Manufacturing

It’s been a busy year at OESH and by all accounts, will be utterly insane next year. Early this year, our La Vida v 2.0 took legs (literally) with a few blog posts that went viral, some really nice media coverage, and a new report from the American College of Sports Medicine that the ideal […]

I just got back from an amazing Autodesk conference in Las Vegas and am leaving tonight for the Netherlands via Oxford, England (where I will get a chance to see Jayme). I was invited to give a lecture at “SLEM”, an international innovation and education institute for footwear, located in Wallwijk, in the south of the Netherlands. “SLEM” is an […]

For anyone who still doubts that I not only design but actually machine the sole molds for our OESH La Vida’s, here you go. After laboring over CAD/CAM programming files, setting up the jig, securing the mold forms, and deciding which endmills and feeds and speeds to use, I take a deep breath and click the “Go” button on the […]

When I started making shoes, a fellow physician friend of mine said, “Casey, knowing you, you’re going to hate those sweat shops and you’re going to want to do something about it.” Indeed, I did hate every shoe factory I visited (and believe me, I visited a lot of them). I didn’t need to be a […]

“A maker is a person or thing that makes or produces something.” Historically a maker does metalworking, woodworking, and/or traditional arts and crafts, but more recently the term “maker” has become synonymous with being engaged in engineering-oriented pursuits such as electronics, robotics, 3D manufacturing, and the use of CNC tools. Insofar as OESH, unlike any […]

  We’ve just begun an exciting partnership with Autodesk, the world leader in 3D design software, to help take their latest CAD/CAM (computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing) software called Autodesk Fusion 360 to a new level. Simultaneously, they’re working with us on a new project that I can’t wait to share in the next coming months. First I need to mention […]

Who knew that making shoes would involve cutting so much metal? Recently, we cut all new slats for our Waterjet Saw. Slats are the long, sleek metal pieces that lay in the tank and hold the material about to be cut. I know, quite ironic that we cut slats on top of slats to make new slats. […]

OESH La Vida 2.0 Science-driven design Locally sourced Environmentally safe production All seams sewn, not glued 100% recyclable sole material Zero heavy metals Zero solvent adhesives Zero VOC’s We’ve been getting a lot of attention for OESH La Vida being good for the environment. Which is pretty neat considering that the only real mention of La Vida’s environmental […]

On the heels (ha!) of all our research showing that shoes, especially women’s shoes, need to be completely re-designed, the most prestigious engineering journal in the world, the IEEE, decided to publish an article entitled, “The Race to Build a Better Shoe.” With all the recent questioning of current so-called “better” footwear designs, the editors determined […]

It’s kind of funny to think that with all the high tech computer-controlled machines in the factory, we’ve been hand mixing the critical ingredients of our OESH® Sole. Our mixer was originally built by UVa Engineering Students with a handle that turned the wheels; therefore to properly mix a bucket of ingredients we’d manually turn the handle […]