The footwear industry in the face of new technologies

Among the diversity of the technological offer exposed in the last edition of SIMAC-TANNING TECH, the largest global event for the footwear, leather and manufactures sector, the main themes that characterized the innovation areas were:

1. The presence of two productive typologies was consolidated: one for high quality products and small productions, and another for large quantity manufacturing.

2. Semi-finished products traceability, at the level of origin and of batches produced. Big Data, data collection from the source to the consumption of the final product.

3. Automation and robotics, remote servers network and “cloud computing” - storage of data in the cloud.

4. Applications of 3D prints.

5. New materials and applications of nanotechnology and wearable technologies.

6. Footwear customization and comfort.

7. Internet of things and economic microsensors networks in the product.

8. Augmented reality as an opportunity to instruct personnel in production and/or maintenance.

9. Chemical, energy and process sustainability.

10. The need to reorganize the so-called “last tranche” in sales channels to the final consumer and spaces related to distribution in that area.

The points listed open the era of 4.0, the fourth industrial revolution based on the interconnection between machines and companies in the chain and the exchange of digital data. A complex challenge, especially in industrial areas of labor intensive as the footwear production.

"The digital information of companies is not only a faster way to do what we do, but a broader concept, which means changing orientation and mentality, essential to gain competitiveness."
"The sector is on the move and this is the merit of every small business, which, day by day, carries out a constant work of technological search for products and processes."

ASSOMAC for sustainability

Given the increasing sensitivity of the market to environmental issues and greater productive efficiency, from an energy point of view, less polluting and respectful of ethical and safety standards, ASSOMAC, the Italian association of manufacturers of machines for the leather, footwear and manufactures industry, presented at the last SIMAC-TANNING TECH in Milan, its “GREEN LABEL”.
It is a voluntary commitment of companies in the sector to inform their customers of the parameters of efficiency and reduction of environmental impact of each of their machines. Such certification is carried out by examination through CFP (carbon footprint) with the LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) calculation method.
At the end of the presentation, the president of ASSOMAC said that “traceability, sustainability, transparency and environmental compatibility are essential requirements that we cannot ignore. Our challenge is to find innovative solutions to relate the production process to environmental sustainability, which is not only an element of excellence, but also of competitiveness, in an increasingly demanding market in this matter ”.