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“Design a vehicle whose appearance reflects both the character of a trike and the performance of a sports car.” These were the specifications issued by Harald Schmitz, Managing Director of Rewaco Spezialfahrzeuge GmbH, to the development service provider Bertrandt in Cologne in June 2004. The Design Modelling team was happy to oblige – and set to work designing a very special trike.
Design development on the prototype
As a small-series manufacturer, the Managing Director of Rewaco Spezialfahrzeuge GmbH took a new approach to the development of the RF1 Trike series, and asked the Design and Modelling team to rework an RF1 study that had first been presented in May 2004. The team at Bertrandt Cologne, which was led by Norbert Grün, Team Leader Design Modelling, had six weeks to complete the project. In this period, the prototype was provided with a modelling substructure and a new three-dimensional shape was developed in modelling clay. Harald Schmitz came to inspect the product several times during this phase and looked at several design solutions before deciding on the final design together with Norbert Grün.
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1:1 Prototype in series quality
A full-scale symmetrical model of the final design draft was then modelled in series quality, taking into account the manufacturing requirements of the outer skin parts – a prerequisite for the subsequent tooling and production process at Rewaco. The result was the RF1, a trike that promises the ultimate in fun on three wheels – and not only because of its attractive design. Powered by a 1.6-litre Ford Zetec engine installed in a tubular frame, the trike offers impressive performance. With a power-to-weight ratio of 5 kg per bhp, the 115-bhp GT version of the RF1 can easily match powerful sports cars in a sprint.
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Three questions for Harald Schmitz, Managing Director of Rewaco Spezialfahrzeuge GmbH
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B: Mr Schmitz, how did you hear
about Bertrandt Cologne?
HS: As is so often the case in life, it was just by chance – through the brother-in-law of one of our employees who works as a vehicle designer at Volkswagen. At the time, I was already convinced by the merits of the RF1 study, but I didn’t think its lines were sporty enough. So the idea of talking to Bertrandt about the project came indirectly via Braunschweig.
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B: Can you tell us something about the new vehicle?
HS: With the RF1 series, we are offering a trike that opens up new dimensions in terms of design and performance – a vehicle with sporty aesthetics combined with state-of-the-art technology.
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B: Looking back, how would you evaluate the job done by Bertrandt Cologne?
HS: We found a very competent partner in Bertrandt, one that is able to perform optimum design modelling that is ideally suited to our company’s needs – without any restrictions in our demands for high quality.
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