Delta Motorsport have developed the MiTRE electric car range extender to ease 'range anxiety' for existing electric car owners. GoodFabs assembled the first prototype of this highly efficient turbine unit, which is designed to generate additional battery power on the move.
At the beginning of 2016 GoodFabs were consulted on the feasability of fabricating an inconel prototype by Simon Dowson, Managing Director of DeltaMotorsport, who had worked with GoodFabs in 1990s while at Reynard. Phil Levett agreed to help with the ground breaking project which had secured funding from Innovate UK, the UK Government's innovation agency.
AN INCONEL MASTERCLASS
Based on their experience advising marine, defence and motorsport companies on a range of engineering projects Delta specified inconel for the prototype in order to avoid any issues that might arise from excessive heat. GoodFabs used a range of fabrication and machining techniques including pressings, machining and TIG welding, to create the prototype, which enclosed a sophisticated 3D printed heat exchanger.
Multiple fabrication techniques were used to create customised inconel parts
The final 17kw prototype assembled by GoodFabs helped prove the concept, which is now being developed in a 35kw format with a view to a commercial roll out with automotive customers in Europe.
GoodFabs and DeltaMotorsport have both won recent awards as part of the Silverstone cluster of companies, based in Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire, that serve Formula 1 and other top motorsport engine builders and teams located in the UK's Motorsport Valley.
Machining, pressing and DMLS techniques were used to create a fully TIG welded inconel part