Vapesol will open a new industrial unit dedicated to the production of EVA soles. The investment, which amounted to around 2 million euros, enabled to create a facility exclusively focused on the production of soles of this type, an increasing demand from customers. The new unit - with 44 jobs in production - created about 50 new jobs allowing the company to produce approximately 4 000 pairs of soles per day, which can be translated into a production capacity of 1 million pairs of EVA soles per year.
The APICCAPS journal spoke with Décio Pereira, responsible for the company, to learn about this and new Vapesol projects.
Vapesol invests continuously in the company. Which investments did the company in recent years?
In the last five years, Vapesol invested several million euros in technology & innovation, Certification, sustainability, and the production sector, with the acquisition of new machines.
For example, we invested in 10 machines equipped with the best technology for the injection of tricolour TR/TPU soles. Another big bet was the reformulation of our entire sample sector, where all injection and finishing equipment is equipped with the most advanced technology in the world. This way, we can guarantee samples for our customers within 48 hours.
But our biggest investment was made in the EVA soles production unit; one of our main focuses for the future. I can even say that, at the moment, Vapesol is the most technologically advanced sole company for the production of TR, TPU and EVA.
The most recent bet is a new industrial unit dedicated to the production of EVA soles. How did the project come about?
Over the past years, we have seen a great increase in the demand for EVA soles. When the pandemic began, which still affects us today, we decided to move towards a diversification of our range of products. EVA is the "fashionable” sole material, major brands worldwide are increasingly using this type of sole for the development of their footwear collections. The project for our EVA industrial unit was practically completed in February 2022.
Over the past years, we have seen a great increase in the demand for EVA soles. When the pandemic began, which still affects us today, we decided to move towards a diversification of our range of products. EVA is the "fashionable” sole material, major brands worldwide are increasingly using this type of sole for the development of their footwear collections. The project for our EVA industrial unit was practically completed in February 2022.
In this new EVA sole unit, Vapesol invested 2 million euros. In total, we created 44 jobs in production, enabling us to produce approximately 4 000 pairs each day, which can be translated into a production capacity of 1 million pairs of EVA soles per year.
We are the company with the greatest capacity to produce EVA soles.
What solution do you intend to introduce to the market with this unit?
EVA soles in their most diverse variants, we want to innovate in this sector. Our main focus is the traditional EVA with 1.4 expansion, which we have in the market with our brand VP GravityFree. However, we already have lots of EVA flip-flops and footwear for world-renowned brands.
We also produce EVA boards for prefabricated items. Our main focus is on what is considered the noblest material on the market today. It is a mixture of EVA and Rubber, which makes it possible to produce the so-called light rubber.
Vapesol has been increasingly successful in the production of soles with a mixture of Eva and Rubber, and for this purpose, we created and registered our brand VP LightRUBBER. Also in this material, as a result of the increasing demand from customers for sustainable materials, we developed EVA GREEN. We are the first company worldwide to re-incorporate EVA, resulting from waste, again in soles and for which we are already working towards RCS certification.
Has EVA been an increasingly sought-after solution by customers? Why? What are the features of this product?
The first and main characteristic is LIGHTNESS. Associated with this, flexibility, comfort and noble appearance make EVA the material with the greatest growth potential for the coming years in the production of soles for footwear. Vapesol is focused on guaranteeing our customers the best quality and speed in the production of EVA soles.
The first and main characteristic is LIGHTNESS. Associated with this, flexibility, comfort and noble appearance make EVA the material with the greatest growth potential for the coming years in the production of soles for footwear. Vapesol is focused on guaranteeing our customers the best quality and speed in the production of EVA soles.
