An internal reorganization that matches Renault’s ambitions

Reinforcement of Daniel Ricciardo, development of a new Power Unit where pure performance has been highlighted… Renault F1 Team enters the 2019 season with certain arguments in favor of further progression in the hierarchy of the discipline.

If we will have to wait for the first runs in Barcelona tomorrow, but especially the first Grand Prix in Australia in March to judge the level of the RS 19, the Losange troops should only benefit from the long work of reorganizing the infrastructures initiated within entities of Viry and enstone.

« All the means at our disposal have reached a new level, underlines Nick Chester, technical director in charge of the chassis at Renault F1 Team. Today we have top-level infrastructures which have the best machining tools for chassis.

This allows us to work with tight tolerances. We have made improvements to the wind tunnel and we have a paint shop on site. We can thus move forward until the last moment while maintaining an impeccable finish..

The new clean room (where the air is notably purified with a reduced number of particles to a minimum) is fantastic. It is twice as large as the old one, which makes the assembly of composites more efficient and helps us better prepare the car »

If the chassis part buildings in Enstone have undergone major work, the Viry facilities, focused on Power Units, are not left out, as Rémi Taffin, in charge of engines, recalls.

“We are building a new building for all our operational activities with the aim of improving the fluidity of our operation, specifies the French engineer. We continue to work on our testing facilities, ensuring we have the most appropriate and modern technologies.

Our new bench will be put into service very soon and it will be multifunctional since we will be able to test the gearbox with the engine, the engine and/or the ERS alone as well as the engine with the rear part of the car. We also need to keep the future in mind and ensure we are ready for 2021.

We are starting to feel the benefits of the collaboration between Enstone and Viry. New buildings and tools have emerged on the surface, but we cannot forget the people at the heart of the project. We have more and more the feeling of being able to start fighting at the top again and the employees are buying into it too. »

This self-confidence had been one of the points put forward by Cyril Abiteboul, director of Renault Sport Racing, during the presentation of the RS 19.

The 2019 single-seater will be in action tomorrow in Catalonia, after having taken to the track for the first time yesterday, in the hands of Daniel Ricciardo.