A collaboration between two forward-thinking U.S. manufacturing giants – Flex (formally Flextronics) and Nike – is about to generate huge dividends in Guadalajara.
A new footwear plant inaugurated this week on the outskirts of the city in Zapopan is the latest development in a partnership forged two years ago between the technological and electronics manufacturer from California and the sports apparel behemoth from neighboring Oregon.
The 57,000-square-meter plant, which will employ 5,000 workers initially, will at first concentrate on the production of smart running shoes with “wearable” technology developed by Flex.
Wearables are smart electronic devices (with micro-controllers) that can be worn on the body as implants or in accessories. Flex is already a major presence in the wearable market and created its union with Nike to further develop the integration of technology to apparel and clothing.
Last year, Nike filed a patent for a smart running shoe that embeds a wireless tracking system into a shoe that has the potential to record biometrics data in real-time, including heart rate, blood pressure and energy expenditure.
According to Nike, the partnership with Flex “brings new capabilities and expertise outside of the existing footwear industry to create future systems for making product and catalyze innovation across Nike’s global supply chain.”
According to some reports, in the longterm these advanced manufacturing technologies will allow Nike to make customized shoes in single orders instead of mass produced in their thousands, and deliver the shoes in days instead of weeks.
Flex has been present in Guadalajara and other areas of Mexico for the past 21 years, employing 22 percent of its workforce here.
The initial investment in the new plant, located on the highway to Colotlan, is 750 million pesos ($US40 million).