And unlike most of the trash produced by 3D printing, the shoes look pretty awesome. The 3D-printed running shoe midsole is completely customized for each unique, individual consumer and athlete.
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Today, the company has ratcheted up its forward-thinking efforts by unveiling a concept service it calls Futurecraft 3D, a 3D printing service that creates bespoke midsoles for your Adidas sneakers.
Still, Adidas is a little late to the 3D printing shoes trend, since there are entire companies that have launched to do just that. “We have used a one-of-its-kind combination of process and material in an entirely new way”, said Eric Liedtke, executive board member of Adidas AG, in an emailed statement. The production breakthrough will take the running shoe standard to the next level, offering unprecedented individualised support and cushioning for every foot, to enable athletes to perform at their best, according to adidas. The idea is that someday soon, customers will be able to run on a treadmill at an adidas store and use the recorded data to print a custom midsole that caters to their specific needs.
With both “data sourcing and footscan technologies”, this Adidas program will creat a “flexible, fully breathable carbon copy of the athlete’s own footprint, matching exact contours and pressure points”.
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Calling this the “Futurecraft initiative”, Adidas hopes to announce even more groundbreaking design innovations in the coming six months, so keep an eye on this space. “Marrying the qualities of hand crafting and prototyping with the limitless potential of new manufacturing technologies”. “Futurecraft is stripped back – fast, raw and real – it is our approach to design”.
