From concept to company
In May 2005, Karl Schweitzer was a panel member on the Tyrolean Future Strategy Committee. He had an idea: an ultra light power unit for bikes. So the idea was born. It immediately won that year’s Adventure X Business Award. The engineer and entrepreneur worked enthusiastically on this project with all his expertise and ingenuity so as to bring the idea into further development. By March 2006 the product, the “Gruber Assist”, was ready to bring onto the market. The company “Gruber Antrieb GmbH & Co KG” was started up by Karl, with his daughter Monika Schweitzer taking the position of Manager. The qualified Business Economist had a clear business stagey and since 2007 has progressively moved the Gruber Assist Company forward.
What started quietly in the Tyrolean Mountains, established itself in a short time as the new “innovation” in the area of ultra light-power units for bicycles, becoming the overall winner of the 14th “BrandNew Awards” at the 2006 ISPO in Munich, the biggest Sports Industry show in Europe. It caught the imagination of both the Press and Industry, and laid the foundation for a successful future. High intensive development work guaranteed the next step forward.
Since May 2008 Gruber Antrieb provides the power unit already installed in complete bicycles. Models range from the classic comfortable touring bike to the sporting mountain bike. It is now possible, even in the mountains, to cycle with ultra light motor support. The Gruber Assist is the only available light-weight motor. It has a perfect balance point of the motor, enabling use of the control/gearbox for the extraordinary demands made by sports bicycle riding. It closes the gap between the classic E-bike and the mountain bike.
A sensational development came in the spring of 2011. The sound of the Gruber Assist 3.15 was conquered - it was now quieter. Demand doubled. Manager Monika Schweitzer said: “No-one doubted the innovation and the uniqueness of our power unit, though we probably did lose some customers due to the noise. The new quieter generation Gruber Assist 3.15 is a great step forward. Future research and development is very important in our company. The goal is to reduce the sound and, of course, keep the weight to a minimum”.
But success is going on: The Eurobike 2011 becomes platform for the presentation of the new brand vivax assist. The focus was on improving the existing Gruber Assist. The result is a completely new product with sensational features – the vivax assist. The developers have many more ideas up there sleeves and the vivax assist team look forward to the new challenges ahead! The vivax assist units intelligent electronic control with the new high-tech gear and battery cells of the latest generation.
