APICCAPS, the Portuguese Footwear Technology Centre (CTCP), and MIND promoted the FAIST Demonstration Action - Digital Shift Summit, held on the 13th of March at WOW in Vila Nova de Gaia. More than two hundred people related to the footwear industry participated in the event, whose main theme was the digital revolution in product development.
João Maia, Director General of APICCAPS, opened the Digital Shift Summit by highlighting the major investments being made across the sector, notably through the FAIST and BioShoes4All projects, which amount to 100 million euros. Stressing the importance of cooperation between the cluster’s industrialists, João Maia said that "only by sharing can the industry become more competitive at an international level”. The Director General of APICCAPS also remembered Paulo Martins, the businessman and Vice President of APICCAPS who died in February this year, as a key figure in the footwear industry.
The future is built by evolving
The President of IAPMEI (Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation) spoke about the world situation and the current challenges of globalisation affecting Portuguese imports, warning that everyone must be prepared for the present and the future. José Pulido Valente praised the innovative spirit and ambition of the footwear sector, saying that "the current situation is uncertain but not yet negative” and that "the first sustainability is the economic and financial sustainability of companies”.
"Collaboration between small and large companies, universities and industry, supported by public policies and focused on results, seems to be the most appropriate approach for the times we’re living in”, said the IAPMEI President. "We’re at a time when we thought we had already found new paradigms: the green revolution, digital, a circular economy, recycling are the challenges we face”, he began to explain. "And suddenly, we realise that the globalisation means more tariffs, that allies can be enemies, and that Europe is not safe. We have to prepare ourselves”.
"This sector is the best example of this because it has faced many difficulties and overcome them with success. Many people say that the footwear sector is traditional. I would say it’s an innovative and ambitious sector. The future isn’t built on revolutions, but on evolutions. To survive in the short term, we need to capitalise on what we do and do it better. Evolution is essential”.
The thematic sessions of the Digital Shift Summit began with a presentation by Mark Dube (Columbia) on sample reduction and rapid product time-to-market, followed by presentations by António Macedo (Softideia), Rui Mendes (Olifel) and Filipe Ribeiro (JPM Industry) on innovation in production management systems.
The panel of experts also included Alexandre Carneiro of Abílio P. Carneiro & Filhos, who discussed the management of different catalogues from a B2B perspective; José Augusto Santos, from Expandindustria, who focused on digital platforms for communication, performance evaluation and training; Susana Caldas, from Nimco, who spoke about personalisation in orthopaedic footwear; Vera Teixeira, from Celita, who highlighted offline production systems; and Milton Duarte, from Procalçado, who highlighted rendering as an alternative to photography.
At the end of the event, a round table discussion was held, moderated by Paulo Gonçalves of APICCAPS. Gonçalo Costa (CTCP), Ricardo Conceição (Shoelutions), André Ribeiro (Celita) and Ricardo Costa (Rodiro) discussed digitalisation and its importance in the footwear industry.
Luísa Correia, Director General of the CTCP, highlighted "the afternoon of exchange, reflection and, above all, inspiration for the future of the Portuguese footwear and leather goods industry”. She also stressed that "today, more than ever, it’s clear that digital transformation is not an option – it’s a way with no way back to ensure sustainable growth and strengthen our position in the global market”.
The FAIST Project - The Agile, Intelligent, Sustainable and Technological Factory
The Digital Shift Summit demonstration was part of the FAIST (Agile, Intelligent, Sustainable and Technological Factory) mobilisation agenda, which aims to ensure that companies achieve greater production efficiency and profitability, as well as better working conditions and greater flexibility in their ability to respond to market demands.
The project, which brings together several companies in the cluster, was launched by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) and aims to make the Portuguese footwear industry one of the most modern in the world. Florbela Silva, from CTCP and coordinator of the FAIST project, detailed the impact of this mobilisation agenda: "It will create 300 jobs, 100 of them highly qualified”, which dispels the myth that this agenda will create unemployment.
Cristiano Figueiredo of CTCP, one of the people responsible for the practical implementation of FAIST, guarantees that the innovations presented "are not just technologies, but concrete solutions that drive new production models, greater customisation and smarter processes”. He also underlined that "innovation doesn't happen in isolation, it requires collaboration between companies, universities and technology centres” because "only by sharing knowledge and experience” is it possible to "consolidate a dynamic ecosystem that is prepared for the challenges of the future”.