Nominee | Product Design | 2017
System Schuhsohle
In serial shoe production, shoe soles are generally made by injection or compression moulding techniques with the help of what are known as “original moulds”. This calls for expensive moulds made of metallic substances. In order to make a shoe model in seven different sizes, you thus need at least 14 different moulds to create the finished soles. For small manufacturers above all, this represents a high investment attended with an equally high degree of risk. This new shoe sole system is based on the modular principle, so making it possible to produce all shoe sizes and widths with just three original mould components. For this purpose the shoe is divided into two parts: a back part, covering the area of the heel, and two mirror-image front parts for the rest of the foot and the toes. The components can be shortened to give rise to the shoe size that you want. This leads to considerably reduced investment costs for the soles, and so forms an economic basis for the production of smaller series.
Comments of the nominators
An exciting and well-thought-out innovation, sophisticated in its development. It promises to be highly attractive to smaller manufacturers and labels above all, which considerably increases the chances of its success. So it is not surprising to learn that the development is the work of the proprietors and designers of the Velt shoe brand. The innovation can only be beneficial to the shoe market, which is currently dominated by the big companies, with a view to creating a wider and more versatile range of choice.
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