The Industrial Development Bureau, under the auspices of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, has decided to tackle issues in the footwear industry such as the lack of skilled workers, as well as fault lines with the supply chain. To this end, they have commissioned the Footwear and Recreation Technology Research Institute (FRT) to build a "Footwear Rapid R&D Center” as well as a "Semi-automated Production Base" in order to improve productivity and quality, and also to strengthen Taiwan’s niche in the international market by bringing about a renaissance of the traditional footwear industry.
The Footwear Rapid R&D Center provides product planning, product design, model development, proofing and trial production as well as other similar services, and has helped more than 40 factories develop over 200 new models. By using 3D footwear simulation software as well as other forms of automated technology, they have managed to slash a whopping 30% off the line of production. In addition, the center is working on training new talent by recruiting trainees to develop new models in three-month cycles. The recruits are therefore able to enter the footwear sector with a wealth of practical experience under their belts, and 45 new workers have thus far successfully entered the footwear related industry as tried and tested workers.
In response to global automation, the Semi-automated Production Base has invited companies in the sector to observe the actual process of machine operation, and is encouraging firms to import zoning process and semi-automation. To this end, they will transform the production line and improve productivity by 150%, as well as lower costs by 15~20%.
This year (2015), more will be done to assist the footwear industry in the application of digital printing vamps and processing equipment in order to accelerate the production process. The application of automatic cutting devices is also a priority as it greatly simplifies upper slice cutting jobs and therefore improves overall productivity.
The FRT will establish comprehensive intellectual automation techniques and systems for footwear process in the future, which will include shoe and last databases, footwear runcard systems, and automatic control systems with robot and identified technology, etc. Their goal is to carve out a niche for themselves in the global footwear market.