RCYL: A Designer Bike Made from Recycled Plastics Visits MicroStep

igus:bike worldtour Kicks Off Its Second Slovak Stage at MicroStep’s Production & Integration Center in Partizánske

Germany-based company igus is a leading manufacturer of high-performance motion plastics – used as moving parts in machines and components – ranging from small bicycle parts to applications in heavy industry. Their product range includes energy chains, cables, plain bearings, and lead screw systems, as well as robotics and intelligent sensors.
igus energy chains are used as well in most MicroStep cutting machines and applications, installed in 62 countries across five continents.

At MicroStep, igus cable carriers and energy chains are applied across all CNC machine axes – from compact guides for the Z-axis and special applications to large-scale chains securing and positioning cable bundles along the X-axes of our large-format cutting centres. Various energy chain applications were also showcased during the recent stop of the igus:bike worldtour at MicroStep’s manufacturing hub in Partizánske.

Ride Clean: The Lubrication-Free Plastic Bike

igus has a long-standing tradition of producing maintenance-free bearings and plastic components for bicycles. Building on this experience – and with a strong commitment to sustainability and circular economy principles – igus has developed the concept of an all-plastic bicycle: in 2022, the company introduced the RCYL brand, offering a stylish urban bike made from up to 50% recycled materials.

Thanks to the use of high-glide polymers, RCYL bikes require no lubrication, are rust-free, and are manufactured locally in Cologne, Germany, where igus is headquartered. The bike is 100% recyclable and even incorporates materials from returned igus products that have reached the end of their service life.

60 years of igus & the igus:bike worldtour

In October 2024, igus celebrated its 60th anniversary in a truly unique way – by launching a global cycling tour visiting igus subsidiaries and the facilities of its partners and customers.

Running until October 2025, the so-called igus:bike worldtour aims to cover 6,000 kilometers across 21 countries, promoting RCYL as a symbol of sustainable urban mobility – ideal for private commuting, shared city bike systems, hotels, resorts, and campgrounds.

Slovakia became the 15th country on the tour.

Follow the journey on the official tour blog.

RCYL Meets HENNLICH at MicroStep

The Slovak leg of the igus:bike tour was hosted by HENNLICH, igus’ distribution partner in Slovakia and a key business partner of MicroStep.

After kicking off in the capital Bratislava, the team toured across Slovakia, with a second-day early-morning stop in the town of Partizánske – home of one of the two MicroStep production & engineering centers in Slovakia. The historic factory grounds of a former „Baťa“ shoe factory offered a perfect surface to test the all-plastic bike, even allowing the team to ride through MicroStep’s production halls.

There, the RCYL bike cruised past CNC machines currently in production – including laser, plasma, oxyfuel and waterjet systems – offering a unique blend of cutting-edge tech and sustainable mobility. Read more in the blog: Stage 2 – Celebrating Innovation in Slovakia

Congratulations to 60 years of igus

On this 60-year milestone, MicroStep wishes igus and their RCYL initiative many more successful kilometers – both on the road and in the form of countless meters of energy chains installed on MicroStep machines around the world.