The MTC, in partnership with the award-winning Oxford Brookes Formula Student team, has used Additive Manufacturing (AM) to produce titanium uprights giving a 50% weight saving. The motorsport car designed by the MTC and Oxford Brookes Racing was awarded Top UK Car and the team came 2nd in the Overall Team rankings.
“We've made a 50% reduction in un-sprung mass by using AM. These technologies transform the way you design parts, you can now do things that were previously unthinkable in terms of geometries.”
Joe Panik, Oxford Brookes University.
MTC engineers and Oxford Brookes had to design, manufacture titanium complex uprights within four weeks for the motorsport race car. Key challenges for this project included:
In partnership with Oxford Brookes students, the MTC supported and reviewed the complex design for AM manufacture of the upright brackets.
All components were manufactured in titanium using the Electron Beam Melting (EBM) process at MTC, home to the National Centre for Additive Manufacturing (NCAM).
Non Destructive Testing (NDT) and metrology techniques were utilised to ensure that all parts achieved the required quality standard for use on the car.
Demonstration of AM for use in a safety critical motorsport application.
Component weight saving of 50% using AM compared to conventional machining
The Oxford Brookes Racing (OBR) car fitted with the AM uprights achieved the following awards: