Zeerpah: Footwear Solution for Military Use

Abstract

Military stands to date as one of the most important organization of any country. These brave defenders are selected after tough, rigorous tests and are equipped with top notch gear for maximum efficiency with minimum risk of failure. This opens an opportunity to develop products that provide safety and maximize the user's potential. Project Zeerpah took form after coming across a research paper published in 2015 which showed how long-term use of the existing military footwear caused musculoskeletal injuries in the soldiers. Furthermore, product time line research indicated that one of the most commonly used combat boot used in Pakistan is a design developed in the 1940's. Understanding the need for a footwear design that worked best for the military use of Pakistan, ideation was done to create a product that provided ultimate comfort while being safe for the job use. Surveys and interviews were conducted of military personnel belonging to different ranks and statuses to understand end user and their needs. Market research was conducted by visiting shoe factories to get the perspective of clients and producers, side by side materials were studies to see which materials worked best for the project's needs and why. Most importantly the shoe designing domain was ventured into to understand cuts and components of different shoes to design for specific elements accordingly. With all aspects in mind and the intentions of the project clear Zeerpah was developed as an ongoing footwear product line with a modular base model (CORE) that aspires to be an injury proof comfort providing footwear design that can be used by all and any member of the Pakistan Army. For the scope of this project the focus was on the development of the CORE model and identifying the factors that could present future design possibilities to build on.