Holistic Bicycle Development – Launch of the Radiate “Bike Division”

Radiate Engineering & Design AG establishes the “Bike Division“, a service unit specialized in holistic product development of bicycles and components. The service unit, which is specifically geared to the needs of the bicycle industry, brings together all the necessary expertise, resources and services so that both complete bicycles “from scratch” and individual components can be developed, optimized, tested and prepared for industrialization. Experience from aerospace and F1 racing is incorporated into the offering and enables modern and efficient engineering and design.

The bicycle industry is a fast-growing and demanding environment with constant new requirements for product innovation. Manufacturers and brands need to bring first-class products to the market in order to grow and differentiate – but there is little time for R&D and product development, and above all, this is often not considered holistically. The solution is “Holistic Bicycle Development” – the idea behind this is to use simulation-driven development methods to take a holistic view of all challenges from the start, including function, design, materials, manufacturing processes and costs. By researching new materials and processes and applying modern technologies such as AI/ML engineering, Radiate is professionalizing bike engineering and thus exploiting all opportunities to efficiently develop innovative products.

The “Bike Division” team consists of experienced specialists and emerging talents with backgrounds in various disciplines: Experts in composite lightweight construction from aerospace, fluid engineers from F1 racing, and renowned industrial designers for two-wheel design. The interdisciplinary team makes it possible to develop complete bikes or components of a wide spectrum: from an aerodynamic wheelset to a complex S-pedelec to a lightweight composite handlebar.

The new service unit is led by Jonas Schmid, who has been involved with Radiate Engineering & Design as a partner since 2015. A Master of Science ETH in Mechanical Engineering, he brings years of expertise in product design and structural simulation. “We bring to this unit a high level of know-how, technology and experience from a variety of projects in different fields. Together with our customers, we share a passion for bikes and have helped design and develop some of the most innovative bike components in the world,” said Jonas Schmid, who will take on the role of Director for the “Bike Division”. Timothy Habermacher, CEO of Radiate Engineering & Design adds: “By combining our activities in the new structure, we are even better positioned to serve the needs of our customers in the bicycle industry. Our goal is to establish ourselves as one of the top addresses for engineering and product development in this market.”