www.engineeringnews.co.nz 17 Prodrive team ensure that its components are reliable and will hold up in any race situation. Reliability is not only determined by the tooling used by the team but also the metal alloy used to create each component. This is also backed by the quality of the machining. With the help of Sandvik, Prodrive’s machinists, mechanics and engineers are able to guarantee the part will do the job required for the length of its life. Derek Skidmore, the head of the manufacturing department at Prodrive Racing, believes continued development within the team and with Sandvik was the key to the team’s success in 2015. “We have worked really closely with Sandvik over the last year and a half to get our parts made at the highest quality,” says Skidmore. “They have been extremely helpful, with developing their shop online system to allow us to get the right tools to the workshop within 24 hours of us ordering it, to their technicians helping us produce these parts to the highest quality possible. “What is developed today is not necessarily going to be good enough for tomorrow, particularly because our engineers are constantly designing new components for the cars so we have worked tirelessly together to continue developing their products to ensure that they are the best in the business and deliver the best success possible.” As development is continual, another key part of the success of the Prodrive manufacturing department, and the business overall, is speed and efficiency. When at a race track, mechanics must be quick and efficient when making pit stops, changing parts in practice sessions, and between races and sessions throughout the weekend. If pit stops are not quick, the team may lose race position, and if the right component is not efficiently installed in the car, a mechanical problem may result, costing the team race results and valuable championship points. Prodrive driver Mark Winterbottom’s 2015 Championship win is evidence of the speed and efficiency of the team, with Winterbottom finishing each and every race in the 2015 season. Within the team’s manufacturing department, the same principals can be applied. With the team’s engineers constantly developing new parts, Skidmore and his team must work quickly and efficiently to ensure the part is installed in each car prior to the trucks leaving for the next race event. With the Sandvik/Prodrive partnership extending into the 2016 season, turnover time will become increasingly important with the season condensing to 40 weeks while adding an extra event. In most cases there will only be two weeks or less between events, so the machinists must be efficient when working to produce these new parts. In most cases, depending on the part, it can be produced within a few hours to be fitted to the car or shipped to the next race event. This speed and efficiency has contributed to the team’s success throughout 2015, allowing the team to improve their performance throughout the year. Sandvik’s assistance for the duration of their partnership has played an important part in the team’s success. Sandvik’s work to further understand what the team requires and its endeavours to supply the team with the best tools, machines, and information to create the best possible components so that Prodrive’s cars are able to achieve the ultimate success has been a great contributor to the year that the team had. Performance on track has a direct correlation with the performance of the team back at the workshop, in all departments. It is necessary for all departments to perform at their peak consistently throughout the year, and that is what Prodrive did in 2015. Both Prodrive and Sandvik strive to be the best in their field and their success goes hand in hand. Teamwork is a vital part of V8 Supercars, and Prodrive Racing is proud to have Sandvik Coromant as part of their team. HD PLASMA CUTTER BECOMES INDISPENSABLE MEMBER OF THE TEAM Working as one-man band in the specialised and demanding niche of industrial and security gate manufacturing, Simon Neil recognised the desirability of automating the cutting of the square tube and plate steel used in the process. Research into cutting machines led him to the team at Advanced Robotic Technology and the installation of an HD Plasma machine. The result has been greatly increased productivity with 50 percent reduced production times and much shortened lead times when it comes to prototyping and fabricating. Secure Gates is a manufacturer of metal gates, working in the area of large and specialised industrial and high-security gates – including gates used in prisons. It’s a niche business with a repeat client list and new clients attracted by word of mouth. This Adelaide-based business in Australia is owned and operated by Simon Neil and he had been looking for some time to install a cutting machine to help with the workload. Advanced Robotic Technology, when he contacted them, were quick to analyse the needs of the business and suggest solutions that would work best for him. Simon says he was very impressed with the team at ART and consultation was soon followed by installation at Secure Gates of an ART HPR130XD plasma machine with a drill/tap head. The machine was customised for Simon’s need for a large working area – in his case a working area of 14.5 m x 2.5m – and the ability for cutting long length of square tube – up to 12.5m in length – as well as steel plate. The result for Secure Gates has been an increase in speed and accuracy that has seen greatly lowered lead times and reduced production costs, Simon says. “Lead time was a problem in the past, waiting on cut metal to be returned.” The plasma cutter has made a considerable impact on output. In the past, having to have material cut offsite caused problems with lead times but now Simon is able to prototype quickly, and achieves faster fabrication of orders. With the ART plasma cutter, productivity has increased by 50 percent, and the product is of higher quality.
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