Handbuilt special bicycles in steel and aluminium as well as development of folding bikes and cargobikes in Schaffhausen.
velowerk, Thomas Lösch
Schaffhausen, SwitzerlandNew on Amplifa
About velowerk
velowerk is a one-man operation in Schaffhausen that has been producing handbuilt special bicycles since 1981: everyday, touring and folding bikes, cargobikes, tandems, recumbents as well as rehab bike concepts and special tandems. Production encompasses handbuilding complete vehicles based on steel frames (Cr-Mo) with powder coating, frames made of aluminium, the building of hand-laced wheels as well as the assembly and adaptation of rehab products such as crank arm shorteners, pedal pendulums and special pedals. The central product is the werx folding bike, continuously developed since 2002, which is built in batches of 20 or 50 units and whose latest model is equipped with a Gates Carbon Drive belt drive and a bottom bracket eccentric. As a development and test laboratory, velowerk works among others with the Taiwanese folding bike manufacturer Tern; the developed T-Tuned Geometry is applied to the entire Tern model range. A self-developed bicycle measuring machine is used for determining riding position and geometry. In addition, the operation offers bike-building workshops, sells hub dynamos and lighting systems via a webshop limited to Switzerland, and represents brands such as Tern, Azub, HP Velotechnik, Hase, ICE Recumbents, Flux and Velotraum.
- Site
- CH-8201 Schaffhausen
- Processes
- Handbuilding of special bicycles (folding bikes, cargobikes, touring bikes, everyday bikes,, Frame building with powder-coated Cr-Mo steel frames, Wheel building (hand-laced wheels, hub dynamo wheels), Bike-building workshop (customers build their own bicycle under guidance), Bicycle development and geometry optimization (T-Tuned Geometry, prototype building), Bicycle measuring and riding position adjustment (own measuring machine), Adaptation/assembly of rehab products (crank arm shorteners, pedal pendulums, special pedals), Repair and maintenance of bicycles
- Materials
- Steel (Cr-Mo / chromium-molybdenum steel), Aluminium, Titanium, Chromoly (fork, custom), Chromium-molybdenum steel, Powder coating
- Certificates
- EFBE type test (Tern bicycles)
- Founded
- 1981
- Employees
- 1
- Industries
- Bicycle and special bike building, Cargobikes / cargo bikes, Rehab technology, Bicycle technology development
- 01
Consultation and measuring with own measuring machine
- 02
Design and geometry development
- 03
Frame building (Cr-Mo steel, powder coating)
- 04
Wheel building (hand-laced)
- 05
Assembly of the complete bicycle
- 06
Test ride and fine adjustment
Materials and processes
Chromium-molybdenum steel
Basis for powder-coated frames of touring, everyday and folding bikes with high durability.
Aluminium
Frame material of the werx folding bike and the Tern folding bikes; hydroformed tubes on the Tern Verge Tour.
Titanium
Used for leaf springs on recumbents from Azub.
Powder coating
Surface finishing of the Cr-Mo steel frames.
Locations
Schaffhausen
CHWorkshop, shop, consultation, production and development
- Lot size
- 20–50-unit batches for the werx
- Materials
- Cr-Mo steel, aluminium
- Bicycle measuring machine (own development)
Components
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Handbuilding of special bicycles (folding bikes, cargobikes, touring bikes, everyday bikes,Assembly | – | – | – | Small series in batches of 20 or 50 | Steel (Cr-Mo), Aluminium, Chromium-molybdenum steel, Titanium (leaf springs at Azub) |
| Frame building with powder-coated Cr-Mo steel framesSurface | – | – | – | – | Cr-Mo steel |
| Wheel building (hand-laced wheels, hub dynamo wheels)Assembly | – | – | 840 g – 940 g | – | Aluminium rims, Steel spokes |
| Bike-building workshop (customers build their own bicycle under guidance)Assembly | – | – | – | 1 – 1 | Steel frames, Aluminium |
| Bicycle development and geometry optimization (T-Tuned Geometry, prototype building)Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Bicycle measuring and riding position adjustment (own measuring machine)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Adaptation/assembly of rehab products (crank arm shorteners, pedal pendulums, special pedals)Assembly | – | – | – | – | Steel |
| Repair and maintenance of bicyclesAssembly | – | – | – | – | – |
1 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bicycle measuring machine (own development for riding position and geometry determination) | velowerk | 1 | – | – | Schaffhausen |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality
All components are optimized for maximum durability; the in-house developed bicycle measuring machine provides the planning basis for frame geometry and attachments as well as the optimal riding position. Tern vehicles from the program are type-tested by the testing institute EFBE with the stated payload.
| Evidence | Schaffhausen |
|---|---|
| EFBE type test (Tern bicycles) |
History
- 1981
Foundation; 'velowerk since 1981'.
- 1997
Website online since 13 February 1997.
- 2002
Start of intensive engagement with folding bikes (Dahon), first prototype of the Speed Werx; start of own folding bike development.
- 2004
First folding bike with 60 mm wide Big-Apple tires (balloon bike/fat bike concept).
- 2007
Development of the Speed LUNGO.
- 2011
Replacement of Dahon by Tern as folding bike basis.
- 2015
US patent for ratchet spring on Tern quick-release levers; presentation of the Tern Cargo Node in cooperation with Xtracycle.
- 2016
Taiwan Excellence Award together with Tern for the Verge Tour.
- 2017
T-Tuned Geometry reaches market maturity and is applied to the entire Tern model range (first e-folding bike: Vektron).
- 2018
New Werx with belt drive (Gates) and bottom bracket eccentric.