The thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) produced by Teknor Apex Company with a customized formula has helped China Anta Sporting Goods Co., Ltd. develop a running shoe with excellent performance and high resilience performance, and users can easily run farther with this running shoe the distance.
As one of the largest sportswear companies in the world, Anta and Teknor Apex have developed a high-shock absorption material for the midsole of its new running shoes. The midsole refers to the thick layer between the inner sole and the outer sole, usually made of some kind of soft cushioning material. For this new running shoe, Anta cooperated with Teknor Apex to introduce technology outside the shoe industry to develop a midsole structure containing Monprene® TPE. The two companies conducted 40,000 running impact tests to determine the solution that can provide consumers with the best resilience performance for a long time.
The key feature of this performance is the rebound rate, which is used to measure the ratio of the energy returned to the runner by the force of the runner each step and the impact energy applied to deform the midsole. According to Anta's research, the standard midsole on the market can reach a rebound rate of 50%, while this new midsole can reach 70%. The retained energy is converted into running power, allowing runners to run longer distances.
Serene Cheng Sook Ee, Business Director of the Thermoplastic Elastomer Division of Teknor Apex, said: “The cooperation between Anta and Teknor Apex challenges the conventional thinking about running shoes, focusing on the resilience of the midsole, not just its cushioning properties. Customized The Monprene solution allows running shoes to have stronger resilience at every step, and it also gives Anta casual shoes a better sense of comfort."
According to Teknor Apex, the customized Monprene is a TPE with Shore A hardness of 60, which provides excellent wrinkle, tear and kink resistance, and extremely low compression set. It exhibits excellent elasticity, even at low temperatures, it can still maintain excellent softness in the midsole.