EFBe Bicycle test - Test methods for bicycle components: Quality, standards and certificates

A single glance at the test results reveals that our testing services are used by many renowned bike brands. The following arguments are key factors for their decision:

The manufacturers’ customers find non-bias, independent tests by third party professionals more reliable and significant than any in-house tests. EFBe has made its name as a renowned bike testing specialist by consistently maintaining a high and innovative standard in the high-end field of the bike market. All our data is also handled with the strictest confidentiality.

Where national or international standards offer helpful guidelines, we offer standard tests. In most cases, however, customers prefer tests that comply with EFBe Standards. These may adhere to the existing standards, they do however have the advantage of being flexible and can be easily changed or developed on demand. Occasionally, EFBe Standards flow back into the standardization process – best example is our Out-of-saddle fatigue test for frames.

EFBe only uses testing methods that meet scientific testing standards, i.e. the validity, repeatability, and objectivity of the process must be guaranteed. The most obvious testing method is not always the most reliable and informative. We do not, for example, run fatigue tests of an entire bike on a roller bench.

Laboratory tests simply cannot simulate a complex reality to 100%. They are always a compromise between maximum validity (practical application) and maximum repeatability. Matching fracture patterns during actual operation and on the test stand are the critical deciding criteria for reliable fatigue tests.

Higher demands means more safety and a better test? This simplified way of thinking would inevitably lead to heavier products. Lightweight constructions in the high-end sector would be impossible to produce. Testing demands for cutting edge technology must be adapted to fit the bike’s specific purpose and customer target group. Nobody knows this better than the manufacturers themselves. They are the decision makers and we support them, e.g. using fatigue tests with the categorized EFBe performance levels.

The testing methods applied by EFBe are not at all top secret, they are actually transparent. The methods, as well as the test sample and test results, are all clearly documented and recorded in accordance with the quality management principles of ISO 9000 and the following.

Special reasons for fatigue tests
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An entire series of fatigue fractures can not only seriously damage the image of a brand, it can also be very dangerous. This is because the fractures in supporting bike components usually remain unnoticed by the user. The subsequent breakage of the component then occurs without warning. This can have serious consequences. Outsourcing fatigue tests is often the only plausible way for small and medium-sized manufacturers to test the durability of a new model before going into production. However, also manufacturers who run their own similar frame fatigue tests like to confirm their results using EFBe’s methods.

Small discrepancies in the component loads of a fatigue test lead to disproportionately large differences in the achieved cycles-to-failure value. Therefore, only exactly defined and maintained testing loads deliver reliable results. EFBe measures every single testing load using PC measurement techniques and corrects target value deviations wherever necessary.

Manufacturers who contractually guarantee to only change any characteristics of a successfully tested model after conferring with EFBe can receive EFBe certificates and testing seals. These can then be used effectively for promotion in company catalogues, websites and advertisements.

Special reasons for fatigue tests of frames
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Upon completion of the test, the customer receives a test report and a statistical analysis containing the results of all comparable frames (listed anonymously). This way, customers benefit from EFBe’s extensive experience and data pool of more than 1000 frame tests, and they can evaluate the performance of their own product in the field of their competition.

The results of successfully completed Full Tests can be published on the EFBe website (approx. 30,000 hits/month), on the Internet. Certified frames (see above) are highlighted by the respective testing seal.

Cross-linking enables a simple link between the independent test data on EFBe’s website and the website of the manufacturer.