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25
JULY/AUGUST 2012 | www.footwearbiz.com
W
hen compared to what was available 25 years
ago, today’s leathers are superior in terms of
consistency of appearance and performance, as
well as the range of products on offer. This is
because of steady advance in three major areas: control
within leather making, rationalisation of manufacture, and
technical leather development and improvements. It can be
anticipated that the coming years will present further
opportunities for change, with fresh thinking on the tannages
and finishes used before the leather
1] Control within leather making
THE MICROPROCESSOR
25 years ago can be taken as the time that the most
powerful tool that has ever been introduced to leather
making became available. This was the microprocessor, and
there are two areas of special significance.
MICROPROCESSORS IN PROCESS CONTROL
Computers were in use in the 1970s and 1980s, but as main
frame computers these were expensive items. Accordingly
Keeping up with the
footwear manufacturer
The changes in footwear manufacture have been
matched by the changes that have occurred in the
production of leather. Some of the developments are
similar to both industries but others have been driven by
far-reaching environmental legislation and stricter controls
to safeguard the end consumer. These have been mainly
directed at the production of leather and the benefits have
been enjoyed by the footwear sector. The chemistry of
leather production has had to be rethought, too: solvents
have had to be avoided, new dye formulations were
required and alternatives to long cherished methods had to
be found.
The dominance of global brands and the demands they have
made on their supply chain are all intertwined in the footwear
story of the past 25 years. The ubiquitous white trainer must
also take some of the credit: the quantities of white leather
needed by some brands meant that tanners had to be capable
of producing the finished material in different countries to the
identical finished standard. Once delivered, even the tanner
could not say whether the leather had been produced in South
America or Asian.
Richard Daniels, World Leather’s Technical Editor,
considers the leather sector and how it has achieved greater
uniformity and consistency.
Gruppo Dani Tannery, Italy
THE CHANGING WORLD OF LEATHER FOR FOOTWEAR
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