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Debuting in Nike Town London, B.I.L.L. (Bot Initiated Longevity Lab), is a robot-augmented system designed to clean and repair shoes with selected customizations. Framis Italia developed the project in co-creation with Nike, providing its know-how in footwear decoration and supplying heat-welding patches.
Extending the life of product – the primary goal of B.I.L.L. – is one way to significantly reduce its impact on the planet, helping Nike chart its way toward a more circular future.
Nike’s circular vision includes products that are made with the intention of being reused, remade, rediscovered, and loved again as something brand new. Extending the life of a product is a key component of that circular future. Giving a product a second life reduces its environmental impact on the planet.
Using advanced robotics, old-school hand craft, water-based cleaning products and recycled polyester patches, B.I.L.L. is currently capable of extending the life of Air Force 1s, Air Jordan 1s, Space Hippie 01s, and Nike Dunks. After loading a shoe into the robot, a three-dimensional digital model of the shoe is created, pinpointing detailed areas of cleaning on the upper, the sidewalls, and the outsole. Shoppers can then select patches to repair areas of wear-and-tear on the upper of their shoe.
Once B.I.L.L. has finished with the shoes (all in all, B.I.L.L. takes about 45 minutes to process a pair of Air Force 1s) , Nike store athletes add new liners and laces made from recycled materials.
B.I.L.L. will be available at Nike Town London throughout September. The experience is a pilot and London will provide valuable insights that will guide the future of sustainable services in Nike doors.
