Page 42 - October 2015 Green Builder Magazine

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PHOTO CREDIT: REVISION ENERGY

www.greenbuildermedia.com 10.2015 HEATHER WALLACE

Quality Control. A machine tests the flexibility of KEEN shoes by bending them thousands of times.

proprietary comfort and performance features. By creating a doubled their square footage and currently occupy 30,000 square
work boot that shares our outdoor-inspired design aesthetic and feet. KEEN gathers innovative, high-quality products from all
features state-of-the-art safety and performance detailing, we’ve over the world and then performs the final assembly in Portland.
brought something really unique to the industry.” Thirty-eight KEEN styles are currently being built out of the
Portland factory (11 are KEEN Utility styles), with plans for more
KEEN Utility was launched in 2009. Its first collection, which in the future.
included the still-popular Pittsburgh style, was unique from the
get-go. The outdoor-inspired silhouette with the iconic KEEN toe “We are incredibly proud to have our KEEN factory building
bumper easily transitions from work to weekend, and the designs products right here in our home town of Portland, Oregon,” says
stand out among other, more traditional work boot designs offered Reilly. “It allows us to support our community with jobs and
in today’s market. industry and remain very hands-on during the manufacturing
process. Our goal is to continue expanding not only the amount
The Pittsburgh style exemplifies KEEN Utility brand. Crafted of styles built in Portland, but also investigate how we can
with nubuck leather, it features a KEEN.Dry waterproof but use even more American-made materials in the production
breathable membrane. It also features KEEN Utility’s signature process.”
ASTM-rated asymmetrical steel toes, which provide a roomier toe
box and maximum comfort. The Portland factory is a breeding ground for big ideas and
experimentation. The facility includes an innovation lab where
KEEN credits its dual-density, compression-molded EVA and they are able to take ideas to test very quickly.
polyurethane midsole for providing superior cushion, lightness
and resilience. Glues are not used in KEEN’s American-Built “We have a good mix of old school and new school tools [that
process, to the benefit of factory employees and the environment. include a new 3-D printer],” says Steve Smith, head innovation
director at KEEN. (Smith designed the famous New Balance 574
BRINGING IT HOME shoe style right out of college and also spent 10 years at Nike.)
While the company can’t technically claim that its products are “If we can dream it, we have the potential to build it.”
made in the USA, a good many are assembled here. KEEN opened
its Portland, Oregon, factory in October 2010. They recently Also located on site is a testing lab, where shoes are randomly
taken off the line and put through vigorous testing to ensure they