What benefits could a shoe manufacturer gain from using simulations in testing?

Question

Cars are expensive to build and test, which is why car manufacturers use computer simulations instead of real crash tests. Shoes are much cheaper to make. What benefits could a shoe manufacturer gain from using simulations in testing?

Answer 1

The economics are everything. Moore's Law says that a particular task accomplished by a computer will be half as expensive 18 months from now than it is right now. It also says that that halving of cost will continue for the foreseeable future. Eventually the testing of different shapes and combinations of materials will become less expensive to simulate than to actually build all the possible options.