Synthetic Leather right around the corner!

[ComputerDoctor]

https://www.foxbusiness.com/features/this-lab-grown-leather-could-hit-retailers-next-year

 

Sam

[alpha2]

Yeah, but what does it smell like? (I do like the no waste aspect, though, THAT would be nice!)

[JLSleather]

Meh .. leather is (or at least was) about using what is available for useful purposes.  This is more like making something "'new" so we can sell more stuff.  One is a benefit to the planet.

[Tigdim]

Most people eat meat, the hides from the animals we consume should be used for something, not just tossed out to rot...

The article states this... “Forgacs, who started the company about six years ago, said he was approached by several large brands and buyers of leather to create the knockoff because many of them were dissatisfied by the leather they were getting overseas.There’s a lot of waste. "We waste anywhere from 30% to 40% or more of the leather that we buy,” he said, adding that the majority of leather suppliers in the U.S. have simply vanished, forcing a lot of American companies to buy overseas." 

As far as I understand things... and please correct me if I am wrong. As I am applying what i know about manufacturing, to come to this conclusion. (I am an engineer that works in manufacturing at a company that has plants both in the US and China)  

I see this as a solution to a issue, created by the companies using leather in the first place!

The US leather suppliers have vanished, because companies went overseas to have products manufactured (using leather local to the manufacturing facility-to save on shipping costs) /and or started buying leather overseas, because it was cheaper. Now that the overseas suppliers have/little to no competition (from the US / and or other quality manufactures- because they were put out of business by the overseas supplier) They no-longer provide the quality of goods once required to be competitive BECAUSE we can't meet demand with the facilities we have in the US (Or elsewhere) , even if we wanted too! We just have to deal with it or invest money into re-starting or building facility's to create competition, in an effort to drive the overseas quality back up. 

We have done this in just about every industry that can be outsourced... once the US based companies have been put out of business buy the outsourcing companies, they drop their quality to be on par with the price.

In the the long run, you still get what you pay for!

Aaron

 

[chrisash]

As the third world takes on many more jobs at far lower prices than the more advanced countries can match, the modern countries must rely more on higher technical manufacture to keep employment and wages high to match the required standard of living

 

I used to work in the oil industry in the North Sea and Middle east which in the early days was controlled by USA companies. Unfortunately for them they continued to use old equipment from the southern states all the time whilst the Europeans looked at the limitations and made modern equipment with high tech and low expensive manpower and gradually became the makers of most equipment made in the offshore oil industry around the world, this caused the USA companies to have to buy out the European tech companies to survive, but many old traditions lingered on with "we always done it this way"

If high tech and low employers was brought into the leather industry a big change could take place just like many industries

[rodneywt1180b]

As long as the producers can't call it real leather....

They mentioned it can be liquefied in the article.  That could open some interesting possibilities for molding or casting it.

Plastics and other man made goods have their place.  For my own work I'll stick with natural materials though. 

 

[wlg1908]

I will stick with real leather. Everything will be fake soon.

Just now, wlg1908 said:

I will stick with real leather. Everything will be fake soon.

Mother nature made, Mother nature approved 

[sheathmaker]

It will be interesting to semis they can duplicate the properties of  veg tan leather,  ie carving, stamping.  I can see how it could replace chrome for clothing, upholstery, fashion bags and purses etc

 

Paul

[howlback]

Tremendous interest before product has been fully matured = “Hype”

Better than plastic though, I guess 

[rodneywt1180b]

I think there will always be a desire and market for real products.  Imitation products have their place but real materials have a beauty and warmth that man made materials lack.