Mun Wai reports from Lotus Racing's pits at the Singapore Grand Prix.

1. 14 LIFESTYLE lite DECEMBER 2010
Distractions:drive
The road barricades
are long down, the
roar of engines and sight
of cars hurtling past is
a blurry memory as the festive mood
overtakes the excitement of F1 season, but the
next one will whiz by soon enough. For an insider’s
view, share WONG MUN WAI’s experience at the
Singapore Grand Prix in September.
It
was an adrenalin-charged circus back
there with TV crews, mechanics and
racing team guests, and noise in the
pits of participating teams – Ferrari, Red Bull
and Lotus Racing.
In F1 first-timers Lotus Racing’s pit were
engineers studying screens full of data; garage
decked with engines and wheels, and mechanics
diligently working on the cars.
Running the pit takes 65 people for Lotus
Racing over the weekend of an F1 race. In the
garage are 40 people who manage the two cars
and whole pit area.
LIFEINTHEPITS
The key staff are people such as Mike Gascoyne,
Chief Technical Officer who is in overall charge, and
Jody Egginton, Chief Race Engineer who oversees the
engineers and the garage.
Maintenance is ad hoc, depending on what is
required during practice, qualifying and the race.
Each car part is lifted from the bodywork and
changed before it wears out. The parts are checked
and tested at the track and the factory to make sure
they are in good working order.
When tyres need changing on the track, the car
is called in by the Race Engineer. The wheel gun
stive mood
of F1 season, but the
enough. For an insider’s
WAI’s experience at the
ptember.
Lite-Distractions-Drive.indd 14 11/19/10 4:02:35 PM

2. LIFESTYLE lite DECEMBER 2010 15
operator removes the wheel nut, the tyre
collector takes the tyre, the tyre picker puts a
new one in, and the wheel gun operator secures
the wheel nut.
Mechanics are on hand to service the
aerodynamics, suspension and gearbox
anytime. Each area has at least two mechanics
in charge of specific parts of the car, and they
assess operational limits and sensor readings
to determine performance levels among
other aspects. What else they do is labelled
“confidential” by Lotus Racing.
LOTUS PARTNERS LG
Lotus Racing tied up with LG Electronics as a
Technical Partner in the team’s first season in
F1. LG supply LCD screens – communicating
data and moving images to Lotus team
members and guests. A large range of sizes was
used across the Garage, Factory and Hospitality
areas in 2010.
product performance n the rugged high-noise/
vibration environment of F1 garages. LG is also
working with Lotus for future products that can
benefit both companies’ R&D.
LG measures its F1 engagement very thoroughly,
studying key performance indicators in more than
12 countries that represent the major F1 and LG
markets. The company charts the difference in
consumers that associate LG and F1, versus those
who do not. LG notes consumers who associate LG
with F1 have higher opinions of LG for technology
credentials, quality and most importantly, show
consumer intent to buy LG products. lite
Lotus Racing required rugged screens that
could withstand the high noise and vibration
of an F1 garage, as well as durability to be
shipped to 19 races across 18 contries in
2010. For next season, LG and Lotus Racing
are working together to define additional LG
products that can used by the team.
LG and Lotus Racing have agreed on a
minimum three-year relationship that will
expire or be renewed in 2013.
LEARNING CURVE FOR LG
LG gets the benefit of learning about its
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