We often think about Nike as an innovative company in the sense of providing top performance in sports like running and basketball. Then there’s the innovation in terms of the fashion world, with high-end designers taking cues from Nike (and other footwear companies) in making the “athletic look” trendy for casual wear.
What we don’t often see is the innovation that’s going on behind the scenes. Thanks to the Portland Business Journal, you can get a peek at what the company is doing in the future from the company’s patents.
According to the PBJ, 2014 alone saw a nearly record-breaking amount of patents filed by Nike. Many of these patents were technological in nature:
While not a giant portion of the overall pie, the manufacturing patents are very applicable. Sneakerheads complain quite a bit about the quality control of newer kicks and how it isn’t up to par with their expectations. According to at least one of Nike’s manufacturing patents, those craftsmanship issues could be a thing of the past. The patent directly below, in particular, shows an idea to automate a whole factory with machines:
Over the years, the labor costs in China have jumped significantly so this patent makes sense. While automation doesn’t necessarily mean that your shoes won’t have glue stains or there’s a wrinkle here or there, it is a step towards getting rid of the human error of manufacturing workers.
Nike already reduces labor costs through technological advances in creating Flyknit, an automated process that also cuts down material costs. The above patent would likely be used for shoes with traditional materials like leather to reach similar savings to creating the Flyknit.
While Nike’s costs will go down, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the price of your new sneakers will. Without knowing specific numbers, keep in mind that Nike has to pay the costs needed to make an automated factory come to fruition. That includes the research and testing costs to figure out the effectiveness of the automation, as well as the machinery needed.
While no timetable is known for the change to automation; the process could take a while as factory workers operating the machines will likely need high-level training to operate them efficiently.
With all of that said, Nike has many other patents that may change the way you look at sneakers including this Tinker-designed, self-lacing pair of shoes:
Stay tuned to WearTesters for more details on Nike’s patents and what they mean for sneakers in the future.
H/T to Mathew Kish for the chart. Cover image via BizJournal.
people should pay attention the the part about flyknit which cuts down both labor costs and material costs… YET Nike usually ups the prices for these…
I don’t want to be a bitch, but you should pay more attention to the article as a whole and not just what you want to read out of it mate..
“keep in mind that Nike has to pay the costs needed to make an automated factory come to fruition. That includes the research and testing costs to figure out the effectiveness of the automation, as well as the machinery needed.”
I work in the industry…It is cheaper usually to use something like knit…
Suppliers are who creates the knit, that is why all companies have access to it.
2 things will happen. Either the sneaker bubble will Pop meaning they will start lowering cost or there will simply be more crime. The high cost of sneakers is not sustainable. What blows me away is the explosion of Nike outlets and they have a hefty selection and at what should be the normal price. The bs about charging more we support. I have been wearing knitted shoes since I was a kid, you can’t beet white or black karate slippers and we used to skate launch ramps in those joints. What’s more sad is with a nation of Octo billion they will be removing jobs. and the crime will come in if this cost raping doesn’t stop. I just had a punk steal a pair of foams out of my gym bag last month, so might have to support your local retaliation.