Shima Seiki’s New Technology for Shoe Uppers: SVR093SP
Flat knitting solutions provider Shima Seiki attended a major footwear exhibition in Spain where it demonstrated its latest technology for the production of knitted shoe uppers.
The company exhibited alongside its Spanish subsidiary Shima Seiki Spain at the International Leather Footwear and Leather Product, Components and Machinery Exhibition (FUTURMODA) in Elche, Spain.
The global shoe industry, notes Shima Seiki, is currently evolving at a rapid pace, adopting various textile and material technologies especially in the area of fit, comfort and functionality in footwear applications. Working off the recent trend in knitted shoe uppers in the athletic footwear market, Shima Seiki proposes knitted fabrics to the footwear market from casual to formal and in between as an alternative to the prevailing material in this field – leather. To that effect Shima Seiki showcased the latest applications of computerized flat knitting technology to demonstrate its contributions in this field.
On display was its compact SVR093SP machine especially designed for shoe upper manufacturing. SVR093SP features a dedicated loop presser bed mounted above the rear needle bed. This permits full use of inlay technique for the production of hybrid fabrics that feature both knit and weave characteristics, suited to shoe upper applications that require formfitting function, comfort, flexibility, breathability as well as strength and stiffness.
Also on display was the SWG091N2 Wholegarment knitting machine featuring Shima Seiki’s original SlideNeedle technology. This largest of the SWGN2 series allows shoe uppers, socks, gloves, tights as well as other footwear and legwear to be knit in one entire piece without the need for sewing afterward.
The latest version of Shima Seiki’s SDSONE APEX3 3D design system was available for demonstrations in design and simulation of suited to shoe production. Of particular interest is its ultrarealistic simulation capability that realizes Virtual Sampling. When countless variations must be evaluated before arriving at a final design, virtual product samples can be used to streamline the decision-making process by minimizing the enormous amount of time and cost normally associated with producing actual samples for each variation. The sustainability factor is also undeniable considering the amount of material normally gone to waste in the sampling stage.
