Formlabs Premium 3D printing platform for footwear

USA - New Balance has just launched a new platform for sport footwear, created with 3D printing technology from Formlabs.

Triple Cell, recently launched by global athletic leader New Balance, is created with 3D printing technology from Formlabs, which delivers components that are closer to traditional performance cushioning than ever before, according to the company. The new platform Triple Cell further establishes New Balance as a leader in advanced manufacturing with its U.S.-based manufacturing. New Balance launched the 990 Sport model end June and in mid-September the Fuel Cell Echo will become available. Both feature Triple Cell technology and the expected retail price will be $185 and $175 respectively.

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In 2017, New Balance and U.S.-based leading company for 3D printing systems, Formlabs, announced an exclusive relationship to develop high-performance materials, hardware and a manufacturing process for athlete footwear. This liaison led to the creation of a new proprietary photopolymer resin called Rebound resin, which is designed to create springy, resilient lattice structures with the durability, reliability and longevity expected from an injection moulded thermoplastic, Formlabs says.

New Balance chose the 990 Sport to launch the Triple Cell platform to re-make a classic and venerable silhouette. Triple Cell technology in the heel is said to seamlessly deliver the cushioning experience found in the classic style but is 10% lighter than the 990v5, while keeping the made-in- the-USA designation.

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“Triple Cell will deliver the industry’s pinnacle expression of data to design with seamless transitions between variable properties underfoot,” says Katherine Petrecca, New Balance General Manager, Innovation Design Studio. She added that this new, digitally manufactured technology is available exclusively in all New Balance factories in the U.S., making the company a leader in 3D printing and domestic manufacturing, which Formlabs has contributed to as an integral partner. “We’re really going to be able to disrupt the industry not only in performance, but also in athlete customisation and speed to market,“ Petrecca noted.

Formlabs Chief Product Officer Dávid Lakatos said: “3D printing is changing how companies approach manufacturing." He added that eliminating the dependence on moulds and direct printing for both prototyping and production shift development and production cycles from months to hours.

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This article was first published by ETMM.

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