Digitalization revolutionizes sport shoe manufacturing

French company ASF 4.0 is reshaping the future of sports shoe manufacturing. With automation and digitalization, they've built a smart factory in France – and are expanding to Portugal with a new Megafactory. Their mission? To make European shoe production competitive, sustainable and scalable.

Made in Europe again

For decades now, sport shoes have been synonymous with production in the Far East – and subsequently a large carbon footprint due to long transport routes. That’s changing. Advanced Shoe Factory 4.0 (ASF 4.0), a subsidiary of Chamatex Group specializing in technical textiles, demonstrates that it is possible to relocate sports shoe manufacturing to Europe while remaining competitive.

It all started with a bold ambition: to prove that the production of sports shoes, an industry historically manual, could be automated and digitally integrated. "It was necessary to demonstrate that we could manufacture shoes at a competitive price in Europe, and for that, we needed Siemens automation," explains Gilles Réguillon, CEO of ASF 4.0 and Chamatex Group.

From vision to industrial reality

Our team has been involved all along, starting with initial feasibility studies based on Tecnomatix Plant Simulation and NX Mechatronic Concept Designer (MCD). Together, we created a virtual factory to test various production scenarios even before construction. This approach validated the project's credibility: yes, it was possible to bring manufacturing back to France profitably.

The smart factory in action

The pilot factory in Ardoix, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France, has been equipped with sophisticated technological architecture with machines mostly patented by their manufacturers for producing shoes using automation. The machines have been equipped with SIMATIC S7-1500 controllers so that they can communicate among one another via the OPC UA open protocol.

The SCADA system is based on SIMATIC WinCC OA, which gives users access to production screens on browser-based clients, offering remarkable flexibility: the factory can produce for several brands – Salomon, Babolat, Millet, and recently 555 – with configurations tailored to each.

SIMATIC HMI panel within the Advanced Shoe Factory 4.0

Automated shoe manufacturing at the ASF 4.0 smart factory

A success that is accelerating

Thousands of sensors, including SIMATIC RFID chips, are scattered throughout the production line. They provide total transparency: operators know in real-time the remaining steps, receive alerts in case of malfunction and have key performance indicators to monitor quality and yields. SCALANCE, at the heart of operational technology, ensures secure communication across the entire system, while SINEMA Remote Connect even allows for remote maintenance interventions.

Four years after its inauguration in 2022, the Ardoix factory has produced over 200,000 pairs of shoes, validating the maturity of ASF 4.0's unique automated process in the world. This success has confirmed the interest of historical partners – Salomon, Babolat, Millet – as well as Groupe Zebra, an innovation agency, who have been shareholders from the beginning and share a common vision: to reinvent sports shoe manufacturing in Europe.

European expansion: Portugal as a new hub

With this validation, ASF 4.0 is taking a decisive step. The company has just completed a major fundraising of 7 million euros in 2025, supplemented by bank financing and local grants, to launch its second highly robotic factory in Portugal.

Barcelos, north of Porto, will host the Megafactory ASF 4.0 Portugal. The choice of Portugal is not incidental: the country has a historical know-how in shoe manufacturing, geographical proximity to the French site and local expertise in technical sole production.

Initial productions are scheduled for July 2026. Phase 1 (2026) will include 2 production lines with a capacity of 500,000 pairs per year and will create 200 skilled jobs. Two expansion phases are planned for 2028 and 2030 to reach 1.5 million pairs annually and over 500 people. The revenue generated by the first phase is expected to reach 20 million euros.

Planned new ASF 4.0 (Advanced Shoe Factory 4.0) production site in Barcelos, Portugal

The benefits of strategic relocation

The company’s expansion addresses major challenges for brands and the European industry:

Responsive and flexible

A short-circuit organization allows brands to quickly respond to European market trends while flexibly testing innovations with consumers through smaller series.

Competitive and sustainable

Streamlining and robotization strengthen competitiveness against Asian producers, while local production minimizes the carbon footprint.

Local job creation

80 skilled positions created in France, over 200 expected in Portugal in two years

A model for the European industry

Gilles Réguillon, CEO of ASF 4.0 and Chamatex Group

Alongside this expansion, the ASF 4.0 France site is ramping up. It will remain the strategic center for research and development, innovation, and industrialization, playing a key role in the continuous improvement of technologies and accelerating the development of new models. The French factory is also expanding its offering towards higher value-added products. "It is a huge satisfaction to scale up to Europe, surrounded by brands, industrial partners, athletes and high-level financiers," confides Gilles Réguillon.

The ASF 4.0 model is a concrete illustration of our integrated approach: innovative technological solutions combined with structured financial support through Siemens Financial Services, contributing to transforming traditionally manual industries into digital and automated ecosystems. This integrated partnership not only secures the return on investment but also facilitates the transition to international scale, proving that the synergy between technology and finance is the essential driver of sustainable reindustrialization. ASF 4.0 is reshaping the future of European production: local, agile, competitive, and environmentally friendly.

It is a huge satisfaction to scale up to Europe, surrounded by brands, industrial partners, athletes, and high-level financiers.

Gilles Réguillon, CEO, ASF 4.0 and Chamatex Group