Hexcel congratulates Vincenzo Nibali, winner of the 2013 Giro D’Italia, one of the 3 major cycling Grand Tours (together with the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana).  Hexcel customer CORIMA manufactured the wheels on which Nibali road to glory for the Astana team. 

Corima’s AERO+ MCC is a 100% carbon fiber wheel for road bikes produced using a complete composite process. The Wheel rim, spokes and hub are made from Hexcel’s HexPly carbon fiber prepregs, using unidirectional reinforcements as well as Hexcel’s unique lightweight gap-free carbon fabric called PrimeTex.

The use of Hexcel’s composites results in a very high performance wheel that weighs in at only 1,000 grams for a pair. The low density of carbon fiber in the prepreg is a significant advantage, ensuring a very accurate weight distribution and providing a very light rim with good rotation inertia.

Very high levels of stiffness are achieved, enhancing performance and the mechanical properties of the UD carbon prepreg make it possible to use only 12 spokes for both the front and rear wheels, for a unique aerodynamic design.

Hexcel and Corima have worked in partnership for over 20 years and Corima has benefited from Hexcel’s experience in carbon fiber, weaving technologies and prepregs to develop winning solutions in composites for high performance bikes.

Hexcel Corporation is a leading advanced composites company. It develops, manufactures and markets lightweight, high-performance structural materials, including carbon fibers, reinforcements for composites, prepregs, honeycomb, matrix systems, adhesives and composite structures, used in commercial aerospace, space and defense and industrial applications.