July’s Part of the Month was selected by the person behind the scenes, Sales Operations Manager, Natalia Renteria. She picked a brake wing produced by McLaren, one of the most successful Formula One teams in history.
The prototype was 3D printed in stereolithography on the Stratasys Neo800+ and tested on a shaker table to identify defects before production.
About The Part
Formula One teams are constantly refining their designs, and additive manufacturing makes those rapid design cycles possible. For this specific part, once the brake wing was printed, it was placed on a shaker table to simulate real-world vibration conditions. This testing helps engineers identify defects or structural weaknesses before moving on to the next stage of development.
Natalia chose this part not just because she’s a huge McLaren fan, but also because it shows how “3D printing gives engineers a fast way to test and refine designs before taking the next step in development.” Companies like McLaren use high-performance materials, precision SLA printing, and advanced software to accelerate development. 3D printing dramatically reduced McLaren’s lead times, while maintaining the quality and accuracy required for top-level motorsport.
About The Neo800+
So, why did they choose SLA technology on the Neo800+ for this part?
For a company like McLaren, speed and precision are everything. Natalia notes that “the team needed a printer that could quickly produce large, highly accurate parts with a specialty material.” The Neo800+ was the fit.
The printer’s large 31.5 x 31.5 x 23.6-inch build volume allows engineers to produce sizeable components in a single build, or maximize productivity with higher batch quantities. The combination of size, accuracy, and throughput makes the Neo800+ an ideal choice for applications like McLaren’s.
“Speed is as crucial off the track as it is on the track. An F1 car is made up of around 16,000 parts and on average, one part is upgraded every 15 minutes, so speed of production is really key. From the traditional first race of the season in Australia to the final race in Abu Dhabi, we expect 85% of the designed parts of the car to change. It is a constant race against time not only on the track but in the factory too.”
Piers Thynne, Executive Director, Operations, McLaren Racing
Material: Somos PerFORM
This brake wing was printed using Somos PerFORM, a ceramic-filled SLA material designed for applications that require high stiffness, thermal resistance, and dimensional stability. These properties allowed the prototype to closely replicate the stiffness of the final product, providing more representative data during shaker table testing.
Material Properties
- Color: White
- Tensile Strength: 68 MPa
- Elongation at Break: 1.1%
- Tensile Modulus: 10,500 MPa
- HDT @ 0.46 MPa: 269°C
If you’re interested in learning more about the Neo800+, or Somos PerFORM, contact our team today.
Meet Natalia Renteria
Natalia, our Sales Operations Manager, supports our Sales Engineers, as well as our Marketing and Business Operations team. Whether she’s helping with the inside sales process, account management, or any other operational duties, Natalia takes on the task at hand with a smile. What Natalia loves most about Purple is the environment and the team that works here.
Outside of the office, Natalia loves cooking and early morning hikes. If you haven’t had the chance to meet Natalia yet, stop by our office and say hi or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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