HONDA INCREASES UK INVESTMENT WITH NEW WIND TUNNEL
Honda Motor Company today celebrated the launch of its newest
facility in the United Kingdom, a state of the art wind tunnel
at the Honda Racing F1 Team's Operations Centre in Brackley,
Northants. Officially opened in a ceremony hosted by the Rt.
Hon. Alistair Darling MP, Secretary of State for Trade and
Industry, and Shigeru Takagi, President of Honda Motor Europe,
the new facility represents further evidence of Honda's commitment,
not only to Formula One, but to investment in the UK.
Honda's presence in the UK began over 40 years ago with the
creation of Honda UK in London. The company currently has
seven locations employing 5500 people throughout the country,
with total investment now reaching over 1.3 billion pounds.
For a company synonymous with engineering excellence, Honda
recognises the value of investment in the most up to date
infrastructure available. The new facility effectively provides
the Honda Racing F1 Team with an in-house 'test track' - a
fully automated, fully instrumented testing facility able
to accommodate one of the team's full-size RA106 race cars.
The tunnel can generate a wind speed of 80 metres per second
(the equivalent of 180mph), driven by the 5.3m diameter fan
and its 16 rotating and 27 static blades, and is powered by
a 2263kW electric three-phase induction motor, generating
43560N.m of torque at 495rpm. The rolling road is also capable
of running at 80 metres per second.
Shigeru Takagi, Chief Operating Officer for Regional Operations
(Europe, the Middle East and Africa) of Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
and President of Honda Motor Europe Ltd. commented: "This
facility is a demonstration of our strong commitment to the
United Kingdom, to motor sport and to our research and development
capability. Our passion for the toughest challenge in motor
sport and our desire to become Formula One champions requires
a very strong infrastructure and it is with this in mind that
we have invested in our new wind tunnel at Brackley.
"This kind of deep commitment to racing is not new to
us. It has been a constant throughout Honda's history, simply
because we regard racing as an investment in the research
and development that drives our future. It is our aim that
the same spirit of challenge which goes into making Formula
One racing cars should go into every one of the twenty million
Honda products we will sell around the world this year.
"I would like to offer my sincere thanks to all our
partners and to the citizens of Brackley for their co-operation
in allowing us to complete the wind tunnel ahead of schedule."
The Rt. Hon. Alistair Darling MP, Secretary of State for
Trade and Industry, said: "This impressive new facility
shows Britain is still attracting the best engineering and
manufacturing in the world. One of the great strengths of
the British automotive industry is its ability to evolve and
create new opportunities in the face of change. Engineering
is the future in Britain.
"The wind tunnel I am opening today is another excellent
example of partnership between the best of British and the
best of Japanese industrial know-how.
"People don't talk enough about our successful automotive
industry. Last year we made 1.6 million cars, not far below
the peak in the early 1970s, and nearly twice the number built
in the early 1980s."
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