AMERICAS WORLD NEWS AUTOMOTIVE

Richard Petty Motorsports Speeds New Designs to the Track 50% Faster with Dassault Systèmes PLM

DELMIA, CATIA, and “I have an ‘open-wheel’ mindset that An Integrated Solution for an constantly pushes our teams, whether Integrated Strategy ENOVIA SmarTeam racing or engineering, to go further, In NASCAR, the need for on the Help Drive Benefits faster, with better technology,” said track is rivaled only by the need for speed Mark McArdle, vice president and in engineering. Kellen Brown, senior managing director of competition, project engineer, An Engineering-centric Richard Petty Motorsports. “Dassault Motorsports, said the engine development Philosophy Systèmes Product Lifecycle team turns out a minimum of ten engines In the competitive world of NASCAR, the Management (PLM), including CATIA, each week. Body configurations change difference between first and last place is ENOVIA SmarTeam, and DELMIA, is an rapidly, too, lasting no more than two only fractions of a second per lap. Even important part of our win-through- months each. “The only certainty in our minor improvements in the race car can engineering strategy.” sport is change—and it’s fast, it’s real- make the difference at the finish line. But time,” said Tommy Wheeler, director of these improvements must be made at The Petty organization owns 268 Sprint engineering services, Richard Petty lightning speed, so there is no time for trial Cup victories since its first race in 1949, Motorsports. and error in the shop. while Gillett Evernham Motorsports tallied 15 victories since 2001, when the team The team chose CATIA and ENOVIA Officials at Richard Petty Motorsports ushered in ’s return to NASCAR SmarTeam in 2002 to replace a therefore believe mechanical prowess, the under the leadership of . mismatched set of engineering tools. sport’s traditional source of advantage, is Richard Petty Motorsports, owned by Richard Petty Motorsports now uses being surpassed by engineering George Gillett and Richard Petty, has four CATIA for virtual 3D modeling of every excellence. The company, created in 2008 Sprint Cup teams, with drivers Kasey aspect of car development and production, from Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Kahne, , , from engine and car design to tooling and Petty Holdings, is one of the sport’s most and AJ Allmendinger, along with many manufacturing. ENOVIA SmarTeam engineering-centric organizations. world-class sponsors. intelligently stores and tracks all of the i DELMIA WORLD NEWS #18 A DELMIA Robotics simulation for the design of welding fixtures.

The team also relies on ENOVIA SmarTeam to track its ongoing design projects.

DELMIA Makes Robotic Control a Snap—Virtually Richard Petty Motorsports is using DELMIA’s Robotic simulation capabilities to save time and cut costs in the design of welding fixtures. DELMIA allows the team to program its robot virtually and visualize their motion to check for collisions or space restrictions before anything is built in the physical world.

“Before we machine a fixture or work on a holding part, we can simulate the tool path of the welder and avoid any interference issues,” Sprinkle said. “We can try a new part, check the fit, change the design on [ Team 19 driver Elliott Sadler the fly, check all our motion ratios and rounds the track in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. sizes, and know it’s going to work dimensionally before we ever machine the first piece.”

Virtual modeling eliminates scrap and team’s CATIA product designs and related that are manufactured outside, are re-machining of parts while avoiding time- engineering data for quick access and based on CATIA models.” consuming programming. “No machinist reuse. time is wasted, and no CNC time is used,” “One of the big reasons we chose CATIA Sprinkle said. “All reconfiguring and In 2008, the team added DELMIA Robotics is that it allows you to do CNC iterations can be done in the virtual as its 3D welding and simulation solution. programming within the same software we environment.” DELMIA allows the team to capture best use for design and engineering,” said practices and automate the repetitive work design manager Eric Kominek. “Before Creating a program in DELMIA Robotics of robot programming, accelerating the CATIA, if we had to make changes on the and downloading it to the robot, versus speed at which it moves new designs onto shop floor we didn’t have a way to reverse manually programming the robot, is the track. engineer and that knowledge would be another notable savings. For a 100-step lost. Now, that’s all captured automatically program, it can take ten hours to CATIA is Where Engineering in real time.” physically teach, tweak, maneuver, and Excellence Begins adjust the robot. Utilizing DELMIA Steve Oliver, deputy technical director of Once a part has been designed, getting it Robotics, Sprinkle estimates design and engineering, Richard Petty to manufacturing is simple and efficient. programming time has been cut 40-50%, Motorsports, said his team designs nearly With ENOVIA SmarTeam’s built-in revision and could even increase to 60%. all the components of a new engine using control and management, everyone on the CATIA—down to nuts, bolts, and o-rings. team is assured of having the most up-to- The Nuts and Bolts “We’re using it to be sure we have good date copy of part drawings. “The reality is we compete against a lot of fits and good documentation of all the race teams that are probably equal to us in components. CATIA is cutting about 50% “When we save a design model in terms of talent,” Wheeler said. “What it off our development time.” ENOVIA SmarTeam, the machine shop comes down to is this: the one who makes can pull that same part file into their the best choices and does it in the least Knowing What You Know software and create tool paths on the amount of time wins.” Oliver said that the use of CATIA carries model we actually designed,” said Kelton over to manufacturing. “The designs of Sprinkle, the team’s design/manufact- all the accessory components that are uring engineer. “Accuracy just doesn’t + For more information visit: now manufactured in-house, and a lot get much better.” www.richardpettymotorsports.com

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