Plant Expansions - PRA News - July 5, 2019

BASF opens US, Thai footwear devt centres; to launch innovation centre in Taiwan in 2020

huan yan July 5, 2019

A DESMA injection machine in the Footwear Development Center in Wyandotte, Michigan / Eine DESMA-SpritzgieÃ maschine im Footwear Development Center in Wyandotte, Michigan

Germany-headquartered chemicals company, BASF is opening new Footwear Development Centres in the US (Wyandotte, Michigan) and Thailand; and is also launching a Footwear Innovation Centre in Taiwan in 2020. The company also recently expanded its Footwear Development Centre in Italy. Bringing together a dedicated team of process engineers, footwear specialists and technicians coupled with the latest technologies and machinery, these centres will serve as a global platform to formulate and test new material innovations, refine processes and evaluate concepts in large-scale production environments.

The 2,000-sq ft US lab is fully equipped with advanced footwear machinery for outsole, midsole and unit sole developments.

“Through the Footwear Development Centre, BASF is helping customers drive innovation in the footwear industry and making the future happen now,” said Pete Zorney, Business Director Consumer, North America, BASF.

Meanwhile, BASF’s Thomas Bartz, Business Manager Consumer, Europe, said that the Footwear Development Centre in Italy pioneers in bringing material expertise and innovation under one roof in this fashion and footwear hub. “We now can connect designers and brand owners to material innovation and production, be it Europe, the U.S. or Asia,” he added.

In 2020, BASF will also launch the Footwear Innovation Centre in Taiwan to further strengthen its capabilities and customer co-development approaches in Asia Pacific. According to BASF, the Centre will give footwear professionals first-hand experience on how BASF materials can help develop future footwear using the latest manufacturing processes in areas such as comfort, performance, quality and design.

BASF recently introduced X-Swift, a multipurpose athleisure shoe featuring its performance technologies, in collaboration with Longterm Concept. BASF will also present a visionary new shoe concept that will be unveiled at the upcoming A+A Fair in Düsseldorf, Germany.