Jan-Willem van Schaik

OSAKA, Japan - The Shimano component factory in Malaysia has not yet restarted its production following a forced closure. The factory had to shut down completely last week after the Malaysian government issued a total lockdown from June 1 to June 14 considering the situation of COVID-19 in the country. Further delays in the supply chain are now expected.

FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, Germany - Attending trade shows or not this summer will be a big question mark for many people. Eurobike organiser Messe Friedrichafen has outlined the most important information in its 'safety and hygiene' concept to help people in making that decision.

MADRID, Spain - The extraordinary market situation in 2020 had a big impact on boutique brand Rotor. Known as an aftermarket supplier of very specific drive train components, the Spanish manufacturer was now approached by many OEMs who were in short supply of essential components. "We aim at using our capacity in a smart way," says Rotor CEO Jose Garcia Alegre.

INDIANAPOLIS, USA - 3D printing which was commonly used in the bicycle industry for prototyping is increasingly being implemented for the production of final products. Silca is one of first to take full advantage of this technology by offering a lightweight bike computer handlebar mount.

HEERENVEEN, the Netherlands - Accell Group Chief Supply Chain Officer (CSCO) and member of the Board of Management Jeroen Both has stepped down and will leave the company at the end of December of this year.

BAD SODEN, Germany - An important cooperation within the German bicycle industry became public yesterday. It was announced that Europe's biggest dealer cooperative ZEG had become a supporting member of the German industry association 'Zweirad-Industrie-Verband (ZIV).'

AMSTERDAM, the Netherlands - The technology of nano-sponge silicon has been applied successfully to solar panels. When this proved to work well the R&D focus switched to the use of the technology in batteries. With the material, lithium-ion batteries enjoy a 40% capacity increase. And it could reduce the weight of e-bike batteries substantially.

BRUSSELS, Belgium - High sales figures have dominated industry news and this is confirmed by the latest COVID impact survey of Cycling Industries Europe (CIE). Bicycle, parts and accessories companies are showing over 30% higher revenues in the first quarter of this year compared with 2020. The CIE Impact survey shows how these numbers are flowing through to other business indicators.

MARIN COUNTY, USA - Veer, maker of the spliced belt drive, aims to encourage the adoption of light electric vehicle usage in local transportation. Targeted at the light electric vehicle segment the Veer split belt drive is intended to replace aftermarket metal chains and secure partnerships with LEV manufacturers.

MADRID, Spain - E-bike and bicycle sales in Spain hiked to more than 1.5 million units in 2020, a record. According to the latest statistics published by the Spanish Bicycle Industry Association AMBE, the total market volume increased by 24.1% compared with 2019. The e-bike category recorded the biggest growth.