and rising pollution.
19 April 2024
Boots for the working woman - footwearbiz, world footwear Boots for the working woman
Safety footwear entrepreneur Emily Soloby is adding her voice to the call for employers to make sure shoes and boots for women fit properly.
12 April 2024
Answers in Almansa - footwearbiz, world footwear Answers in Almansa
Footwear materials solutions innovator OrthoLite has completed an expansion project at its European production site in Almansa.
05 April 2024
Mongolian makers gain global platform - footwearbiz, world footwear Mongolian makers gain global platform
A slipper-making project creates much-needed income for families living below the poverty line. The scheme has been backed by Vivobarefoot and is part of its wider remit to support communities through...
22 March 2024
HAPTIC textile coating for footwear - footwearbiz, world footwear HAPTIC textile coating for footwear
Much like the mobility industry, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and Circular Fibres Initiative, the textile industry is a major greenhouse gas emitter and environmental polluter.
15 March 2024
Soft-flowing materials for insoles - footwearbiz, world footwear Soft-flowing materials for insoles
Insoles and insocks are extremely versatile footwear components made in a variety of materials and designs.
08 March 2024
Weighing up the gains - footwearbiz, world footwear Weighing up the gains
Adidas designed the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1 to be a staggering 40% lighter than any other shoe, helping to decimate the women’s world record marathon time in the process.
01 March 2024
A rise comes before a fall - footwearbiz, world footwear A rise comes before a fall
Stuart Cleaver. After a promising 2022 the shoe industry had some expectations that 2023 would not be as buoyant.
23 February 2024
Loafers with radical transparency - footwearbiz, world footwear Loafers with radical transparency
Footwear brands Sebago and NN.07 have teamed up with Spoor to make a special, traceable version of the Classic Dan loafer.
16 February 2024
21st UITIC International Technical Footwear Congress - footwearbiz, world footwear 21st UITIC International Technical Footwear Congress
UITIC, the international association of footwear technicians, celebrated its 21st Congress last September (19th-22nd) in Milan and Vigevano
Innovative footwear recycling - footwearbiz, world footwear Innovative footwear recycling
Borja Mateu, Ana Belén Muñoz and Elena Orgilés INESCOP Footwear Technology Centre
03 November 2023
Driving digital transformation - footwearbiz, world footwear Driving digital transformation
Maria José Ferreira and Green Shoes 4.0 Consortium
13 October 2023
Reconciling conflicting concepts - footwearbiz, world footwear Reconciling conflicting concepts
Even within the leather making sector, the preference for hide purchases based on area instead of weight have been the subject of both debate and investigation.
25 August 2023
Allbirds buffeted by headwinds - footwearbiz, world footwear Allbirds buffeted by headwinds
The brand has ambitious sustainability commitments but a move away from core products has left some investors questioning its strategy.
18 August 2023
A vital component – sewing threads - footwearbiz, world footwear A vital component – sewing threads
In the last issue of World Footwear, we looked at the important role that the lockstitch plays in the footwear manufacturing process.
11 August 2023
What’s next? - footwearbiz, world footwear What’s next?
Coffee is the world’s second most traded product after oil. It is also the world’s second largest beverage only exceeded by water.
04 August 2023
Avoiding the headache from glutaraldehyde - footwearbiz, world footwear Avoiding the headache from glutaraldehyde
Glutaraldehyde (GTA) is an aldehyde that can be used as an alternative to chrome tanning. In July 2021, it was listed on the SVHC (substances of very high concern) candidate list due to its respiratory...
28 July 2023
Advancing functional materials through plasma technology - footwearbiz, world footwear Advancing functional materials through plasma technology
The footwear industry is continuously evolving, driven by the pursuit of improved functionality and performance in its products.
21 July 2023
Calculating footwear sustainability impacts - footwearbiz, world footwear Calculating footwear sustainability impacts
The manufacturing of footwear uses a high number of components and a wide variety of materials which are sourced from all over the world.
14 July 2023
A shoe for high achievers - footwearbiz, world footwear A shoe for high achievers
Footwear brand Scarpa picked a special athlete to help it develop its latest trail-running shoe, the Spin Planet.
07 July 2023
Robot-aided cementing of uppers and soles - footwearbiz, world footwear Robot-aided cementing of uppers and soles
Manual labour still accounts for a major share of the work involved in producing roughly 90% of the global output of footwear.
30 June 2023
Mycelium in the mix - footwearbiz, world footwear Mycelium in the mix
A small number of very high-profile tanners have begun to add mycelium-based materials to their product offerings, not as a competitor to leather but as a much-needed replacement for plastic.
