Design/with nature/build

A design and build studio, with works ranging from the minute to complete buildings.

The current project is a series of Solar Electric Cargo Bikes, and a blog with more detailed information can be read at:

The first one is a front box Dutch Bakfiets style:

The Solar Electric Cargo Bike appeared in the Fourth of July (2013) parade:

The bike was also part of Sculpture Fest in Woodstock, VT at the 2013 opening weekend, here it is meeting the extinct North American Camel (Aepycamelus) at the King Farm section of the show:
For those who are interested in more details, it has a 500 watt geared hub rear motor, powered by a 36 volt x 20 amp hour LiFePO4 flat cell battery.  The battery sits in the back corner of the cargo box, which was designed to hold 3 five gallon buckets. Most riding has been done pedaling lightly in top gear, at a speed of around 15 to 20 mph.  At this level of pedaling (and not including solar panel energy), it is using about 0.0132 kWh of energy per mile, or about a quarter of a cent of electricity per mile if purchased from the grid.  Recharge time is a little less than one hour for every 10 miles traveled.  The contribution of the on board solar panels is in the process of being measured.

The next bike was a longtail cargo bike with a direct drive motor, the third bike was a vendor bike, and the fourth is a mid motor, mid cargo box bike.

For more information please contact:
Karl Kemnitzer
karl@altework.com

Most projects over the last two decades, as well as maintenance of this website, are solar powered.