Ford has announced the inauguration of a new technical centre in US. The ford Technical Support Centre will work towards developing performance vehicles and will help in increasing Ford’s overall mark in motorsports.
The 33,000 square foot facility is expected to go into commission later this summer, and will house a technical support centre for Ford Racing that will help teams in developing and testing their cars for competition. The location of Ford’s new facility was chosen because of its proximity to the NASCAR R&D centre and a number of other racing team headquarters.
“Motorsports and product development at Ford are interlinked, and this new centre will house advanced tools that will serve both our race teams and the development of future Ford performance vehicles,” said Raj Nair, group vice-president, Ford global product development.
The new facility with advanced simulation and measurement tools reflects the latest investment by Ford to try and develop a profitable line-up of performance vehicles with the help of latest technology.
“Performance is a critical and growing business for Ford,” said Jim Farley, Ford executive vice-president, global marketing, sales and service and Lincoln. “We recognize our customers want vehicles that offer great fuel economy, leading technology and a great driving experience. Our new technical center is another tool that will help us continue to grow our performance vehicle business around the world.”
The technical support centre will initially focus on supporting NASCAR teams in all three major touring divisions, but will eventually expand to include other Ford Racing teams taking part in various motorsports series. “This facility is an investment in advanced Ford Racing technical tools that will support our goal of winning races and championships,” said Jamie Allison, director, Ford Racing. “It also provides us with expansion capabilities as we support our broader array of Ford teams from NASCAR, the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, IMSA, Rally and Global RallyCross, NHRA and other series.”
Ford’s new facility also hosts a platform simulator that will allow Ford Racing teams to optimise set ups for individual track configurations, and for drivers to practice ahead of an upcoming race weekend. Similar technology has been used in Formula One. After the simulator has been proven through racing, Ford will apply that knowledge to further improve vehicle dynamics on its high-performance street vehicles. “We have enhanced our vehicle dynamics simulation tools to lead the development of Ford Racing cars in NASCAR and IMSA, as well as our street products,” said Nair. “The driving simulator will help us to push handling optimsation to the next level so that our cars can be fast right off the trailer, allowing our teams to focus on fine-tuning changes when they get to the track. The simulator can also be used to make continual adjustments to advance the car setup for the race weekend based on what the teams see in early practice sessions,” added Nair.
In addition, the simulator will help hone communication between driver, crew chief and engineer, while also refining predictability and accuracy of simulation software. The support facility will also serve as a parts distribution warehouse.
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