Our Technology
Our Technology
Unlocking New Materials
Utilizing the capabilities of our biotechnology platform, we’re building better equipment for the backcountry.
The outdoor industry has always been dependent on petroleum. However, there are only so many types of materials, and only so many performance properties we can get out of the materials we build from petroleum.
But what if we could use a new resource to create new materials? That’s where microalgae oil comes in...
Part biotechnology, part chemistry and materials science, and part fabrication, our technology platform allows us to create new, bio-based materials with novel performance characteristics.
MOLECULAR FOUNDRY
Our platform begins with microalgae. We grow these algae in fermentation tanks in Berkeley to produce entirely new types of oils - oils that chemists have not had access to because the petroleum industry has no means to produce them.
Chemistry & Materials Science
These oils act as molecular “building blocks,” which we can chemically modify and utilize to design new materials with specific performance characteristics in mind.
FABRICATION
We use these new materials to prototype our products at our Design Lab in Salt Lake City where we test them using state of the art technology in the lab and in the field by our athletes.
What We’ve Made
Composites without Compromise
Composite materials of all kinds have existed in everything ranging from aircraft to bikes. And more recently, composites like carbon fiber have been repurposed by ski brands. But materials suppliers have never built materials explicitly with skiing in mind. For the first time in history, we’re using biotechnology to design materials specifically for backcountry skiing.
With our algal composite at the core, we’ve improved our ski’s strength-to-weight ratio and descending characteristics, enabling superior performance up and down the mountain.
• Proprietary bio-based composite designed from the ground up to optimize performance in our backcountry freeride skis
• Superior properties for firm snow and harsh impacts
DESIGN WITH INTENTION
So why are we doing this?
The answer is quite simple: this allows for the more intentional design of the equipment we rely on.
Instead of being forced to choose from a limited selection of existing materials to use in a product, we design the performance characteristics we want directly into the materials we produce. This empowers us to use sustainable materials to produce better-performing gear—gear designed meticulously to unlock a better alpine experience.
