Patent ID: 8595081

Claim:
A system for performing a method for manufacturing an article of footwear according to an order placed by a customer, the system comprising: an order interface rendered by a processing unit to receive an order for the article of footwear; a work-order engine residing on the processing unit configured to manage the order, wherein the managing comprises: (a) generating a work order based on specifications within the order, wherein the work order includes information for implementing a dataflow and a workflow; (b) based on the dataflow, selecting appropriate stations on a manufacturing floor to participate in the manufacturing process, wherein the appropriate stations selected include at least an outsole station, a midsole station, and a upper component station; (c) based on the workflow, instructing each of the appropriate stations to perform a sequence of operations that result in fabricating components of the article of footwear, wherein, upon assembly of the components, the article of footwear embodies the specifications of the order; (d) selecting bar codes from pre-established listing that identify an outsole component, a midsole component, and an upper component as being fabricated based on the order, wherein one or more of the selected bar codes are coupled with the outsole component, the midsole component, and the upper component during the sequence of operations; and one or more devices configured to assemble the footwear using at least the outsole component, the midsole component, and the upper component based on the selected bar codes.