23 June 2023
Digitisation of leather in shoe manufacture - footwearbiz, world footwear Digitisation of leather in shoe manufacture
Germans have something of a reputation for frugality. Sure, it is a cliché, but there’s a grain of truth to it all the same.
12 May 2023
New personal best - footwearbiz, world footwear New personal best
As adidas embarks on its next chapter under the direction of a slightly surprising new chief executive, we take a look at why good sportsmanship will prove essential as the company navigates its next steps.
05 May 2023
Veja’s 180-degree turn - footwearbiz, world footwear Veja’s 180-degree turn
Since its publication of a carbon footprint report in 2021 that showed leather in a poor light, shoe company Veja has worked hard to improve its knowledge of the leather value chain, with encouraging results.
21 April 2023
Carbon-neutral safety shoes - footwearbiz, world footwear Carbon-neutral safety shoes
Italian brand U-Power is claiming a world first, with a range of safety footwear that is certified as carbon-neutral.
13 April 2023
Fast getaway - footwearbiz, world footwear Fast getaway
With the launch of a hands-free children’s footwear line, Kizik’s signature collapsible heel has simplified the act of putting on shoes for all ages and abilities.
05 April 2023
Prize fighters - footwearbiz, world footwear Prize fighters
A revamped format for the ISPO Award programme has given footwear its own category. In 2022, 12 different shoe, boot and footwear technology ideas were among the winners.
29 March 2023
Beyond IOT and towards servitisation - footwearbiz, world footwear Beyond IOT and towards servitisation
Back in 2017 The Economist made a bold statement in declaring that the world’s most valuable resource was no longer oil but data, a commodity in a lucrative, fast-growing industry very much like oil was a...
16 March 2023
The circular economy and recycling footwear - footwearbiz, world footwear The circular economy and recycling footwear
Shahin Rahimifard, SMART (Centre for Sustainable Manufacturing and Recycle Technologies)
09 March 2023
Green Shoes 4.0 - footwearbiz, world footwear Green Shoes 4.0
Maria José Ferreira and Green Shoes 4.0 consortium
02 March 2023
Comfortable high heels - footwearbiz, world footwear Comfortable high heels
Women have always favoured high heels for a number of reasons. As they are usually smaller in stature than men, high heels make them taller and this makes them feel more confident and empowered.
23 February 2023
From one crisis to another - footwearbiz, world footwear From one crisis to another
2022 was supposed to be the year of ‘lift off’ after the 2021 partial bounce back from covid and a general reaching of pre-covid levels of production and consumption.
12 January 2023
Back to business - footwearbiz, world footwear Back to business
Founder of Brazilian footwear group Beira Rio, Roberto Argenta, ran for election as governor of the state of Rio Grande do Sul in October. His bid to hold high office fell short, meaning he can turn his...
04 January 2023
The ongoing problem of sizing - footwearbiz, world footwear The ongoing problem of sizing
It has been reported that a recent study in South Africa found that school shoes currently available at retail were not suitable for the habitually barefoot population studied.
21 December 2022
New leadership at Foot Locker - footwearbiz, world footwear New leadership at Foot Locker
With Richard Johnson retiring, new Foot Locker CEO, Mary Dillon, might be exactly what the sportswear and apparel retailer needs.
15 December 2022
Robotic bagging of insoles - footwearbiz, world footwear Robotic bagging of insoles
Jesús Arregui, M. Dolores Fabregat, José Francisco Gómez and Eduardo Calabuig, INESCOP, Spain
07 December 2022
A new day is dawning - footwearbiz, world footwear A new day is dawning
Brands are giving themselves plenty of time to bring circular footwear programmes to market, but, for innovative companies in the shoe supply chain, work to develop the materials those programmes will need is...
30 November 2022
From forests to footwear midsoles - footwearbiz, world footwear From forests to footwear midsoles
It only became a player in the $30 billion global market for MEG (mono-ethylene glycol) recently, but UPM Biochemicals is determined to drive change immediately by using bio-based raw materials to make this...
23 November 2022
A brand reborn - footwearbiz, world footwear A brand reborn
A safety footwear brand that pioneered the widespread use of steel-toe boots in the 1940s has been relaunched and is reclaiming its Northamptonshire roots.
16 November 2022
Texon – 75 years of innovation - footwearbiz, world footwear Texon – 75 years of innovation
The pace of change in the footwear industry is relentless, so to survive 75 years and continue to grow requires real stamina.

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