Wednesday, July 25, 2018

News: Toyota partners with AMRC

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In the slipstream of McLaren Automotive, TOYOTA Motorsport GmbH (TMG) has joined forces with the University of Sheffields Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) to remain at the front of the automotive technology grid.

With multimillion pound facilities on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, the AMRC focuses on advanced machining and materials research for aerospace and other high-value manufacturing sectors.

A partnership between industry and academia, members pay in to get access to the state of the art equipment and world-leading engineers.

TMG, whose parent company is Toyota Motor Corporation, has built its reputation in motorsport via World Rally, Formula 1 and now the FIA World Endurance Championship, which includes the Le Mans 24 Hours. It joins the AMRC as a Tier 2 member with a focus on research and development of lightweight materials.

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Professor Keith Ridgway, executive dean of the AMRC, said: "I'm extremely pleased the AMRC is working closely with TMG, which is part of the world's number one endurance racing team - winners of the recent Le Mans 24 Hours event. This is further proof that the Sheffield city region's Global Innovation Corridor is the come-to-place for manufacturers who want to take on the world’s best and win.

"The AMRC now has a global reputation for its expertise not just in the development of new composites and processes but also within the increasingly important arena of lightweighting where we lead the way.

"It will be fascinating to work closely with a company involved in high-level motorsport. Like us, they want to make things faster, leaner and cleaner."

The Global Innovation Corridor is a vision to stretch the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District (AMID) being created in Sheffield and Rotherham across the region, linking people to key sites including Sheffield city centre, Doncaster Sheffield Airport, the AMP in Rotherham and Barnsley's Digital Campus.

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Ben Kitcher, head of automotive strategy at the AMRC, added: "We will be looking for opportunities to apply horizontal innovation – transferring technology from one sector to another. We'll be applying innovative technology from other industries to inject fresh ideas and processes into motorsport, as well as setting out a collaborative roadmap of where new technologies will be delivered to motorsport."

McLaren Automotive already has 45 employees housed at the AMRC, innovating the process for creating lightweight tubs for its supercars and roadcars. This is in preparation for the opening of its new £50m facility on the AMP in Rotherham which, when fully operational, will see the team grow to around 200 people.

Toyota Motorsport website
AMRC website

Images: Racing by TMG

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