Our legs and feet carry us through life, allowing us to move in many different ways: walking, running, jumping, and dancing. We usually only realize how important they are for smooth, pain-free movement when health issues arise. Injuries, foot deformities such as high arches or flat feet, medical conditions, or standing for long periods can lead to pain and limit mobility. Special orthopedic insoles can help relieve this pain and restore movement. However, creating custom orthopedic insoles traditionally requires a lot of manual work and time. This is where 3D printing offers an exciting alternative. The Austrian company Plasmics is embracing additive manufacturing and taking orthopedic insole production to a new level with its Feetneeds platform, which is designed to be personalized, digital, and efficient.
Traditional insole manufacturing involves many manual steps performed by trained specialists. This extends production times and often means patients have to wait in pain. Since the process is done by hand, it is difficult to reproduce insoles with exact consistency, and large-scale production is not practical. Additionally, because traditional methods are subtractive, they can produce a significant amount of waste and sanding dust. 3D printing, on the other hand, allows for fast production with accurate, repeatable results. That is exactly what Plasmics is aiming for with Feetneeds. By combining expert-level customization with automated additive manufacturing, Feetneeds provides a modern and sustainable solution for producing orthopedic insoles.
Traditional orthopedic insole manufacturing involves many steps, is costly, time-consuming, and produces waste. 3D printing significantly reduces these challenges.
Feetneeds is a fully automated, end-to-end 3D printing solution specifically designed for producing custom orthopedic insoles. It aims to deliver fast, accurate, and cost-effective manufacturing while eliminating the manual steps involved in traditional production. This allows orthopedic specialists, medical supply professionals, and podiatrists to focus more of their time and expertise on their patients and their individual needs. With Feetneeds, users simply submit their insole design, and Plasmics takes care of the rest. But how exactly does the process work?
The Feetneeds Process: From Scan to Insole
Every custom insole begins with a foot measurement. Feetneeds supports the input of 2D scans, 3D scans, foam box impressions, or blueprints. The next step is designing the individualized insole, which can be done using any standard orthopedic CAD/CAM software on the market. The resulting STL file can then be uploaded to Feetneeds or sent directly to the printer through a data interface from the CAD software. Printing starts automatically, though the schedule can be adjusted if needed.
The automated workflow allows for flexible usage models. Frequent users can invest in their own platform, while others have the option to use an on-demand printing model. The entire process, from uploading the STL file to producing the finished insole, is fully automated. The system takes care of slicing, managing the print queue, and intelligently prioritizing products. Each insole takes less than 90 minutes to print. With continuous printing capabilities, insoles can be produced back-to-back for several days without any human intervention. A heated storage chamber for the filament also helps maintain optimal and consistent print quality. The material used is recyclable expanded TPU. The honeycomb structure of the insole makes it possible to vary the hardness within a single insole, ranging from Shore A0 30 to A0 90. This gives orthopedic technicians the flexibility to meet specific requirements for comfort and biomechanical performance.
How Plasmics Uses 3D Printing for Finished Medical Products
With Feetneeds, Plasmics responds to the growing demand for personalized orthopedic solutions and provides healthcare professionals with a tool that helps them stay adaptable in the face of evolving regulatory and actuarial requirements. Feetneeds also addresses another key market need: scalability. It is designed to support sustainable, scalable production in both small clinics and large medical institutions.
Environmental considerations played a major role in the development of Feetneeds. Unlike subtractive manufacturing methods, additive technologies generate significantly less waste. This not only reduces material costs, but also eliminates noise and dust, creating a cleaner and healthier working environment. The TPU used is recyclable and has been optimized for both comfort and durability.
Feetneeds brings together 3D printing and deep orthopedic expertise in a user-friendly medical product. It not only proves the feasibility and scalability of end-use parts in the healthcare sector, but also highlights the environmental and economic advantages of additive manufacturing over traditional subtractive methods.If you’d like to experience the benefits of Feetneeds in person, visit the ORTHOPÄDIE SCHUH TECHNIK trade show in Cologne, Germany. Plasmics will present its solution there from October 24 to 25, 2025. To learn more about Feetneeds, click HERE.
The 3D-printed insoles are finished in just 90 minutes
What are your thoughts on Plasmics’ Feetneeds platform? Let us know in a comment below or on our LinkedIn or Facebook pages! Plus, don’t forget to sign up for our free weekly Newsletter to get the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox. You can also find all our videos on our YouTube channel. Interested in more medical and dental 3D printing news? Visit our dedicated page HERE.
*Photo Credits: Plasmics