The Bite Magazine - Summer 2019 - Issue 25

bite fashion Images courtesy of adidas Futurecraft Loop, their first running shoe, is as the brand says, “made to be remade” and a statement of their intent to take responsibility for the entire life of their product. It is also proof that adidas can build high-performing running shoes that you don’t have to throw away. The project is aimed at tackling the problem of plastic waste, and to enable a ‘closed loop’ or cir- cular manufacturing model, where the raw materials can be repurposed again and again. But not just repurposed into a water bottle or a tote, but into another pair of high-perfor- mance running shoes. Normally sports footwear consists of complex material mixes and component gluing that can only be downcycled but thanks to research and development including leading material de- velopment, manufacturing and recycling partners across Asia, Europe, and North America, adidas has found a way to change the process. In the case of Futurecraft Loop, only one type of material is used as well as absolutely no glue. The good news is that each component is made from 100% reusable TPU which is spun to yarn, knitted, moulded and clean-fused to a BOOST midsole using their SPEEDFACTORY technology. Once the running shoes have come to the end of their first life and are returned to adidas, they are washed, ground to pellets and melted into material for components before being made into a new pair of shoes. This means there is zero waste and nothing thrown away. “We set out to create a new type of prod- uct that we can take back, grind up and reapply into a new adidas product,” said Tanyaradzwa Sahanga, Manager of Tech- nology Innovation at adidas. “We knew this was a far-reaching vision in every way; technically and even behaviourally!” “There were times when it didn’t seem like we could get over some of the technical hurdles - now we’ve made the first leap, the playing field has changed. We cannot create a circular future on our own, we are going to need each other. We’re excited to see this first step come to life as part of the beta launch.” Mean- while Paul Gaudio, SVP Creative Direction & Future at adidas said, “FUTURECRAFT is our design and innovation ethos. It is about the intersection of art, science, technology, humanity, engineering and craft. It’s applying creativity to reimagine the world we wish to see.” Not only will they be launching this amazing new running shoe but they have also launched the latest ALPHAEDGE 4D running shoe with the revolutionary ADIDAS 4D mid- sole, through their continuous collaboration with Parley for the Oceans. This series of running shoes not only features a sport-inspired geometric lattice structure that provides stabil- ity, but is also precisely tuned to offer support and cushioning, deemed the future of performance footwear by the brand. For SS19, the ALPHAEDGE 4D range will feature a triple white update as well as the ALPHAEDGE 4D Parley for the Oceans shoe. “ADIDAS 4D continues to be our most ambitious midsole,” said Marco Kormann, Director of Future Technology Innovation at adidas, “and having seen the success of the ALPHAEDGE 4D to date, we are excited that we can now increase availability thanks to our innovative new manufacturing process, allowing athletes the world over to feel the future of performance foot- wear - this is what happens when sport meets Silicon Valley. In the past two years ADIDAS 4D has gone from a concep- tual FUTURECRAFT innovation, to a running shoe that has