Home of the Renault F1 Team has placed its future 'time to race' manufacturing capability on linear axes drives machining centres and turning centres to stay in the lead.

Set in rural Oxfordshire, the Whiteways Technical Centre, home ofthe Renault F1 Team, masks a hive of activity behind its tranquilexterior. In 2003, the team finished a solid fourth in theConstructors Championship and captured two pole positions andfive podium finishes for its drivers along the way, includingvictory for Fernando Alonso in Hungary. And the team is'hungry' for yet more success.

'Our goal for 2004is to fight more consistently with Ferrari, Williams and McLarenand prepare to push for the championship in 2005,' confirmsManaging Director Flavio Briatore.

In order to achieve this, theRenault F1 Team has completed a comprehensive restructuring ofits resources and, in this context, a re-evaluation of themachine tools in operation at Enstone.

'By early 2003 ourprevious machines had reached the stage where reliability hadbecome an issue,' explains Operations Director John Mardle.'The reliability of our cars on the track is essential toour success and we need the same performance from our machinetools.

We view investment in latest technologies as a crucialpart of our operation and this led to the commercial andstrategic decision to make a change.

'DMG was at the top ofour shortlist,' he continues.

'We knew that a lot ofengine manufacturers used DMG machines and they came highlyrecommended.

Operating in the 21st century, we wanted a 21stcentury partner to help us realise our ambition to win the WorldChampionship.' So what features of the DMG machinesattracted the attention of this rapidly ascending F1 team?'The machine tool in industry is very fast moving,'says Mardle, 'particularly with respect to electronics andcontrols, and it appeared to us that DMG were not only runningwith it - they were setting the pace.' The Renault F1 Teampromptly proceeded to place an order for a total of 13 DMGmachine tools including DMC vertical machining centres and CTXuniversal lathes - all featuring linear drive technology, as wellas DMU five-axis universal machining centres.

The machines weredelivered in three batches over the course of 2003 in order toavoid any disruption to production at Whiteways Technical Centre.'Owing to the complexity of the parts we need to machine, weknew that the latest technology was required.

The linear driveswere a big attraction - the machines are extremely quiet andsmooth running and our surface finish and accuracy have improvedconsiderably.' While some manufacturers purchase machinetools for specific contracts, the Renault F1 Team opted for adifferent approach.

'We wanted versatility and we knew thatthe DMG machines would be able to cope with as many differentcomponents as we could muster.

We also wanted to be able to looka few years down the line and have the confidence to know thatthe machines would still meet our needs.

On top of it all, thatthe DMG machines could provide us with the speed and cycle timesthat we required.' Considering that there are 5200 drawncomponents on a Renault F1 Team chassis and 85-90 per cent ofthese are manufactured in-house at Enstone, the DMG machines arekept extremely busy.

Although batches are small at around 20-off,the frenetic pace is heightened by the fact that if a part failsduring testing, it has to be redesigned, remanufactured andtransported anywhere in the world within a six-day lead-time.'We manufacture in-house because it provides us with a levelof control that we believe sets us apart from some of ourcompetitor teams that choose to outsource,' says Mardle.

Thecomponents manufactured by the Renault F1 Team are typicallycomplex and thin-walled, with the ethos firmly focussed onweight, reliability and safety.

Materials vary from metal matrixcomposites and titanium alloys through to carbon fibre and highspecification nylons, again highlighting the versatility of theDMG machines - and there is no margin for error.

'In FormulaOne, if the steering wheel is turned, the wheels have to respondimmediately - and if the driver hits the brakes the car has toreact quickly ?

there is no slack involved and no time delaypermitted.

To achieve responses of this nature the tolerancesinvolved are incredibly tight.' So how have the DMG machinesadapted to this demanding environment?

'To start with Iwould like to say that the commissioning period wasseamless,' declares Mardle.

'We didn't experienceany disruption to our machine shop and the whole operation wentlike clockwork.

The training on the Heidenhain controls wasamazing too, all completed via plug-in modules using a PC.

Sincethen the machines have performed perfectly and provided us withmuch more capability.

In terms of savings, we haven't doneany numbers yet but we are pretty sure we are ahead.

Forinstance, we are definitely in front regarding the number ofdrawings we have issued this year and our outside spend is down.We are also seeing less inspection reports.' DMG has alsosurpassed itself in terms of service, with John Mardle describingresponse times as 'unbelievable - the best I've everseen'.

The facility at Enstone is certainly a showcase forUK manufacturing.

The DMG machines are elegantly arranged in aspotless environment that reflects the gleaming and proficientimage of Formula One.

'It's a working environment, butit is also a living showcase for the industry, which is veryimage conscious,' he explains.

'When we were lookingfor a new machine tool partner, DMG seemed to have synergy withFormula One values ?

they are very focussed and want to be thebest at what they do in the same way that we want to be the bestat what we do.

We need partners like DMG to help us win thechampionship.

Quality components equal reliability on track andthat is essential.' The Renault F1 Team is 'more thanhappy' with its new partner and its new assets.

Forinstance, the DMC vertical machining centres, with a linear drivein the x-axis, is capable of up to 0.5G acceleration and rapidtraverse rates of 70m/min.

With extremely short idle times duringtool changes, chip-to-chip times of just five seconds can beachieved, which is an important factor in an industry such asFormula One, where efficiency is of the essence, particularlyregarding machining.

Also featuring a linear drive in the X-slideis the CTX range of CNC universal lathes.

With rapid traverserates of up to 60m/min and acceleration up to 1.5G, the lineardrive helps to reduce idle time to a minimum and productivity toa maximum ?

an output increase of at least 10 per cent can beexpected.

The DMU machines are for the complete five-sided (andup to simultaneous five-axis) machining of prismatic components.The centrepiece of this technology is the NC-rotary table and theswivel-mounted milling motor spindle as a driven b-axis, or theNC-swivel rotary table with the universal milling head.

Incombination with a rapid traverse speed of 50m/min, the DMU rangeensures the precision manufacture of small batch components.'The five-axis facility has given us new capability and madeus a one-stop-shop.

Nothing now seems insurmountable in terms ofcomponent complexity,' says Mardle.

To add to the currentquantity of 13 machines at Enstone, the Renault F1 Team has justordered a DMU 80T from DMG for use in its model shop, and afurther two machines (a DMU-125P and a GMX 200 mill-turn centrewith linear drives) for its facility in France.

'We are verypleased to have DMG as an official supplier - adding to theselected portfolio of companies that bring their products andservices to the team - only the best will do for the Renault F1Team,' concludes Mardle.