The McLaren Group will show off its British-made flair with 39 other companies at the Make it in Great Britain exhibition that opens on Tuesday July 24.
The 40 companies were selected from hundreds of applicants to demonstrate the best of British manufacturing this summer at the Science Museum in London.
Running concurrent with the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the exhibition forms the apex of an initiative launched last year by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which challenges transform the image of manufacturing, from outdated grotty industry to that of a modern, science-based, export-oriented global business.
As part of this initiative, one of McLaren Racing’s engineers was selected as one of the young rising stars of the UK’s manufacturing sector. Bernadette Collins was chosen for the passion and commitment she has shown to her career in manufacturing, McLaren says, and will now go on to act as an ambassador for the campaign. See will speak to other young people in an effort to promote career opportunities in the industry.
McLaren will showcase three products which show the company’s diversity and underscores the value of design to manufacturing businesses
A Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 car will feature alongside a McLaren MP4-12C sports car and a Specialized S-Works + McLaren Venge high performance bicycle.
A Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 car represents the cutting edge of motor sport technology, and, like all McLaren products, is designed and built at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking. It is a truly dynamic piece of design, constantly and rapidly evolving: over the course of a season, around 85 per cent of the car’s components will change. On average, McLaren Racing creates an update for the car every 15 minutes, seven days a week, 12 months a year.
McLaren Automotive has produced the McLaren F1 supercar and the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. The third car, the MP4-12C, aims to set new benchmarks for speed and comfort in this class.
In 1981, McLaren revolutionised motor racing by bringing carbon fibre from the aerospace industry to Formula 1 for the first time. The unique one-piece ‘MonoCell’ is full carbon fibre chassis construction, until now only seen on low-volume elite vehicles, but provided on the MP4-12C at a lower price.
In November 2011 McLaren Automotive opened its new £50m McLaren Production Centre, the centrepiece of a £800m investment in R&D, manufacturing and skilled employment in the UK. By the middle of the decade this ultra-modern facility will produce a larger range of high-performance sports cars.
The Specialized S-Works + McLaren Venge is an example of how McLaren Applied Technologies crosses technical boundaries, bringing McLaren’s spirit of innovation to a growing portfolio of clients outside the world of motor racing.
For the S-Works + McLaren Venge, McLaren Applied Technologies worked with bicycle manufacturer Specialized to make a bike blending lightness, strength and aerodynamic efficiency. Brit cycling sensation Mark Cavendish rode one in 2011, taking the coveted green jersey for best sprinter in the Tour de France and then winning the UCI Road World Championships.
The company says it “aims to be a standard-bearer for UK manufacturing excellence” at the exhibition and beyond.
