BASF invests to grow footwear segment

Wyandotte, Michigan – BASF recently invested in its global footwear presence, opening new footwear development centres in the US and Thailand.

The company also plans to begin operations at a new Footwear Innovation Centre in Taiwan in 2020, and has expanded its footwear development centre in Italy.

The new centre in the US is located in Wyandotte, where the North American business is located. It was commissioned in April.

"It was already a global R&D centre for other parts of BASF so it made sense to also include footwear capabilities," said Pete Zorney, BASF business director consumer for North America.

The company installed two "state-of-the-art" pieces of machinery in Wyandotte: a Desma low pressure injection machine and a Gusbi low pressure pour machine.

The Desma low pressure injection machine "is the latest in polyurethane injection technology that allows multiple system injects into the same slot, has a colour cart for pigment additions, and an additive cart to allow for multiple system development," Zorney said.

"There is also a Gusbi low pressure pour machine... is designed to make full shoes or boots and includes a plaque mould for parts testing," he said.

According to Zorney, Asia is a growth area for footwear and there continues to be a large manufacturing footprint there for the OEMs and tier suppliers.

"We picked Taiwan as the location for our footwear innovation centre as we have many highly innovative partners in the country and there is a great ecosystem of designers and innovators," he said.

BASF also has a production site in Chunghwa, Taiwan, which will play a key role in helping it meet the rising demands from the industry.

Looking into the future, "BASF aims to be the world's leading chemical company and... continue being the footwear innovation partner of choice for OEMs," Zorney said.