TOPOLINO WINS S.P.E. DESIGN AWARD

Chicago, IL - The Society of Plastics Engineers, Inc. (S.P.E.), presented Topolino Technology with top honors at their 62nd Annual Technical Conference on May 19th in Chicago. Topolino's bicycle wheels won first place in the S.P.E.'s annual International Product Design Award Competition. Raphael Schlanger, Topolino founder and president, accepted the award and honorarium.

"We knew significant performance and weight benefits could be realized by integrating a composite spoke and hub shell, but the technology literally didn't exist. We really had to re-think the whole way the wheel is constructed. It's a great feeling to have our final product, after of years of intense development, recognized by such a distinguished group of fellow engineers," remarked Schlanger.

The S.P.E. design competition is truly a global contest, as the organization boasts a worldwide membership of over 25,000 scientists and engineers. The S.P.E. has become the recognized medium of communication amongst scientists and engineers engaged in the development, conversion and applications of plastics and composites.

Topolino's wheels, which became available to the public in August of 2002, employ a unique construction technique, where spokes made from a combination of carbon and Kevlar fibers span all the way across the wheel and are captured in a carbon fiber composite hub shell. The design is said to virtually eliminate spoke fatigue failures, and result in a clincher wheelset weighing only 1,390 grams. Topolino recently introduced a deep-section carbon-rimmed tubular wheelset said to weigh 1170 grams. The company is based in Bethel, Connecticut, and builds all of its wheels there by hand.

Interested in learning more about Topolino Wheel Technology?