Renishaw Plc., one of the world’s leading engineering and scientific technology company from UK announced in an official release that it is renewing its additive manufacturing sponsorship of TransFIORmers, a French Moto2 Team. The team has been using additive manufacturing to improve the performance of Moto2 bike for some time now. Moto2 is one of the three divisions of the Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing events.
Renishaw offers additive manufacturing expertise to the team along with its French partner I3D Concept – a company that specialises in additive manufacturing of metal parts. Renishaw first sponsored the TransFIORmers in the year 2016, which also remains the only Moto2 team to use additively manufactured parts in its bikes.
Above: Additively Manufactured Component Installed on the bike/Image Credit :Renishaw
The team uses an additively manufactured structural component for the bike – a titanium wishbone formed part of its transformative front suspension system. The team achieved a reduction of 600g in weight on the part using Renishaw’s and I3D Concept’s additive manufacturing services.
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Speaking about how additive manufacturing expertise offered by Renishaw is helping teams gain competitive advantage and increase performance, Chris Pockett, Head of Communications at Renishaw said, “Additive Manufacturing is becoming a more popular technique in racing events.”
“In high-speed, high-performance applications like Moto2, the America’s cup and even the supersonic car, BLOODHOUND SSC, Renishaw’s additive manufacturing expertise has allowed teams to maximise performance and gain a competitive edge,” Pockett added.
Explaining how the TransFIORmers team is planning to make use of additive manufacturing to build more and more parts, Jérôme Aldeguer, Mechanical Engineer, TransFIORmers said, “Following the success of the wishbone, we are now designing more and more parts to be additively manufactured.”
“Not all parts can be made in titanium, so we are looking to alternative materials to manufacture brackets, footrests, a chain tensioner and other essential parts of the bike.
“Additive manufacturing increases flexibility for improving the bike. “We can change our designs easily, without tooling, and are also able to optimise the topology of each part. In 2019, we plan to use additive manufacturing on a larger scale – including a total redesign of the bike as part of the move from a Honda to a Triumph engine” Aldeguer added.
The TransFIORmers team is based in Perigueux, France. The team won its first race at the CEV Repsol European Championship in June 2016 and will hit the track to race for a podium position, starting at Estoril in Portugal on March 25th before attending the CEV European Championships, building up to the French Grand Prix on May 20th .
