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MILO®SHOES

A circular footwear system engineered from post-consumer packaging.

  • Flexible multilayer doypack packaging has extremely low structural recyclability in Colombia. The challenge was not simply reuse—it was to engineer a non-structural waste material into a load-bearing outsole capable of withstanding repetitive human impact while remaining affordable and manufacturable at scale.

  • The outsole was developed under real biomechanical constraints: repetitive impact, plantar pressure distribution, arch activation, and fatigue resistance.

    Biomechanical validation conducted with FootLab – Pontificia Universidad Javeriana confirmed:

    • Optimized material density: 480 kg/m³
    • Reduced peak plantar pressures (>150 kPa)
    • Improved arch activation
    • Enhanced load symmetry during gait

    The design prioritised long-term comfort, balanced pressure distribution, and responsible human–product interaction under repeated use conditions.

  • Transforming flexible waste into a structural footwear component required controlled compression, density calibration, and geometric optimisation.

    Development included:

    • Iterative material shredding and compaction testing
    • Outsole geometry refinement to control flex and rebound
    • Tooling adaptation for local manufacturing
    • ASTM F1614-99 cyclic compression validation (42,000 impact cycles)

    Final results showed <3.2% stiffness degradation after simulated marathon-level impact, maintaining structural integrity under 1100 N load.

  • Post-consumer multilayer packaging was mechanically processed and reintegrated into the outsole structure as a compressed composite layer.

    This approach:

    • Diverted flexible waste from landfill
    • Preserved structural performance
    • Enabled circular material integration without compromising durability

  • MILO® Shoes demonstrates that low-value flexible waste can be transformed into biomechanically validated footwear components suitable for mass production.

    Technical outcomes:

    • Competitive mechanical performance compared to benchmark athletic footwear
    • Validated fatigue resistance under ASTM standards
    • Scalable local manufacturing potential

    By transforming packaging waste into high-performance footwear, the project illustrates how industrial design can reconnect sustainability, accessibility, and everyday consumer products—democratizing circular innovation for a broader audience.