Yakima’s CBX Solar Cargo Box Named to TIME’s List of the 100 Best Inventions of 2020

December 2, 2020

LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. – TIME has released its list of the 100 best inventions of 2020 and has selected Yakima’s CBX Solar Cargo Box in the Outdoor category. TIME’s The 100 Best Inventions of 2020 selects products every year that showcase innovation, creativity, and change the way we live, work, or enjoy our favorite activities. The products are chosen based on nominations from editors and correspondents from around the globe and across multiple categories, as well as through an online application process. The criteria for selection takes into account several different factors including ambition, creativity, influence, effectiveness, and originality. See the full list here: http://time.com/best-inventions-2020. You can also find information on TIME’s social media channels using the handle @TIME.

“We are humbled and honored to be included in this prestigious list of products that strive to bring original thinking to categories that make our experiences better,” said Joel Grabenstein, Vice President of Sales, Brand, and Product Marketing at Yakima. “We at Yakima, are always striving to move the needle in the way of innovation, creativity, and sustainability. The selection of the CBX Solar in TIME’s List of the 100 Best Inventions of 2020 is validation that our hard work and efforts are doing just that.”

Also a winner of Outside Magazine “Gear of Show” and Outdoor Retailer Innovation Awards “Product of the Year” honors, the new CBX SOLAR cargo box is a step forward in the narrative of green energy and environmental sustainability. To design the CBX SOLAR— the first mass-produced, premium-level cargo box with an integrated solar panel—Yakima partnered with Sunflare, a company based in La Verne, Calif. Sunflare is the first company to successfully mass-produce light, thin, flexible, and durable CIGS (copper indium gallium selenide) solar panels, which are 75 percent lighter and 95 percent thinner than standard c-Si (crystalline-silicon) panels. Capable of withstanding high impact, these CIGS panels are impervious to heat, wind, and cold—and will not crack.

The integrated 36-watt panel on the CBX SOLAR cargo box produces a 5-volt (3-amp max.) output through two USB ports, making it a completely green way to power any campsite or trailhead activity. The power of the sun affords adventurers the ability to charge portable batteries and devices without having to even start the vehicle, leaving plenty of power in the battery for when it’s time to shift into drive and explore the next horizon, all the while suppling adventurers with 16 cubic feet of storage space for exploring necessities. See more about the CBX Solar here: https://explore.yakima.com/cbx-solar.

About Yakima
A pioneer in vehicle racks and cargo management solutions since 1979, Yakima is known for its rugged and dependable products. Built for a wide variety of recreationists, Yakima products embody the company’s commitment to quality and safety and its passion for the outdoors. Yakima Products, Inc. is headquartered outside of Portland, Oregon. For more information, visit www.yakima.com and follow Yakima on social media: facebook.com/yakimaracks, @YakimaRacks on Instagram and Twitter, and youtube.com/yakimaproducts.

About Sunflare
Sunflare is a leader in the next generation of solar technology, reinventing the energy landscape. Sunflare has perfected a new, proprietary technology revolutionizing CIGS solar. Capture4, Sunflare’s rapid cell-by-cell manufacturing process yields efficient, low cost CIGS technology. It produces light, thin, flexible and rugged modules that can go places never imagined. The company has developed a variety of patented products to break through the barriers that have constrained new markets.

About Idea Ranch
Idea Ranch is a full-service advertising, PR, and consumer insights firm headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a second office in Wichita, Kansas.. The firm has a diversified list of clients across the country and is an industry-leading marketing-communications company building brands in the outdoor recreation and passion sports sectors. For more information, please visit www.idearanch.com, or follow us on social media: Instagram, Facebook, and on LinkedIn.