How it Works
Moisture: Moisture chemistries abound address wicking, moving, or magically turning moisture into a gel. Sheehan Sales Associates is the first textile developer to reflect and ask: Where does moisture come from and what can we do to reduce it?
Simply put, moisture comes from heat. And heat comes from friction. And friction comes from two objects in motion against each other.
etc.® reduces friction created by shear forces that are created by movement. Where is this movement found? Everywhere -- inside your footwear, saddle pads, backpack straps, medical devices…the list goes on.
Heat Buildup: When you rub two sticks together (friction) you get fire (heat). When your feet repeatedly rub against the bottom, top, and sides of your shoes throughout the day, you’re generating heat.
Having etc.® linings is like installing a thermostat in your shoes. They keep your feet cool when hot and will reduce moisture, so you do not have that “chill effect” from evaporation. Bottom line you sweat less and your feet stay more comfortable. It’s climate control for your feet! And we can prove it.
Stink: Feet sweat- our feet have the highest concentration of sweat glands on our body. Now we take these sweat gland filled appendages and enclose them in a dark warm place. The result is bacteria growth and decaying bacteria is what causes our feet and footwear to stink. etc.® eliminates the environment bacteria needs to thrive. With etc.® linings your feet stay cooler longer, drier longer, and when you remove your shoes they dry much faster than with any other lining material. etc.® in an extensive test performed by an independent Satra approved textile testing lab the etc.® material goes from complete saturation to completely dry to the touch in just 45 min.
Blisters: With every step we take a tremendous amount of force is placed on our feet—up to four times our body weight! With each step our feet morph in shape and size and rub against our shoe linings creating -- you guessed it – friction (and pressure). The soles of our shoes were developed to stop us safely. When we put the brakes on to stop all of this force and pressure has to go somewhere. It is transferred from the soles of our shoes to the in-sole, from the insole it gets transferred to the foot. This repeated movement causes rough skin and ultimately blisters.
There is a needed movement that takes place inside your shoes, a relationship between foot and lining. If you try to stop this movement the forces are transferred to your layers of skin causing a fluid filled sore. etc.® creates a perfect relationship between your feet and your linings during any activity. etc.® breaks the cycle by attacking blisters at the source.
A National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel White Paper (Friction Induced Skin Injuries – Are They Pressure Ulcers?) suggests that friction is a risk factor that may contribute to or exacerbate pressure ulcer development due to the shear it creates. That is, friction causes the shear strain in the tissue, which can increase the risk of tissue breakdown and lead to pressure ulcers.
No two feet are the same size, yet we make both feet fit into the same size shoe.
Our feet have four different sizes throughout the course of a day; one during normal activity, one during strenuous activity, one due to thermal stress, and another at rest. The shearing that takes place between the foot and the inside of a shoe is an unavoidable factor. etc.® breaks the cycle by attacking friction and reducing it to a minimum.