19 companies took part in the inaugural Dutch Pavilion at this year’s Eurobike to display smart bike products and services from one of Europe’s most enthusiastic cycling nations – from e-bike charging tiles to wheelchair bikes and helmets with circular design.
An open space with predictably orange carpet, the Dutch Pavilion came about through a partnership between the Dutch Cycling Embassy and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency.
Nils Steinhäuser, project coordinator at the Dutch Cycling Embassy, explained that it helped Dutch start-ups showcase their innovative products or concepts at Eurobike. Their participation fee amounted to just €500 for the duration of the show, covering an exhibition space of 4 square meters as well as networking activities such as a Dutch “borrel” (the Dutch version of Happy Hour).
Among the participants was Tiler, a company from Delft that makes charging tiles for e-bikes. It took four to five hours to wirelessly recharge the battery of an e-bike placed on such a pad through a special kickstand.
Joris Koudijs, chief technology officer at Tiler, explained that it started by targeting the bike-sharing sector and corporate customers. They could connect as many as 36 tiles to the same electricity point to create a shared e-bike charging hub.
Koudijs estimated that a few hundred of its charging pads were in operation. Its latest customers included the Electricity Supply Board, Ireland’s largest energy company, which started using Tiler’s charging systems for two shared mobility hubs in March.
But this year Tiler came up with a more compact and affordable version of the technology that directly targets consumers. That made it even more interesting to reach retailers at Eurobike.
“New regulations, like Germany’s ban on bringing lithium batteries indoors and the European building directive requiring bike charging facilities, increase the demand for simple, safe and universal charging solutions,” Tiler explained.
The consumer tile used the same technology as the corporate product, but it was much thinner. That was because the corporate version integrated more features around security and fleet management.
The charging pad and kickstand were both waterproof, meaning the solution could easily be installed outdoors. “It essentially does not need any maintenance,” said Koudijs.
Another original participant in the Dutch pavilion was Ink Invent. It makes additives for paint under the Rheolight brand that can be applied to cars and bicycles to make them more visible and detectable.
Targeting the wider mobility market, Ink Invent was established in 2018, but it took several more years to finalize its crystal glass pigments. The company’s customers are paint formulators who use its additives to compose new colors.
“The pigments increase the visibility of the bicycle paint because you get a return signal, it has a retro-reflective property,” explained Jeffrey Stouthamer, chief strategy officer.
Ink Invent demonstrated the effect by showing two bicycles side by side in the dark, one of them clearly more visible than the other. Stouthamer added that the effect was tunable, with high or low retro-reflective options.
Ink Invent also launched a “visibility label” last year. It consisted of a rating system for the visibility of a vehicle’s color, ranging from G for barely visible to A for very visible. It considered human visibility, computer vision and other factors in three dimensions.
The idea was to standardize industry practices, build consumer trust and enhance public safety. A “visibility awareness” campaign highlighting the relevance of colors for road safety was launched at Eurobike.
Another example of Dutch innovation was Go-Off, which showed a commitment to safety as well as sustainability. Its helmets were meant to combine lightweight performance with smart features for riders and recycled materials.
“Our mission is to reduce waste, lower our carbon footprint and make a positive impact on the planet by using recycled materials, renewable resources and a fully circular lifecycle,” the company stated.
Go-Off helmets were designed in such a way that they could be re-used, refurbished or recycled. They integrated Loopcore, a proprietary internal structure with recycled foam. The company added that it used eco-conscious packaging, and sustainable sourcing practices where feasible. “It’s a standout difference in a category often dominated by waste-heavy production,” it claimed.
Go-Off’s helmets included the Rider for gravel cycling, bikepacking and e-bikes, as well as the Swift Superlight for performance cyclists. Weighing just 180 grams, it combined smart air flow with aerodynamics. Other options were the Blitz for high performance and comfort, and the Pilot for e-bikes and speed pedelec riders. They were often equipped with integrated visors and rear lights.
Other companies in the Dutch Pavilion sold bicycles, such as a stable four-wheeler from 4Wielfiets, folding bikes by EMQ and custom bikes from Van Raam, including wheelchair bikes. Some focused on digital technology, such as Conneqtech and Magic Lane. Poldar and Moby Bikes offered a wider range of services.
Dockr, originally incubated by the Pon Group in the Netherlands, provided corporate e-cargo bike subscriptions with full service and insurance, but was integrated earlier this year by Today, after the Irish mobility company secured funding. Today explained at the time that the Dutch subscription service neatly fit with its offering. The plan was to take on Dockr’s fleet and continue serving customers in the Benelux countries, while expanding into more markets.
Plans to launch a Dutch Pavilion germinated after a pitch session for start-ups from the Netherlands drew heavy interest at Eurobike last year. Steinhäuser said that the organizers had initially planned for 10 companies to take part in the pavilion this year, but the response called for a larger exhibition space.
The Dutch Cycling Embassy is a knowledge network for sustainable and inclusive bicycle mobility. Steinhäuser said that the project at Eurobike could be seen as a pilot for other tradeshows. Other organizations that supported the Dutch Pavilion included ROM Utrecht Region and NBSO Frankfurt.