Huntsman introduces recycled PU into new midsole for safety footwear
Huntsman, in collaboration with safety shoe manufacturer Steitz Secura, has developed a breakthrough polyurethane (PU) solution that can help improve the circularity of safety footwear. The two companies have created a DALTOPED polyurethane midsole system that can incorporate recycled content without compromising performance.
Huntsman and Steitz Secura jointly develop a way to introduce recycled PU into new safety footwear components.
Together with Steitz Secura and an external partner, Huntsman has pioneered a way to introduce recycled PU into new shoe components using an innovative DALTOPED PU system, without changing existing processing or chemistry workflows.
Crucially, Huntsman’s approach also successfully introduces recycled PU into new shoe components, while maintaining performance on a par with virgin materials.
“By taking our own PU scrap and reusing it, we have been able to manufacture new midsoles containing 20% recycled content. Together with Huntsman and a technology partner, we have been working to push up this percentage and can now increase the recycled content of new midsoles up to 30%,” said Wolfgang Burkhard, Head of PUR at Steitz Secura.
Huntsman’s solution has undergone rigorous development, validation, and industrial-scale trials with Steitz Secura, ensuring that safety, durability, comfort and performance are never compromised – even in the production of premium safety footwear.
