Case Study
Taking “just in time” to the limit
Wirth Research
Using NX and Teamcenter Express, parts for race cars are designed, manufactured, tested and delivered within ten days
Competitive sports car construction is the ultimate in “just in time” design and manufacturing. Frequent race dates and changing locations lead to logistical challenges that sometimes make the rest of the automotive industry look sedate. Wirth Research relies on the NX® digital product development system and the Teamcenter® Express collaborative product data management system – both from Siemens PLM Software – to achieve precision engineering within demanding timeframes.
Established in 2002, Wirth Research is an engineering consultancy with 25 specialists drawn from motor sport, aerospace and software development. In 2003 Wirth Research began working with Honda Performance Development to optimize a chassis for the Indy Car program. Honda subsequently dominated both the Indianapolis 500 and the IRL series, winning 14 out of 16 races in 2004 and 12 out of 16 in 2005. In 2006 Honda asked Wirth Research to take the chassis development a step further and build a sports car. A small-scale program, which gradually increased in size and commitment, led to instant success for Honda in the 2007 racing schedule.
“We are typically resource limited, yet we have to come up with innovative and effective solutions and NX helps us do that,” says NickWirth, the company’s technical director. “NX is absolutely critical for us – an integral part of our business. We use all the functionality: parametric modeling, assemblies, mock up, stress tools and mechanism modeling, to name a few. We really push it to the limit and our success not only benefits our clients, it helps us attract new business.” Other clients of Wirth Research include the FIA Foundation, Highcroft Racing and Andretti Green Racing.
No time for software problems
Wirth Research began as a virtual team of consultants and contractors based in multiple locations, collaborating electronically. As the company evolved from purely research and development to racecar construction, with its heart stopping time lines for production, it became clear that its engineers needed to be in face-to-face communication. In 2007 the company moved into new premises in Oxfordshire.
The entire car is now built there and spares are produced throughout the year. Wirth Research’s engineers have to achieve the highest levels of accuracy so they make, fit and trial test each of the three thousand parts that go into the car. “NX stands alone because it simply works, and many of its competitors simply don’t,” says Wirth. “It is reliable because of the robust development behind the software. In our sector there is no margin for error – we just don’t have time for software crashes, blue screens or anything like that. The team races one weekend and if an incident occurs that necessitates a redesign, this is ordered on the Monday. We have to design and produce the new part and ensure that it arrives in the US on Wednesday of the following week so that it can be fitted and trial tested. We simply cannot issue drawings that are not 100 percent accurate.”
Many of Wirth Research’s engineers have experience in Formula One racing. Wirth explains the company’s unique talents: “Wirth Research is more than a design company. We have a tremendous pool of knowledge and we offer a full service. We like to take time to get to know clients, over a long term relationship, so that we can best advise them how to meet their business objectives. We typically flesh out a low risk proposal, putting together a business plan, a technical approach, a design strategy and a production and support schedule. With competitive racing clients, we are usually embedded in the race team so we have a high degree of influence.”
World-class engineering in a resource vacuum is how Wirth describes what the Wirth Research team regularly achieves: “We only operate in areas where we can exert an influence. With very little time and with budget constraints our biggest challenge is lack of information so we make predictions and join the dots as best we can. Our clients come to us for our ability to solve problems in an economical way.”
The interoperability of NX is of critical importance to Wirth Research. “Whilst it’s ingrained in our business because it is the best tool for us, some of our clients use different software and this does not present any problems,” says Wirth. "We can easily transfer data between two systems.”
In 2007 Wirth Research implemented Teamcenter Express. “When we were a small company it was easy to keep in touch with each other,” observes Tim Cunningham, the company’s group general manager. “We knew that we had to maintain the advantages of a small tightly knit team even as we grew. We recognized that we needed to introduce a more formal quality control system to handle design updates, reviews and workflow. Teamcenter Express is now establishing consistency in everything we do.”
Wirth Research has been able to replace a number of manual operations. For example one person previously entered numbers on a spreadsheet to create the Bills of Materials (BOM). These are now automatically produced from components as they are modeled. According to Cunningham, there is less administration for several people. “The whole design and build process has become seamless with effortless improvement to our change management control. This means that we can all spend more time on engineering.” This is just one example of Teamcenter Express’ focus on managing everyday tasks and processes more efficiently.
One of the key benefits of Teamcenter Express is how it increases the speed and accuracy of working collaboratively, for example through the support for managed design reviews and remote access via the Internet. This is crucial for Wirth Research’s clients and partners, given the short time frames they all work to.
Siemens PLM Software channel partner Cutting Edge Solutions provided the implementation services for Teamcenter Express. This included software installation, technical support and the training of administrators and users. Teamcenter Express has been designed to meet the requirements that small and medium businesses have for fast installation and low total cost of ownership. For example, Teamcenter Express delivers a preconfigured cPDM environment with industry best-practice workflows. This enabled Wirth Research’s implementation process to be completed within six weeks.
“We can respond with the speed necessary for top-level motor racing – without the funding normally associated with Formula One,” Wirth concludes. “To do this we need to remove all obstacles and work with pit-stop precision. NX andTeamcenter give us the most productive tools and the most streamlined engineering processes. The proof is the results our clients gain on the track and the new business we win.”
Download the PDF:
Challenges:
- Design, build and test to the exacting time scales of international motor racing
Keys To Success:
- Single source of data for design through manufacturing
- Reliable software that allows engineers to work intuitively
- Integrated 3D modeling, mockup and stress analysis
- Automated change management process
- Quick channels of communication with partners and clients
Results:
- 3,000 parts designed, assembled and tested within 12 months
- Spare parts built and delivered within three days
- Lead times reduced by 10 percent on average
- Four engineer days per month saved on data handling and record revision
- Output quality improvement
Industry:
- Automotive & Transportation
Client's Primary Business:
Wirth Research provides specialist engineering services including research and development, design and manufacture.
Business Initiatives:
- Enterprise Data Management
- New Product Development
- Value Chain Synchronization
Solutions/Services:
- NX
- Teamcenter Express
- Velocity Series
Client Location:
Oxfordshire
United Kingdom
"Our objective is to help our clients succeed on the race track. NX and Teamcenter Express help us to do that."
Nick Wirth
Technical Director
Wirth Research