NE W S AND i n f o r m at i o n f o r m a n u fa c t u r i n g e x e c u t i v e s
www.manufacturingdigital.com | January 2011
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Nike goes
barefoot
running with Apple
From the world’s first cross-training shoe to barefoot running and its collaboration with Apple, Nike has positioned itself as one of the biggest sporting brands in the world By Rebecca D’Souza & Christopher Davies Nike is one of the biggest sporting brands in the world, renowned for its innovative yet practical and effective sportswear. Securing the services and support of some of the world’s biggest sporting superstars such as Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods and Roger Federer has only helped reinforce the brand’s global influence and industry dominance. At Nike, innovative design and unique styling is everything, company spokesman Ryan Greenwood: “We are tireless in our pursuit of innovation. At Nike, we constantly challenge ourselves to think the ideas nobody else thinks 22
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Nike+ with Apple
Innovators of ideas nobody else thinks of, to create products and services nobody else creates, or to improve things that already exist.”
Pioneers of innovative footwear
“ At Nike, we constantly challenge ourselves to think of the ideas nobody else thinks of, to create the products and services nobody else creates”
For decades, Nike has pioneered a range of footwear solutions to suit every athlete and training style. In 1972, the company’s founder, Bill Bowerman created Ryan Greenwood, Nike spokesman the legendary ‘waffle’ outsoles, which had waffle-type nubs for traction. These also a number of trends that the company is were much lighter than those of traditional currently tracking. training shoes. In 1979, they launched Nike Air cushioning technology, and in the late 1980s, Nike meets Apple Nike unveiled the world’s first ever cross- In pursuit of its goal of working with the training shoe. best, in 2006, the company teamed up with Whilst Nike Shox offered a revolutionary technology giant Apple to offer runners a cushioning and support system, NikeID allowed unique training and motivational experience consumers to design footwear and apparel in the form of Nike+. to their preferred design and performance Athletes can now run with Nike+ ready requirements. The shoemaker also footwear, an made the Flywire. iPod Nano “This is a revolutionary upper or Touch and Nike Shox technology,” Greenwood the Nike + points out. “It features iPod sport kit, high-strength threads which contains that work like cables a sensor and on a suspension receiver. This bridge with sensor is the support first step in engineered connecting precisely to the where a experience. foot needs it, It slips allowing Nike to make its unobtrusively into a lightest and strongest footwear ever.” pocket under the left sock-liner of the Nike+ Today, the company remains at the ready shoe. forefront of technology as it continues to “Together with the receiver, the in-shoe go from strength to strength with its vast sensor uses patented technology to measure offering of innovative sports shoes. There are the length of time the foot is on the ground, not www.manufacturingdigital.com January 2011
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NikeID allows for complete customisation
impact like some pedometers, and translates runners reach their full potential. The technology and records the data into the receiver,” says is compatible with cardiovascular machines and Greenwood. the Nike+ Heart Rate Monitor. There is also a In fact, the iPod Nano tracks the progress new Nike+ GPS App for use with the iPhone. of the workout and provides real-time feedback directly through the earphones. Barefoot running “Nike+ is innovative in a number of ways,” The Nike+ technology works with Nike’s Greenwood adds. “We have not only created an Barefoot Free range, which is a popular innovative digital training tool, we trend in the industry. The Nike have created the world’s largest Free range is aimed at people community of runners at www. who wish to improve their foot nikeplus.com, which has more than strength and balance through the launch three million members.” training. These trainers have of Nike Air Since the launch of Nike+, a been designed for those who cushioning variety of Nike+ enabled devices want the benefit of barefoot have been introduced to help training, but need cushioning, technology
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INNOVATORS
traction and protection. “Nike Free shoes feature a whole host of technical innovations to help deliver the benefits of barefoot running,” says Greenwood. “When designing Nike Free, virtually everything about the shoes had to be different, including the most basic building block of any shoe - the last. A traditional last is a hard piece of plastic in the shape of a foot, and it doesn’t move, bend or twist. “Nike design engineers created a new last that bends and twists, closely mimicking the movements of the human foot. At the same time, the Nike research team experimented with various ways to make the upper and midsole more flexible, installing flex grooves into the midsole and strategically placed slices in the upper.”
The shoe’s outsole is both pliable and durable, allowing it to mimic the natural movements of a foot whilst delivering protection against hazards on the ground. The slicing method used on the shoe’s uppers allows it to mould to the shape of the foot. According to research conducted by Professor Peter Bruggemann at the University of Cologne, Nike Free gives runners a fuller range of motion in the joint more at the base of each toe, which articles has proven to increase strength Visit by 15-20 percent. Website
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