Would you 3D print your shoes one day?

Would you 3D print your shoes one day?

  • Onihikage@beehaw.orgEnglish
    1·
    9 hours ago

    3D-printed shoes could be a great idea given how different everyone’s feet can be. It could save on transportation and logistical costs, and everyone could have shoes perfect for their feet, created much more locally than Vietnam.

    However, the cynic in me says that’s not what Nike is doing, or why - they’re doing this because it lets them cut workers. Traditional shoe manufacturing involves human hands at many process steps, often with machine assistance or other tools. This lets them cut out all of those workers and all of that equipment in favor of one machine that makes an entire generic shoe for them to shove onto shelves next to all the other generic factory-made shoes. This is not the future.

  • reddig33@lemmy.worldEnglish
    17·
    2 days ago

    They will probably be overpriced compared to manufacturing costs, just like Crocs.

    • AwkwardLookMonkeyPuppet@lemmy.worldEnglish
      15·
      2 days ago

      That has always been the case. Nike is notorious for using overseas sweat shops where children work their fingers to the bone for $0.50 an hour. It probably costs Nike a couple bucks to make a $200 shoe, if that. But they spend billions on advertising, celebrity endorsements, political bribes contributions, and yachts, so it’s not all profit.

    • Num10ck@lemmy.worldEnglish
      11·
      2 days ago

      mfg cost is nothing compared to marketing and shipping and retail channel and design and lawyers and engineering and accounting etc

    • otter@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      41·
      2 days ago

      But, hey, at least that child labor army can move onto more qualified work, like routing circuitry in Chinese plastic tchotchkes and mobile devices, eh? Viva la revoluçion! 😶‍🌫️

    • Death_Equity@lemmy.worldEnglish
      6·
      2 days ago

      Heavens no, they have families to feed. The kids monitor the print process, use their fingers to test nozzle temp, load spools, and allow management to work out their problems through various forms of abuse.

      • Jarix@lemmy.worldEnglish
        2·
        2 days ago

        Whoa whoa whoa, i didn’t say no kids just the good ones that can do the work of all the ones not needed. And no we didn’t pay them more, less actually, since we have to re coup the cost of the new hardware. Don’t talk crazy talk

  • Turd Ferg@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    2·
    2 days ago

    It looks like they designed the top half of a shoe and then ran out of money/ideas and had to 3d print the bottom. But its nike, so the sneaker heads will buy it up. They really cant fail at this point.

  • Lodespawn@aussie.zoneEnglish
    2·
    2 days ago

    I mean … I would … but I certainly wouldn’t waste my time printing those abominations 🤮