The Materials at WSA Expo & Conference, held in Las Vegas, USA 19-21 February 2008 has revealed the final workshop in its educational program.

The workshop, 'Utilizing Innovation from all Markets to Inspire New Materials and Designs,' will examine how to exploit innovative materials from industries outside the traditional footwear remit.

It will cover how to specify these new materials, and how to use them to create original products that deliver real differentiation, better performance and even a stronger brand image.

Respected industry consultant, Spencer White, will deliver the workshop. Spencer White has worked in the design and technology side of the footwear industry for over 22 years, working for names such as Reebok International Ltd, where he contributed to numerous patented and profitable technological inventions, such as THE PUMP and DMX cushioning technologies.

Bringing successful innovations to market is his specialty and he is now president of Playon Technology, which focuses on product creation within the footwear, sporting goods and technology arenas.

During this workshop, Spencer will cover which non-traditional industries the footwear industry should be drawing inspiration from, how to establish the functional value of materials and components for improving product performance and how to identify useful and/or aesthetically unique materials, technologies and processes from other industries. Importantly he will also discuss how to evaluate and minimise any risk when using new materials.

This workshop completes the full Materials at WSA workshop programme which also includes 'Demystifying what Green Really Means','Material Innovation from Fashion, Technology & Performance', and 'Understanding Chinese Culture & How it Helps you Successfully do Business in China'.

Courtney Harold, Show Director comments, "The workshop program has been crafted to appeal to all footwear, handbags, and accessories design, development and sourcing professionals.

Working closely with our advisory board of industry professionals we have created an event where designers and specifiers can not only meet the most innovative suppliers from across the footwear supply chain, but also take part in a highly educative workshop programme that gets to the heart of all the critical sourcing issues driving their business.

WSA is committed to becoming the intellectual center of footwear sourcing in the U.S. and this specifically designed program, along with the array of seminars on offer at The WSA Show, illustrates that commitment".