IT AIN'T HEAVY, IT'S MY BAMBOO

3rd Sergeant (3SG) (NS) Chuah Sun Soon shares his journey of creating the world's first technology-based bamboo bicycle.

His bamboo bicycles are no ordinary products; they are engineered to last a lifetime. The secret lies in a long-lost Chinese practice of using honey wax to strengthen bamboo.

3SG (NS) Chuah, founder of bamboobee, discovered the idea over a casual chat with researchers from the Nanjing Forestry University in China in 2012.

He worked on the idea and eventually came up with a technology that uses honey wax to fuse the gaps between bamboo fibres, removing all moisture in the process. Bamboo cracks when the moisture within dries up.

"The result is the world's first technology-based bamboo bicycle," said the 29-year-old who added that other bamboo bicycle companies are still using traditional heating methods which can remove most but not all of the moisture in bamboo.

Since the start-up began operations online last April, it has sold over 200 bicycles, each costing from US$1,200 to over US$3,300 (S$1,500 to S$4,200). It opened its first outlet in Singapore this May at Singapore Handicraft Building in Eunos.

Putting ideas into action

3SG (NS) Chuah first thought of building bicycles from bamboo when he saw his grandmother hanging his heavy, wet Air Force uniforms on a bamboo pole one day. That was in 2005 when he used to commute between home and Paya Lebar Air Base daily on a bicycle. He was serving his Full-time National Service as a technician in 144 Squadron, which operates F-5 fighter planes.

After completing an eight-week solo motorcycle ride in 2009 from India to Russia, 3SG (NS) Chuah began working on his bamboo bicycle idea. Besides being inspired from his adventure, he felt the time was ripe as bamboo bicycles were becoming popular in the West, thanks to worldwide interest in sustainability.

3SG (NS) Chuah, who was a student at the Singapore Management University (SMU) then, roped in three friends (now his business partners) to work on the project. In the living room of his HDB flat, they began experimenting and successfully built their first prototypes.

To prove that his handcrafted bamboo bicycle was as sturdy as, or even better than, conventional bicycles, 3SG (NS) Chuah cycled one for over 6,000km across central Asia in 110 days in 2011. The expedition took him from Kazakhstan to Western China, and from Thailand to Singapore.

Sacrifices and challenges

To raise capital, 3SG (NS) Chuah and his friends took part in the 2011 Ideas Inc business plan competition and won a total of $60,000 in grants. They also pumped in their savings. Unlike his partners, 3SG (NS) Chuah did not look for a full-time job after graduating from SMU. Instead, he took on part-time jobs while he built bamboobee.

Sales were slow initially but soared after a successful crowd funding campaign at Kickstarter.com. One of the first start-ups from Singapore to use the platform, bamboobee successfully raised over US$60,000 last April. More importantly, it allowed the company to reach out to the markets in the United States and Europe, said 3SG (NS) Chuah.

Unique bicycle

Each bamboobee bicycle frame is handcrafted by experienced artisans from Cao He village in Guangzhou, China and assembled in Singapore. Besides being sturdy and light, bamboo has a natural dampening effect which makes cycling smooth and comfortable, said 3SG (NS) Chuah.

"The best compliment I've ever received from a customer is, 'If you cycle for a while, you feel like you are on a magic carpet'," he said.

It is not surprising that his bamboo bicycles are engineered to such perfection. After all, he holds a mechatronics diploma from Temasek Polytechnic and has experience servicing fighter planes.

"I really appreciated the time I was in the Air Force because it gave me the hands-on skills to survive my solo motorcycle trip," he added.

"When I heard the dang xia (engine sound in Hokkien), I'd stop and check for oil leaks here and loose parts there. It's a reflection of what I did when I was servicing the F-5s - the responsibility to do a check and to do it in a proper systematic manner."

Future plans

3SG (NS) Chuah has just launched a no-pedal bamboo bicycle for kids as well as a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) kit comprising bamboos and assembly tools for bike enthusiasts. Also in the pipeline are cycling tour packages, both in Singapore and overseas, on bamboobee bicycles. His vision is for his bamboo bicycles to "spark conversations among people".

"The design of the bicycle itself raises a lot of attention, and people naturally will come up and talk to you."

"(My time in the Air Force) gave me the hands-on skills to survive my solo motorcycle trip. When I heard the engine sound, I'd stop and check for oil leaks here and loose parts there. It (reflects) what I did when I was servicing the F-5s - the responsibility to do a check in a systematic manner."
- 3SG (NS) Chuah