Initiated at the occasion of the CEC’s General Assembly on the 25^th November 2019 in Brussels, the platform’s ambition is to further footwear research and knowledge creation collectively in Europe to the benefit of footwear companies.

Just like any other technological field, footwear technology is closely linked to innovation. The competitiveness of the European footwear sector highly depends on the development of new discoveries and on its ability to translate these discoveries into materials, processes and products that support its growth and improve the quality of life of its consumers. And, just like any other area where research matters, it is the regular exchanges of information between specialists that gradually steer the path of research toward innovation. The footwear research and technology platform will precisely consolidate the networked groups of researchers and the culture of interaction in Europe that will promote innovation capacities, new business models and other key competitive factors for the European footwear sector.

Members of the technology platform – CTC (France), CTCP (Portugal), CTCR (Spain), the Footwear Research Centre of Tomas Bata University (Czech Republic), INESCOP (Spain), Politecnico Calzaturiero (Italy), PFI Pirmasens (Germany), Lukasiewicz-IPS Institute of Leather Industry (Poland) and SATRA (UK) – have manifested their commitment to join efforts to better meet future challenges in key footwear technology areas. The next stages of the process will be to set a clearly delineated research agenda and to organise thematic working groups on strategic topics such as advanced materials, innovative design solutions, better fit and comfort, smart technologies and a more sustainable and circular product life cycle.

The footwear technology network – with the support and coordination of CEC – will help increase the European engagement in research and innovation, create and scale-up extensive knowledge, and improve economic performance by increasing science and technology capacity. The ultimate objective of this platform is to help create a new generation of high-value, distinctly European footwear products for every consumer to enjoy. The initiative is open to other industry-related technology centres and interested organisations are welcome to apply by contacting CEC.

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