Coronavirus – Mercedes converts its machines to the production of respiratory assistance devices

Accustomed to evolving in a world where even the slightest second can make a difference, Mercedes will not take long to make its contribution in the fight against COVID-19. 

The reigning six-time world champion team, more specifically its Brixworth High Performance Powertrains (HPP) engine department, collaborated with mechanical engineers and doctors from University College of London (UCL) and University College London Hospitals (UCLH) to develop a respiratory assistance device. 

The device, known as CPAP (for “Continuous Positive Airway Pressure”), has been approved by the NHS, the British health service. It has been used since the start of the health crisis in China, as well as in Italy, to help patients suffering from severe symptoms of COVID-19 breathe better, without having to resort to heavier ventilation devices. 

Since Wednesday 18 March, engineers from Mercedes' HPP department have been working tirelessly with their counterparts from UCL and UCLH within the UCL MechSpace Engineering Centre. Together, they used the principle of reverse engineering to develop the device and produce it on a large scale.

The CPAP system was produced in record time – less than a hundred hours between the first meeting and the manufacture of the first model. 100 copies of the device are currently in the clinical testing phase at UCLH with the hope of distributing them as quickly as possible to hospitals to deal with the increase in infected people in Great Britain.  

" The community F1 mobilized very quickly to contribute to the fight against COVID-19 as part of the Pitlane Project, said Andy Cowell, head of the Mercedes engine department. We are proud to have put our resources at the service of UCL to produce the CPAP system as quickly as possible and in compliance with the highest quality standards. 

Since the project was announced, we have received an incredible number of requests regarding the CPAP system. Making design and construction specifications available to everyone will allow companies around the world to produce these tools quickly and at scale. »

Sign of the effectiveness of the device, the British government has already ordered 10 CPAPs, while the Brixworth factory produces 1 per day using 000 machines which usually produce pistons and turbochargers. 

The Pitlane Project is the name given to the collective formed by the 7 teams based totally or partly in the United Kingdom and having agreed to join forces to face the current pandemic.

“I would like to salute the incredible team of engineers and doctors from UCL, UCLH, and the HPP department for working tirelessly on the development of this new prototype, commented Professor David Lomas. This breakthrough can clearly save lives by freeing up ventilators for NHS healthcare workers. 

It is no small feat to have managed to produce such a system in just 10 days. This shows how universities, industries, and hospitals can come together and work together for the greater good.”