Giant's product portfolio is extensive - it ranges from electric bikes to the bike on which Danny Hart raced to the downhill world championship title in Champéry in September 2011. According to the company, around 20 percent of bikes sold are racing bikes, 30 to 35 percent mountain bikes, 10 percent hybrid bikes and 30 percent city bikes and children's bikes. Electric bikes currently account for the remaining 5 to 10 percent.

Production for well-known manufacturers
However, Giant does not only produce under its own name; the company's own bikes account for 70 percent. For the remaining 30 percent, the bicycle giant serves bicycle brands that are well-positioned on the market. The Taiwanese company not only builds the frames for these customers, but also takes care of all assembly and packaging.

Giant is now present in 80 countries and has a network of over 11,000 specialist dealers worldwide. Europe accounts for around 30 percent of sales, followed by 24 percent in China and 23 percent in the USA. The manufacturer claims to be number one in terms of market share in China and Taiwan and number three in the USA and Europe.

Insights into frame production
Giant has played a pioneering role in the industrial production of carbon bicycle frames. As early as 1985, research was carried out to transfer the then brand-new technology to bicycles. Carbon frame production plays an important role at Giant's headquarters in Taichung - so important, in fact, that not all the production steps were visible during the on-site visit. The frame builders are too careful not to broadcast their extensive production know-how to the world. Around 400 carbon frames are built by hand every day at Giant in Taichung.

From the delivery of the carbon raw material to the finished frame, it takes around 21 days for a carbon fiber frame to be ready to be married with the components to form a bicycle. Giant does not provide too many details about the individual production steps, but only a rough overview:

First, a "carbon silk" is woven from the raw material "carbon yarn". This textile is processed into a rudimentary frame shape during the so-called "pre-forming" process, whereupon the frame is "baked" into a mold after intensive manual work. As a frame never comes out of such a mold perfectly, a lot of manual work is required to smooth out even the smallest surface irregularities. Only then is the frame ready to be finished with logos and paint in the "painting line".

Around 4,500 aluminum frames per day
In addition to the daily output of 400 carbon frames, the employees at Giant's factory in Taichung produce around 4,500 aluminum frames every day. It takes around 15 days from delivery of the raw material to the finished frame.

Nothing could be faster: assembly on a conveyor belt
The final production step doesn't take days - the assembly department is really fast-paced. The frames ready for assembly run upside down on a conveyor belt into an assembly line. At four to six workstations, a complete bicycle is produced within a few minutes - the assembly staff have to keep up with the speed of the conveyor belt. A clearly visible display at the end of the treadmill also keeps track of how long the treadmill has been stationary during a working day.

The forks, bottom bracket and cranks are installed first, followed by the prepared handlebar sets. The rear wheel goes into the rear frame of the bike and a rudimentary function test is carried out after the brake and gear components have been fitted.

Immediately afterwards, the bike is prepared for its journey to the specialist dealer, packed in a box.

www.giant-bicycles.com