A group of design students have turned parts of old Brompton bikes that would be scrapped into new products, ranging from a table football game to a coffee table.
Emilia Radek (c) Brompton
Brompton partnered with London Metropolitan University to find a second life for out-of-service components from their London factory, and challenged Product & Furniture Design BA students to explore designs for new products, whilst also making effective use of their chosen bike component.
The vast majority (80%) of the componentry on Brompton bikes is designed and made specifically for the company, so recycling them into other bikes or for reuse can be a challenge. Some of the design ideas, such as the coffee table are obviously former bike parts, but many could be made from anything, showing how recycling a component can give it an entirely new life, not just an after-life as a reused bicycle.
Saffron Parry (c) Brompton
The project will be exhibited during the 2022 London Design Festival at Brompton’s Covent Garden store from 17th – 25th September.
An overall winner will receive their own Brompton bike, and runners-up receiving 6 months use of the Brompton Bike Hire scheme.
Simon Hasan, Course Leader, BA Product and Furniture Design, London Metropolitan University, said: “As the designers of tomorrow, our students embraced the opportunity to consider these components as both ready-made objects and raw materials for newly imagined items.
‘’Looking for hidden properties within the chosen piece, the group sought to understand how these might be used elegantly and intelligently in a new context.”
Miguel Souto (c) Brompton
