Santa Cruz Factory Tour: Where bikes are born
Welcome to Santa Cruz Bicycles. Come on in (click to enlarge). Photo by Mike Thomas.
When you walk in to the factory side of the Santa Cruz headquarters, the first thing you notice is the checkered floor. The second thing you notice is the tape. From start to finish, every bike Santa Cruz builds and releases into the wild, follows the path of these sticky markings. Our penchant for “everything organized” was in its glory every step of the way.
Frames and their suspension packages ready for assembly. We spy some future Nomads, V10s, Tallboys, and a Bronson (click to enlarge).
Though Santa Cruz has only in this facility—which used to be home to Wrigley Gum—for about a year, already the process has been revised and refined three times.
Santa Cruz bikes, taking their first steps of the build process: suspension assembly (click to enlarge).
Once the suspension is installed, the frame continues its journey on Santa Cruz’s numbered homemade build carts. In fact, word is they were designed by the company’s COO who used to be in the engineering department.
Frame ready for picking when components are added to the tabletop, and wheels to the hooks underneath as it follows the path through the assembly line (click to enlarge).
On board is a holder for the frame, as well as a table top where “pickers” can easily place the smaller components as they roll through the rows of shelving.
“Picker” picks a peck of parts … (click to enlarge)
The V10s Greg Minnaar and Steve Peat rode to World Championship victories (click to enlarge). Photo by Mike Thomas.
Frames lined up for assembly (click to enlarge). Photo by Mike Thomas.
Continue to page 2 for more from our Santa Cruz HQ tour and an expansive photo gallery »
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