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SRAM Corporation is a privately held bicycle component manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois, USA, founded in 1987.〔(About SRAM )〕 SRAM is an acronym comprising the names of its founders, Scott, Ray, and Sam, (where Ray is the middle name of company head Stan Day).〔 〕The company is known for producing cycling components, including some internally developed, such as Grip Shift, DoubleTap, dedicated 1x11 mountain and road drivetrains, and the only available wireless electronic groupset, SRAM Red eTap.〔http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/08/news/sram-comes-out-swinging-with-red-e-tap_382751〕〔http://singletrackworld.com/2014/03/sram-releases-1x11-force-cx1-cyclocross-group/〕〔http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tech.php?id=tech/2006/reviews/sram_force〕 The company grew organically and through acquisitions to become one of the largest high-end cycling component brands in the world, selling under the brands SRAM, Avid, RockShox, Truvativ, Quarq, and Zipp. Their components are manufactured primarily in-house, in factories located in Portugal, Taiwan, China, and the U.S., and distributed and sold as Original equipment manufacturer (OEM) equipment and aftermarket components in high-end markets globally. ==History== As a start-up company, SRAM introduced the Grip Shift (or twist shift) gear-change method and technology to the road bike market in 1988. That technology was then adapted for mountain bikes in 1991. In 1990 the company sued Shimano for unfair business practices, noting that Shimano offered, in effect, a 10-percent discount to bicycle manufacturers specifying an all-Shimano drivetrain and that few companies in the highly competitive industry would be willing to forgo such a discount to specify Grip Shift components. SRAM received an unspecified out-of-court settlement from Shimano in 1991. More importantly, all Shimano competitors won the right to compete in the lucrative OEM bicycle components arena.〔 The years after the Shimano settlement were marked by dramatic growth for the company, as it increased sales greatly and added other companies to its portfolio. SRAM is an example of a recent trend within the high-end cycle-component segment of the bicycle industry, where companies seek a position as a "one-stop shopping center" for bicycle frame manufacturers/bicycle brand owners, supplying all or most of the parts needed to build a complete bike. SRAM now incorporates the former bicycle divisions of Fichtel and Sachs, Sachs-Huret, and recently acquired component makers RockShox, Avid, Truvativ, Zipp, and QUARQ (see below). In 1994 SRAM introduced their first mountain bike rear derailleur, dubbed “ESP”, that featured a 1:1 cable actuation ratio that was more tolerant of cable contamination. The new derailleur was compatible with SRAM’s ESP Grip Shifters. This was a critical first step for SRAM toward producing a complete shifting system. By 1997 SRAM was ready to make its first acquisition, Sachs. This acquisition provided SRAM with a group of experienced metallurgists and engineers as well as a successful chain and internally geared hub production line. SRAM’s released its first “X.O” rear derailleur in 2001. It was a complete redesign of SRAM’s existing ESP derailleurs, however it still made use of SRAM’s proprietary 1:1 shift actuation ratio for improved shifting performance with worn or contaminated cables. Made from forged aluminum, the introduction of SRAM’s first high-end derailleur marked a turning point for the company’s mountain bike shifting groups. The introduction of X.O also marked the first time trigger shifters were available as a shifting option for SRAM rear derailleurs. In 2002 SRAM acquired suspension manufacturer, Rock Shox. Teetering on the brink of bankruptcy in the year prior to the acquisition, Rock Shox made a dramatic turn around. Quality and OEM assembly lead times were improved as Rock Shox made a return to prominence in the high-end mountain bike market. Shortly after the acquisition SRAM developed a new fork damper technology dubbed “Motion Control” that allowed riders to control low-speed compression and rebound damping while also providing the ability to firm up the suspension with the flip of a switch. Motion Control was a market success and Rock Shox continues to use variants of the Motion Control damper on select models. Avid was SRAM’s next acquisition in spring of 2004. Avid produced popular hydraulic disc brakes and gave SRAM one more means to compete with Shimano. Later that same year SRAM purchased Truvativ, a crank, bottom bracket, and chainring manufacturer based out of San Luis Obispo, California. With Truvativ as part of the SRAM family, the company could finally sell a complete drivetrain package to OEM customers. Although SRAM began as a manufacturer of road bike shifters, the company had largely left the road market in 1993 in favor of the rapidly growing mountain bike market. By 2004 SRAM planned a return to the road and began development on a new road groupset, Force, which it brought to market in 2006. Force was raced in the Tour de France for the first time the following year. The group made use of a new proprietary shifting technology known as DoubleTap. The technology allows the rider to shift a derailleur in both directions using a single shifter paddle. Late in 2007 SRAM made another acquisition, Zipp, to complete its component portfolio. The Zipp acquisition brought with it expertise in carbon fiber engineering and manufacturing, particularly in wheel making applications. This also rounded out SRAM’s component offerings thereby allowing SRAM to sell every component needed to build a complete bicycle. In 2008 SRAM introduced a new premium road groupset, SRAM RED, the lightest complete road groupset available. SRAM’s most recent acquisition was of the power meter crank manufacturer, Quarq. This acquisition took place in 2011. By 2012 SRAM had incorporated power meters into its top of the line RED road group. Also in 2012 SRAM introduced wide range 1x11 mountain bike shifting with its XX1 groupset. The new groupset made use of a 10-42 cassette and a patented single front chainring that made use of both narrow and specially shaped wide teeth to retain the chain without a chain guide. The rear derailleur for the groupset was equally revolutionary and used a parallelogram that moved only laterally, a technology called X-Horizon, which offered more precise shifting and improved chain retention over conventional rear derailleurs. By 2014 this same technology was adapted for use on cyclocross bikes with the introduction of SRAM Force CX1. The group was expanded in 2015 to use chainrings (up to 54-teeth) for other applications such as TT/Tri, road, and fitness bikes. With the expanded applications SRAM simplified the naming of the group to Force 1. The same year the company also developed a lower price point 1x11 road groupset option with similar features, Rival 1. In August 2015 SRAM announced that it would release its long awaited wireless electronic road groupset, SRAM RED eTap. The group utilizes derailleurs with self-contained batteries to shift using wireless signals sent from the shift levers. Benefits of the system include more precise shifting, faster setup, and lower maintenance compared to a traditional mechanically activated shifting arrangement. SRAM RED eTap is currently the only available wireless shifting system and is the lightest electronically actuated groupset on the market. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「SRAM Corporation」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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