Market Relevance

The kickTrike is a new development in the logistics sector, and this makes it difficult to compare it with competing products and to assess its market relevance. Although the Jungheinrich Ameise 2000 is a similar machine, it has a storage platform in the rear section, which complicates order picking. The kickTrike is designed to handle relatively low loads at high speeds. This means it could replace some existing machines or open up new applications. The most important applications are order picking, express supply of such things as missing parts to the production zone, or the transport of personnel and spare parts for maintenance tasks. Due to the low transportable load (in terms of both weight and size), the kickTrike is only suitable for picking relatively small orders. This means it is not a fully fledged replacement for a horizontal order picker. In our view, the biggest market potential for the kickTrike lies in order picking in large warehouses, express delivery of letters and parcels in the city centre and in production facilities, and the transport of small items in-plant as a more efficient replacement for a manual fork truck or wheelbarrow.

Customer Benefit

KickTrike offers an alternative to bicycles for express deliveries, which would represent a major customer benefit in certain areas. The machine has a large storage platform, thereby allowing bigger loads than would be possible with a three-wheel eBike or pedelec. The storage platform in the front section additionally facilitates order picking. Although the kickTrike can – unlike an eBike or pedelec – be operated with an empty battery, this greatly restricts the achievable speed. The compact folding design makes the vehicle ideal for occasional use, as it requires little storage space.

In facilities with light and compact items as well as large storage zones, or in the case of maintenance tasks, the higher speed compared to a horizontal order picker or a pedestrian truck saves a considerable amount of time, and this can also boost employee satisfaction and motivation.

Degree of Novelty

The kickTrike represents a new development in the logistics sector. The machine can be used to perform some warehouse tasks far more efficiently than is currently the case.

Functionality / Type of Implementation

The test vehicle was a pre-series version produced in 2014. A more robust and practice-focused series-produced version is to be launched this year. The loading platform in the front section makes for fast and ergonomic order picking. The folding device means the machine requires minimum storage space. The fast and easy battery change option is an advantage when the kickTrike is in constant use.