On the foldable scooter with PA 6 from Solvay

Bud-e is its name and it has been presented by Solvay on the occasion of Challenge Bibendum 2014 event in Chengdu, China. It is a foldable electric scooter specially designed for intermodal mobility in urban areas and developed by French company Kleefer. The streamlined fairing parts of the scooter are made using the industry’s first glass-filled polyamide 6 powder for Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) from Solvay’s Sinterline Technyl range of materials.

The technology delivers fully functional parts while offering greater design freedom as well as significant weight and cost savings over competing aluminum. Prior to the SLS process, the parts were optimized with Solvay’s MMI Technyl Design for multi-scale modelling and structural analysis.

“Bud-e is the result of an advanced prototyping and small series approach for a new, environmentally responsible scooter concept that can make an essential contribution to personal mobility in our increasingly congested cities around the world”, says Antoine Cirier, CEO of Kleefer.

“Solvay’s Sinterline powders proved the perfect tool for validating 3D models and computer simulations, producing functional, dependable prototypes comparable to the required performance characteristics and surface finish in no time. The glass-filled powder grades of the material have an ideal fit in the cost-efficient manufacture of the parts in small to medium-sized volumes”, added Dominique Giannotta, Sinterline program leader at Solvay Engineering Plastics.