The barend is a two-part component used to connect the kite's steering line to the control bar. It protects the rider's hand from the rope and provides a way to store the flying lines when they're not in use. The design focused on making the product visually appealing to the fashion-conscious kitesurfing market. The inner load-bearing part is made of colored nylon 6, with an additional layer of soft black TPU. This manufacturing process allows the component color to match the control bar, ensuring consistency. The barend was produced by a Taiwanese injection molding company with factories in China. We visited the factory to inspect the production process, addressing several issues related to the plastic molding quickly.

Project Highlights:

• Working with top athletes to define the component through a series of functional prototypes,

• Dual injection moulded design

• Design for volume manufacture

• Prototyped using SLS and soft tooling

• Aesthetic styling to match rest of the product.