Munchen, Germany – Oct 3, 2016 – On 18th September 2016, Koala Bicycles GmbH started a Kickstarter campaign for “Koala One: single speed”, a unique organic bicycle made up of bamboo, designed for urban environments. Not only do these budget-friendly bikes improve the ecological footprint of the bicycle production by utilizing sustainable materials, they are also extremely durable, easy to use and come with personalized benefits to suit one’s every need. The crowdfunding campaign will be actively running for one month till Oct 16 2016, for a funding target of €22,000.
“We are excited to announce the launch of our kickstarter campaign for Koala One, a single speed bicycle perfectly suitable for commuters in the urban environment. The base model with single speed can be upgraded to multispeed (up to 8 speed) with the help of internal gear box. Presently we are targeting European bicycle market especially in Germany and Switzerland with the intention of replacing current bicycles with our ecofriendly and lightweight bikes.” Said Tim Taubner, Project Initiator while announcing the crowdfunding campaign.
Since the bicycle is made of bamboo and other lightweight materials, Koala has managed to reduce the bicycle weight significantly. They are made more ecofriendly, without compromising to the quality and strength as the new materials offer enhanced mechanical properties. Compared with the conventional bikes, the frame of the “Koala One” is 25% lighter and utilizes 90% less aluminium. The manufacturing cost of the bicycle is also reduced with the use of bamboo which requires less work and time as compared with the traditional metallic bicycles. This eliminates the need of overseas outsourcing for production and cutting down transportation and other extra expenses.
“Mostly the production of bicycles is not economical at all. We replace the metal used to build the bike frame with eco-friendly materials. The tubes are replaced with bamboo tubes which are then joined by a natural Fiber-Reinforced-Plastic (FRP). As the production of carbon-fiber is very energy-intense, we use flax-fiber (a natural fiber) with similar mechanical properties instead.” Tim added further. “We follow open design process in which we take feedback from the supporters and constantly work to improve it. The design of the bicycle is not finalized and still we are working on it. Backers can participate in the design process with their valuable suggestions and feedbacks. We promise to keep full transparency with our backers about progress of the project at any stage.”
In exchange for pledging to the campaign, backers are offered exciting rewards with increasing perks based on their contribution. These include Koala bike bell, sunglasses, bike lights, backer kit etc. People can pledge from as little as €1 to a maximum of €895.
Koala Bicycles GmbH is founded in August 2015, by three innovative students of ETH Zurich who won the ETH Entrepreneur Club Award. They previously had success with their 100% natural custom-made bamboo bicycles as part of the “Koala Lifestyle” – Series from which the idea of bamboo bikes was originally conceived. Koala Bicycles has already partnered with UnternehmerTUM Makerspace GmbH, Hans-Sauer Stiftung, MayTec GmbH, RWTH Aachen and ETH Zürich as a part of business strategies.
For more information, please visit the Kickstarter page or contact the creator below.
Media Contact
Company Name: Koala Bicycles GmbH
Contact Person: Tim Taubner
Email: marketing@koala-bicycles.com
Phone: +49 89 740 570 69
Country: Germany
Website: https://www.koala-bicycles.com/