Improvement step by step
Portuguese safety footwear group AMF has provided a breakdown of the work it does to conceive, plan, create and construct a new model. It says that looking at the processes step by step allows it to see all the opportunities that exist for improvement.
Since its foundation in 1999, specialist footwear producer AMF Safety Shoes has built up its operations in Guimarães in northern Portugal and now produces 600,000 pairs of technical safety and work shoes and boots every year. Its To Work For brand focuses primarily on the “hard physical labour” market, while a second brand, Too’l, is more for sneaker-style shoes that can help people stay safe in the workplace as well as comfortable after work.
AMF’s technical development manager, Arsénio Ribeiro, and product design manager, Nelson Amorim, contend that meticulous attention to detail is what drives performance. What they seek to have front of mind when working on the group’s collections is what the products are “supposed to do” in environments such as logistics, forestry, the food industry and firefighting.
Simulate the job
A starting point for this, Nelson Amorim explains, is to analyse step by step the working day of the people who do these jobs. This gives insight into what he refers to as the “ergonomic aspect” and any problems they might experience as they go about their work, making clear the footwear company’s task of manufacturing functional and visually attractive products. “It’s crucial to think about and simulate the job the wearer will do,” he says.
At this juncture, reverse engineering begins and AMF starts to develop a last and toe-cap design for the project in hand. Combining both features correctly at the outset is essential for achieving the right fit and anatomical proportions for each foot, Mr Amorim continues, adding that stability, the right volume and comfort are “the main goals”.
Before the creative process starts, the team next thinks about what material to use, with an emphasis on materials that are proven to work well in technical constructions and to have a high level of performance attributes while offering high levels of comfort and sustainability. “We take into consideration the type of work, resistance, durability and a good feeling in the feet,” Mr Amorim says. “After this, we design several concepts, organise brainstorming sessions and analyse different lasting characteristics. At this point, we also start to imagine the product with colours, textures and the materials we have selected."
Best options
Arsénio Ribeiro points out that designers and non-design colleagues work closely together to create prototypes and he insists that this helps make sure the best options will go through to “the next stage”. Prototyping starts with outsole development and, in an example the AMF team worked on recently, a safety boot called Lumberjack for the To Work For brand, this involved a material choice of natural rubber combined with synthetic rubber. What followed was a discussion with a mould-maker covering details such as the last, the toe-cap, and the thickness of the materials required.The result of this conversation, Nelson Amorim reveals, was an outline that allowed AMF to draw in 3D the outsole it wanted to use. With this drawing complete, it was able to continue the step-by-step process by making a mock-up and using it to check that the design and technical specifications were in keeping with the “target”, the Lumberjack boot. With a 3D mock-up in place, the discussion with the mould-maker partner resumed, leading to the production of a sample mould and the real start of the construction of the complete shoe.
A whole series of tests had to take place during this process, though, leading to any necessary improvements to features both on the inside and outside of the shoe before a final sample, the one the production team would use, was ready. Mr Amorim points out the importance of carrying out these tests carefully before the full production process started, checking every part of the construction against the standards and establishing guidelines for what would happen on the factory floor. Impact-tests, tests for anti-slip resistance, shock-absorbency and chemical content all featured, “essential”, Mr Amorim explains, in helping the group understand how a new shoe would perform.
Size by size
With definition of the design in place, materials, components, colours, labels and so on all underwent review again and, if necessary, redesign in the CAD system. Grading for each size took place, piece by piece, at this stage and this optimised the automated cutting technology that AMF has in place. The team next separated the pieces for each size and applied finishing treatments and stamped labelling marks on these pieces before assembly. Using valuable material such as leather in the Lumberjack meant it was important to carry out this step very carefully, Arsénio Ribeiro insists. And only when construction of the upper was complete were the hooks and eyelets for laces placed.
When the time came to attach the upper to the outsole, the latter component underwent a special chemical wash treatment to ensure good adhesion to the upper. It was at this point that the upper went onto the last and the technicians next applied the toe-cap using a hydraulic press. They then removed all excess material before gluing on the outsole using reactivation and pressure technology to make sure the best possible adhesion could take place. “The final production step was to put the finished shoe into a stabilisation machine to make sure of a fine balance between all the chemical and physical properties,” Mr Ribeiro says.
From here, the product went to a special finishing room at the factory for final touches such as cleaning and water-resistance treatment. Then the product was ready for shipping to customers. Mr Ribeiro points out that it is only by breaking the process down in this step-by-step way that the full range of improvement opportunities becomes clear.
AMF’s To Work For brand has a focus primarily on the “hard physical labour” market.
All Credits: AMF
