New technical partner for Williams

The BMW WilliamsF1 Team today confirmed details of a new technical partnership with QinetiQ, the technology solutions company privatised from the UK's government's defence and evaluation research laboratories.

The partnership is designed to inject groundbreaking British technologies into the development process of world-beating race cars and bring together the best of British expertise.

QinetiQ is today a specialised technology organisation, which applies its wealth of defence technologies to create solutions for the aerospace, transport, health, security and environmental sectors. Specific solutions include novel trim panel speakers for aircraft, an early diagnosis system for breast cancer, hybrid drive technology for trucks and biodegradable car components.

This unique array of technology expertise will assist the BMW WilliamsF1 Team in a number of key areas, including materials science, predictive aerodynamic disciplines and the application of GPS technology for data acquisition at tests.

For its part, QinetiQ will use its Formula One partnership to communicate its unique technology offering to the global commercial marketplace and emphasise the strength and importance of British innovation.

On the announcement of the partnership, BMW WilliamsF1 Team Principal Frank Williams said, "A significant part of our success is drawn from the skills of our partners, and I have little doubt that QinetiQ's rich talent pool of British scientists and technology experts will make a real difference to our competitive performance. I am delighted that they are joining the team and we hope to be able to assist in the international promotion of their competencies."

Sir John Chisholm, QinetiQ's Chief Executive reflected that, "Formula One is a business which adopts the world's most innovative technological developments well ahead of other businesses. A technical partnership with the BMW WilliamsF1 Team is a natural association for QinetiQ, where we can jointly demonstrate the power of British innovation to an international audience. We hope QinetiQ can make a substantive contribution to results on the race track and showcase the best of British technology."

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