The Royal Automobile Club recognised British-based electric bike builder Maeving last month, awarding the firm its Simms Medal at the Club’s Pall Mall, London, headquarters.
The Simms Medal – named after Frederick Simms, one of the RAC’s founder members – recognises outstanding contributions to motoring innovation and is only awarded when the judging committee feels there is a worthy winner. Previous winners include Williams Advanced Engineering and the Ariel Motor Company, and achievers such as Richard Parry-Jones CBE.
Maeving was set up in 2018 to build two-wheeled electric urban mobility bikes and is Britain’s first electric motorcycle manufacturer. It has focused on in-house technical development and has signed up a talented group of engineers and some former Triumph workers, including Hinckley’s head of product, Graeme Gilbert. Its RM1 and RM1S machines have carved out a unique spot in the market, and the firm is also building up an international export operation across North America and Europe.
Seb Inglis-Jones, who co-founded Maeving in 2018 with Will Stirrup, said winning the medal was a more involved process than he expected. “I was told we’d have adjudicators coming along, and suddenly seven members of the RAC Technical Committee turned up, older gentlemen, very knowledgeable, very experienced, with their clipboards, and they gave me a proper grilling for three hours. They wanted to see everything around the factory, every quality process and all the prototypes. I understand that their decision was unanimous. For me, many awards are just PR crap, but this is a really special one. It means a lot to the technical team too.”
Ben Cussons, chairman of the judges on the Royal Automobile Club Technical Committee (which awards the Simms Medal), said: “Maeving’s achievement in designing and building an attractive and innovative electric motorcycle in the UK is a project that Frederick Simms would have been proud of. The business exudes the passion of its founders, but has the financial backing and commercial nous that will help it achieve its ambitious aims.”