Two stars of the latest winter sports range from Benetton, the Nordica Smartech™ 10 and 12 ski boot models, feature new closure systems called the Total Fit System™ (TFS) and Ready Lock™.
The closure systems, which make these ski boots much easier to put on and take off than previous models, are protected by housings made of DuPont™ Delrin® ST (Super Tough) and T (Tough) acetal resins, respectively. The company selected DuPont’s Delrin® Super Tough acetal resin for the housings because the material can be ultrasonically welded in common with the rest of the closure systems. The acetal resin was also selected for its very low friction coefficient, its outstanding mechanical resistance and its dimensional stability. Delrin® also displays excellent low temperature resistance to minus 20 °C, which means that the closure system will perform well – even in very cold conditions. The TFS is a servo-assisted closure system that entails just one forefoot locking action. Relax position is obtained by simply pressing a button. Meanwhile, the Ready Lock™ device enables modular closing of the cuff with the minimum of effort. After the boot is on, the device automatically returns the flaps to the overlapped position, making the overall closing procedure very much easier. Nordica is a sports brand of the Benetton Group, which is based in Ponzano (Treviso) Italy. The company was originally founded in the 1930s as a cobbler shop in Montepelluna (Treviso) manufacturing leather mountain shoes and ski boots. After 1945, the company became a world-leading ski boot manufacturer with 26 percent world market share today. The Benetton Group is present in 120 countries worldwide and has annual retail sales of 1.2 billion Euros. |
