Footwear components and materials supplier Texon has unveiled a new material that provides extra shape and enhanced levels of support in vulcanised shoes, and contains up to 50% recycled fibre content.
An alternative to traditional rubber heel reinforcements, the new Texon Vulcan is a lightweight non-woven polyester felt impregnated with a special thermoplastic to increase its shape-retention and firmness.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Designed to create sturdy yet comfortable heel counters, it delivers structural support at a significantly thinner gauge, the firm says, helping footwear manufacturers achieve a slimmer heel profile and deliver a tighter topline that fits neatly around the wearer’s heel.
Less prone to slumping and sagging, Texon Vulcan also enables canvas shoes to retain their form for longer – increasing product longevity, consumer comfort and satisfaction levels, it claims.
“Texon Vulcan is groundbreaking in terms of the significantly improved physical properties that it offers, and the amount of recycled fibre that it uses,” says Matt Smith, group sales director at Texon. “Firmer and more resilient than rubber counters, which are typically soft and can lose their shape relatively quickly, Texon Vulcan helps overcome the age-old problem of sagging in vulcanised shoes, which can result in a canvas upper collapsing.”
The material is available in sheet form or pre-cut. Engineered to withstand the high temperatures and pressures experienced in autoclave ovens during the vulcanisation joining process, it is supplied with an EVA adhesive coating that bonds to most leathers, synthetic leathers, fabrics and lining materials. It is also compatible with latex cement.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData
