Application Red-Rag Scholarship Pieter Zwiers

Craftsmanship

Renewed The future of 3D printing for the footwearindustry

By Pieter Zwiers

Intro It’s still early days when it comes to 3D printing. But it seems certain that 3D printing will facilitate and stimulate a new generation of craftsmanship. In this concept I will show how shoe designers and producers can use this opportunity to appeal to their customers.

I have made a gaiter as a personal touch for a traditionally fabricated shoe. I have used LOOM elastic bands and tools. LOOM is a great example of a traditional technique with new materials. The incredible worldwide success shows the desire people feel to be artisanal in a modern fashion, and use this technique to create things with which to ‘embellish’ themselves and their everyday necessities.

A new generation of craftsmanship Over the last decade the authenticity of a product has gained in value. Craftsmanship is making it’s way back to the hearts and minds of consumers. We want to know how and where something has been manufactured and preferably have something to say over the end product. A customized product says something about who you are, Adds something to your identity. 3D printing opens up a whole new playing field of craftsmanship. Customers become producers and the artisan of the future.

Costumization Major brands have played into the popularity of customization with their online opportunities to personalize their standard designs.

These companies are also ahead of the game when it comes to using 3D techniques. A big advantage of the use of 3D technology for shoes is the speed with which the prototype could be manufactured and altered.

New materials with old techniques Materials suitable for 3D printing are still limited but growing.

We can focus on developing new materials suitable for 3D printing, but we can also focus on redeveloping old (but now popular!) techniques like knitting and crocheting with the use of a 3D printer. De combination of old techniques with new materials is what I find fascinating.

I tried to exemplify this in my concept.

I used a plastic mold (the ‘LOOM) to tighten the bands and then tie them. The tools and materials could have been printed. It’s an old technique (crocheting) with new materials (rubber). Who would have thought that crocheting would be the cool thing to do!

LOOM shows us what the future of 3D printing can look like. Provide the consumer with the tools (which you can print) and the materials (which you can also print) and leave it to them what they make of it. Instruction booklets, video’s and events give a direction, but the customer is the producer/artisan.

Flexible design The fact that consumers become producers demands a different approach from designers. A design has to remain ‘open ended’ and designers can facilitate the craftsmanship of customers. Designers can create a good, standard shoe. Consumers print their desired accessories which they can attach to the shoe. When people become producers, they become potential designers. Therefore the abilities of a true shoe designer will become more important. This competition and the sharing of knowhow will lead to more and faster innovations.

Another great opportunity of 3D printing could be the ability to recycle materials. A good shoe design should therefore enable the recycling of parts. Customers should be able to unfasten elements, print and, attach them and walk away on shoes that feel like they’re brand new.

Buy and sell experience A physical store is now the end station of a long chain of production that often envelops half the world. However this chain of production becomes obsolete when everyone has access to production facilities: a 3D printer.

Customers will no longer only buy a physical end product, but will want the design of a shoe or accessories they then create themselves.

This can give new purpose to the physical stores. Stores can become a place where you can do a workshop on how to create a complete shoe or accessory to the standard shoe you already have. It can also be a place to print, show and sell your creation. Shoe brands can set themselves apart by creating great how-to video’s and events.

In the future brands will sell the design files and the necessary customized materials, potential add-ons, or patented polymers and leave it to the customer to make something of it.

Craftsmanship renewed.

Concept and photography by Pieter Zwiers