DESMA celebrates successful event

Every two years, DESMA holds a special exhibition to highlight the latest in automated footwear production.

by Stuart Morgan

German footwear machinery producer DESMA welcomed a large group of delegates to its latest House Fair in the town of Achim. The two-day event was aimed at providing what was promoted as ‘innovative production possibilities and established shoe production techniques’.

More than 40 companies from a number of countries (including Brazil, Canada, Italy, Taiwan, Turkey and the UK) joined German organisations and the hosts in showcasing their sole injection technology-related products and services. These included pigment producers, last manufacturers and suppliers of chemicals, components and complementary machinery.

In addition to the opportunity of discussing new technologies and individual requirements face-to-face, visitors were able to take advantage of a full seminar programme during the two days of the House Fair. These workshops covered such topics as ‘Global market development, trends and strategies for the footwear industry’, ‘Advancements within PU injection moulded footwear technologies’, ‘A new era in robotics’ and ‘Technical TPU film for sole applications’.

Around the site

SATRA’s solings expert, Mike George, attended the House Fair along with colleagues Charlotte Fowle, Hannah Boughey and Jack Hussein.

“It was a stimulating event, as it brought together a wide variety of interests,” Mike commented. “We had the chance to meet SATRA members and it was good to see the machines – such as the laser roughing cell – in action.”

An example of a production line was operating at the fair, which included Stroebel stitching, force lasting with steaming, heat setting, laser roughing of the uppers, direct moulding of dual-density soles and refrigeration. Robots were fully involved in handling the shoes and transferring them between production stages. Different types of footwear were being produced at the same time on the display, and it was impressive to see robotic product recognition in action, with specific shoe types being moved to the next relevant step.

“There can be labour shortages, even in so-called ‘low labour cost’ countries,” said Mike George. “The availability of this type of technology and automation has led manufacturers to seriously consider reinstating part of their production to Europe or North America to overcome labour problems overseas.”

After presenting the opening session of the seminar programme, DESMA joint managing director, Christian Decker, was kept busy meeting many of the delegates and discussing the future of shoemaking technology with them.

“It’s fantastic! Even busier than in the past,” he enthused. “We’ve focused on polyurethane and automation, and those are buzzwords in the industry today.”

Klaus Freese, joint managing director at DESMA explained the reason for holding the House Fair. “It’s all about partnership,” he remarked. “We see this as a great chance to get direct feedback. To be honest, all of us love the chance to show off our new ideas.”

Publishing Data

This article was originally published on page 16 of the November 2014 issue of SATRA Bulletin.

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