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By Rich Wilhelm
Mar 13, 2025
Whether you simply enjoy running or walking, or your occupation demands specialized shoes, footwear-and standards to improve it-is important to all of us.
In this episode of “Standards Impact”, Dave Walsh, editor-in-chief of Standardization News, talks with two experts who are helping to create standards that will benefit you and your feet. Matt Pietrowski is global senior manager of product engineering with Timberland and vice chair of ASTM’s pedestrian walkway safety and footwear committee (F13), and Eric Olson is president of Precision Testing Laboratories and also an F13 member.
Dave Walsh: We're talking about safety and we're talking about protection and performance, but F13 has many additional standards and I'm sure they involve factors and features of footwear that we might not even think of in daily life. Maybe you could each talk about some of the other work F13 does and what do you think are some of the most impactful standards the committee has published and how have they helped people in daily life? You know, maybe ways that people don't even think of.
Matt Piotrowski: In addition to safety, we also have F2232, which is the test method for determining how much load it takes to detach a high heel. For women who wear high heels, there's a standard that measures to make sure they're safe and how it applies to them. And our biggest goal is that people wearing safety footwear or any footwear in general, never even consider this thing. They never consider traction in their daily lives or on the work site. They never have to think about are they going to be protected? It's just inherently there. And so those are the type of standards we want to put into place for footwear manufacturers and the component suppliers to leverage. So again, that the people working and wearing this type of footwear can just do their jobs. And Eric, if you could go into how some other stuff we've been working on for the general population.
Eric Olson: Waterproof boots and waterproof, just footwear in general are something that people buy all the time. What we're doing in F13 is we're trying to make sure that when that label is on a shoe that it means something. We're developing a test to ensure that waterproof footwear is in fact waterproof or less waterproof, more water resistant, and creating distinguishing between those two in establishing performance requirements for those so that when a manufacturer does label their footwear that way, it means something. And that's something like Matt was saying with traction for the longest time everybody had slip resistance on their shoes, but was never vetted, never tested. Now we have that performance requirement allowing them to label their footwear appropriately and to the discerning consumer, they can see on that label that it has been tested. So it really protects not only safety workers, but anyone wearing shoes that they want to be waterproof or slip resistant.
Dave: Well, most of these recordings we'll ask our guests where they see their field in the future, and a lot of times if we're talking about commercial space flight, they'll be talking about getting to Mars and things like that. I'm not sure if there's an equivalent here in the footwear field, but where do you see your field in the next 20 or 30 years and, and what kind of standards will be needed in the future? What will footwear look like in about 30 years?
Matt: I think 20, 30 years from now, I think we'll see lighter weight footwear. I think we'll see maybe slimmer, less bulky footwear as the foams and protective features can get smaller and you can get more out of them with less space. I think we'll see those things change substantially. And again, I think with the influx of wearable technology, think about pedometers and, and things that you can wear today and, and just give more information to other things. I can see that stuff translating to footwear, whether it be safety or otherwise. I mean, how cool would it be if your footwear could tell you ahead of time that you're about to trip just to warn you or something like that? Or even if you're working in certain fields, you may be working around robots and robotics, so maybe there's some sort of proximity sensors again. I think it'll be more of that connectiveness. And of course you'll need standards and performance requirements to make sure everything works together and talks to one another. But I think that's probably where I think or see the future of footwear and, and the standards that we needed for it.
Eric: And to your earlier point, Matt, I think we're heading towards this customizable footwear, not everybody's foot is the same. To address that, I think 3D printing, but also like using components that we don't have yet that are stronger lighter weight, provide better comfort. I see the future of footwear being more customizable, more comfortable and perform better.
