Cygnet Texkimp and McLaren Automotive celebrate Composites UK Industry Award for ART high-rate fibre deposition solution
Fibre technology specialist Cygnet Texkimp and supercar manufacturer McLaren Automotive have been awarded the Innovation in Manufacturing Award at the Composites UK Industry Awards for their work to develop a high-rate, ultra-precise carbon fibre deposition technology.
At the awards, which were held during the Advanced Engineering Show at Birmingham’s NEC on 29th October, judges recognised the success of the technology partnership in industrialising the ART (Automated Rapid Tape) technology.
Spearheaded by McLaren’s in-house innovation team and developed by Cygnet Texkimp, ART is designed to manufacture high performance carbon fibre composite parts quickly and with minimal scrap, using less fibre more effectively and sustainably to produce high quality composites intensive parts at viable rate.
The aerospace-inspired technology is already integrated into McLaren’s Composites Technology Centre (MCTC) in Sheffield where it is being used to manufacture complex, aerodynamic components for the company’s supercar programmes, including the McLaren W1 Ultimate Supercar.
The two companies have now formed an exclusive licensing agreement that allows Cygnet Texkimp to market the solution to other industries including aerospace, space, defence, wind energy and industrial as part of a long-term strategy to enable high-rate, sustainable manufacture of composites.
Luke Vardy, Cygnet Texkimp CEO, said:
“We’re delighted to have our work recognised by the UK’s world-class composites industry. ART is an extremely innovative and exciting technology that combines McLaren’s extensive knowledge and experience of highly specialised carbon fibre engineering with Cygnet Texkimp’s world-leading fibre handling and processing expertise and understanding of mechanics and controls.
“The technology unlocks enormous potential for large-scale global markets to access the benefits of a highly specialised carbon fibre and composites manufacturing solution first developed for aerospace and high performance automotive-grade composites. It is relevant to many industries for the manufacture of composite structures that are optimised for superior performance.”
The solution creates new possibilities for innovation in automotive and aerospace engineering and design through its cutting-edge fibre placement technology, which enables manufacturers to accurately tailor the load bearing and stiffness characteristics of the finished part through the strategic positioning of the fibres. Specific adjustment of fibre orientation within the composite material allows for anisotropic stiffness: rigidity can be enhanced in specific directions while flexibility can be maintained elsewhere. This allows new ways to design highly loaded, complex aerodynamic components that can also be made visually distinct.
