Case Study: The Timberland Company achieves faster time-to-market, greater footwear customization and reduced waste with 3D Systems

Geomagic Reverse Engineering Software and 3D Printing Reinvenst Footwear Manufacturing

Timberland, the iconic footwear brand, faced a manufacturing challenge: its traditional, hand-made shoe lasts were slow to produce, error-prone, costly to ship, and generated material waste—limiting customization, slowing time to market, and creating inconsistent fit and quality across global factories.

By adopting Geomagic reverse-engineering software, Konica-Minolta 3D scanning and 3D Systems’ ProJet CJP printing, Timberland digitized last creation and prototyping. The new workflow produces precise digital lasts in about an hour and physical prototypes in 3–4 hours (versus up to two weeks previously), cut reworks by 75%, reduced hand-made lasts to 10%, eliminated sculpting chemicals and much waste, enabled digital transfers to manufacturers, and created a searchable archive of 500+ designs for faster, more consistent product development.

The Timberland Company

Toby Ringdahl

Computer Aided Design Manager