For years now, the promise of on-demand athletic shoe manufacturing hasn’t lived up to its hype. While the top brands have presented various interpretations of what a “3D Printed Shoe” would or could look like, little has trickled down to the consumer other than the option to customize colors a la Nike iD. Needless to say, we’re getting closer to a future of retail that consists of linking personalized data and foot scan technologies for opportunities to manufacture footwear on-demand. From a consumer’s perspective, this creates a completely tailored product. From a manufacturer’s perspective, this can completely disrupt existing supply chains from the inside-out. With the introduction of their ‘Futurecraft…

For those who grew up in the 1960s, making toys took on a quite literal sense, thanks in no small part to toy manufacturer Mattel. The company, which had only just introduced Barbie and would later introduce Hot Wheels, managed to bring the same manufacturing methods used for mass manufactured toys into living rooms around the world. Starting with the “Vac-U-Maker” set in 1960, Mattel took the vacuum forming industrial process and turned it into a – quite dangerous – living room toy that let children form hot plastic sheets over various household objects to manufacture ‘new’ toys from the impressions. Soon after, the company added an open-face electric hot plate…

Don your favorite bathrobe, cream that coffee and get comfortable with this week’s SolidSmack Weekend Reader. The Weekend Reader features a handful of the most interesting articles featured on the ‘Smack over the past week ranging from tips and tricks to inspirational designs, processes, and more. So lay back, relax and take a load off while reading the top ten stories on SolidSmack this past week. Oh and uh…don’t forget to shed some much-needed sunlight on your face, too. The Sexiest Motorcycle Design You’ve Ever Seen – The Ducati Scrambler MARIN “Prepare to drool. Meet the UMC-038 Ducati Scrambler “MARIN” – an 800cc bike that is more lightweight than a…

They’ve built desert racers, motorcycles, drift trikes, cruisers and the world’s first 3D printed car, but one thing on their collaborative, open-source product development list of vehicle innovation isn’t a vehicle at all. It seems their sight are set toward the sky. The company just revealed that newly formed Airbus Ventures has made a ‘significant investment’ in the Phoenix-based company. “We’re dead-set on revolutionizing the way we make vehicles through direct digital manufacturing, and Airbus Ventures recognizes the value of this for the aerospace sector.” says Jay Rodgers, CEO of Local Motors. “Simply said, we want to remake hardware to bring it up to speed with the pace of our…

The tall man flitted about, skipping across the cracks and dancing merrily, whistling, humming, strumming his broom. Perhaps there were a few times we wished he would stop, but the glare he gave warned us of a consequence that would deliver the full force of his song, sung violently from the bowels of these links. Rob Shields – The Philly-based artist has a range, but recently started using a cel shade retro future style for a cyberpunk series that looks incredible. Bacon Roses – Valentine’s Day is this Sunday. Crank the romance to 11 with these beautiful bacon roses. Lotteria – You never know what you might do, that may…

When I was a kid, our “modeling app” was a pile of mud and a stick. Two sticks if we were lucky. Nowadays kids have more apps than they can shake two sticks at, but creative apps for kids have been limited to stacking cubes, coloring puppies and decorating cupcakes. SolidWorks is changing that with six new Apps for Kids, designed for kids 4 and up to build interest in STEM subjects and the product design process.