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Intense has announced the start of a new assembly facility at its Temecula, California, headquarters.
In a move to streamline bike production capabilities, Intense has begun assembling specific models in-house at its US HQ in California. This new initiative has allowed Intense to speed up certain areas of its production, it said, while also giving the brand greater flexibility with complete-bike availability.
This move means that Intense can now bring bikes to market more quickly. The project will focus on longer travel offerings, the new Tracer 170mm Enduro bike and the M29 208mm Downhill bike.
Ongoing issues with global supply chains have hit the industry hard and has had a huge effect on the way we all work. Adding this assembly capability to the Temecula headquarters complements Intense’s existing global supply chain, the brand said, and provides important flexibility moving forward.
“It is great to have the buzz of assembly back in our headquarters, in some ways it feels like we are returning to our roots and the early days of Intense,” said Intense founder and CEO Jeff Steber.
“This is just phase one – the launch of our California facility is part of a long-term plan to bring a percentage of our assembly to every region that we distribute in.”
Read more: Manchester’s Insync Bikes to expand into new 60,000 sq ft premises in Trafford Park
Intense dates back to the early 1990s and the beginning of the sport of MTB when Steber started making bikes. Steber wanted to build a full-suspension bike that was suitable for riding on mountains where he lives in Southern California and founded Intense in 1992 with the vision to disrupt and innovate.
“Over the decades, Jeff transformed Intense from an alloy frame-only manufacturer to a carbon full-bike brand, keeping his innovation high and always doing things a little different to provide a race-ready mountain bike – not only in downhill but across the range from XC, trail and enduro up to our highly sports-oriented enduro e-bike,” said Intense Europe managing director Werner Kastenauer in 2020 interview with BikeBiz.
“After a couple of years of high-sales driven strategies, Jeff refocused Intense back to what it is truly about: a brand that goes beyond unit sales numbers.” Check out the full interview here.
