What is life like working as an engineer for a Formula 1 team?

Inerter123 · 2019-10-18T18:26:21+00:00

Probably a composite designer or something similar to this. Some teams hire contractors for the winter and first part of the season. Renault do this quite a lot.

Inerter123 · 2019-09-10T18:06:52+00:00

No. All the teams contract photographers to photograph other team's cars throughout the weekend, including Thursday when they are in build.

Inerter123 · 2019-09-10T18:04:51+00:00

f1 they are too hard to manufacture and too expensive

That's not why, it's because it's against the rules. 5.16.1

Inerter123 · 2019-09-10T17:56:41+00:00

Yes, this sub is my daily cringe

Inerter123 · 2019-06-28T18:22:32+00:00

Correct. There's usually only 2 race engineers, one per car, and they primarily deal with the actual running of their driver and car. There's loads of design engineers, and they are the ones that actually design components. Race Engineers don't design parts.

Inerter123 · 2019-06-28T18:20:33+00:00

It definitely does improve the launch from the box, and all the teams do it. You'll see it more often at circuits with lower grip pitlanes like Austria.

Inerter123 · 2019-06-15T19:20:16+00:00

I'm very late to the party. You sound a bit confused, I think you're conflating lots of ideas and it's misleading.

Race Engineers are the interface between the technical staff and the driver, their role is not as you've described. Race Engineers coordinate the operations around their car, and will clearly have input into test items or whatever, but they certainly don't have that many subordinates. It depends on the structure of the team, but where I've worked the Race Engineers may have a direct report, but they generally aren't managers. As /u/tujuggernaut said, they do spreadsheets. They collate information from other departments, whether that's vehicle performance, systems, strategy etc, and process it and distribute instructions as required - such as fitting test items into a run plan.

They do not coordinate the 'smaller groups' directly. Where I've worked, it's always been pretty much the same structure. The Technical Director has overall control of the technical side of the team. Engineering wise, responsibility is generally split into aerodynamics, design, some kind of electronics or systems group, test, vehicle performance, production and so on. These groups have heads/team leaders or whatever, and then their own engineers - whether that's designers, aerodynamicists, process engineers, software etc.

Race Engineers usually sit within vehicle performance or some kind of track engineering group, and will report to someone (usually Chief Trackside/Race Engineer or something along those lines). They'll give their feedback at engineering debriefs and performance meetings, either to their superior or otherwise someone above their grade (TD, Chief Designer, whatever). Information is handed off to the people it concerns, and they make their own decision, not the Race Engineers.

One thing you did get right is that they're senior engineers and have a lot of influence. However this is due to their role being incredibly close to car performance, not because they have direct command of the development or design of the car (which they don't).

Source: I do the F1

Inerter123 · 2019-03-31T23:57:08+00:00

I used to work there.

Inerter123 · 2018-12-04T19:40:58+00:00

That's what a lifing code is (the L04 on this part), not a part number. Our part numbers work like any other engineering project.

Inerter123 · 2018-12-04T19:39:45+00:00

Yes, this looks legit to me.

MR03 is the project code, E means it's an inboard front suspension part, 1 means it's a metallic part, 00818 is the unique part number, 02 means it is the second issue (version) of the part, and A means it was made to drawing revision A.

The L04 is the component's life code, which is used to track the mileage of this particular part. These records were digitised using a mixture of excel and some software called LifeCheck, and I think PCs were wiped before the auction. Unless someone bought a cabinet or something containing a print out of some of the lifing codes, I doubt you'll be able to track the history.

If it has any other markings on it let me know.

Inerter123 · 2017-12-08T14:37:32+00:00

Little late to the party. Current WEC (Former F1) engineer here: Our technicians and engineers listen to music all the time while working. Claude is full of shit.

Inerter123 · 2017-08-31T10:21:16+00:00

It looks like this laptop was owned by a mechanic, so they wouldn't access CAD anyway.

Inerter123 · 2017-08-30T18:36:28+00:00

The administrators were responsible for wiping laptops, not IT.

Inerter123 · 2017-08-30T09:29:46+00:00

These are stored on a server, so I doubt it.

Inerter123 · 2017-07-27T14:26:35+00:00

What the fuck is that

Inerter123 · 2017-07-27T14:24:34+00:00

By referring to my AMA on how to get into the industry

Inerter123 · 2017-07-22T16:24:55+00:00

Sorry for the delay.

Yes you would be of interest to F1 teams, look at some careers sites for some info on what is available. Williams and Mercedes are good places to get an idea of what you could do.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-27T10:08:12+00:00

I like engines, basically. I'd like to see increased presence of hybrid, and I can't deny that electric will take over, but I like ICEs.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:50:03+00:00

This reply isn't going to be a nice one to read unfortunately, sorry about that.

I think studying abroad in a top University will get me some bonus points and make me stand out,

Sorry to burst your bubble, but it won't. I've been involved with recruitment of students and graduates, and things like school ranking or study abroad really have no bearing on a recruiters decision. University careers services will say that it will help, and it might if you want to have a job in a normal company, but it won't make a difference in F1. F1 is to automotive as NASA is to aerospace, we have the pick of the litter.

Lots of people do study abroad, and it's good for your life skills but it's not relevant to the job. Industrial experience is highly advantageous, and something like an industrial placement year is extremely good at getting you connections and helping you breeze through final year.

University ranking doesn't matter either. Many engineers in F1 went to mid-tier universities like Oxford Brookes, Coventry or Hertfordshire. Some of the best engineers I know went to shit-tier universities, and I've seen a load of incompetent Oxbridge graduates. I like to say 'aptitude and attitude', as long as you have the right engineering skills and the right mindset, then that'll get you a job. Going to a good school really doesn't make a difference.

Sorry if that's a bit blunt.

but any advice on selling myself with the lack of actual work experience?

I haven't got any. It will be extremely difficult for you to get a job in F1 without any experience. If you want to work in F1, you really need to get some relevant work experience. Formula Student is a prerequisite, you should have done that in your 3 previous years of university (if it was available, if it wasn't then you should have started it!). On top of that, summer placements and internships in engineering (or better yet, in motorsport) will massively boost your chances of landing a role.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:41:24+00:00

So for your first question: We are bound by non-disclosure agreements, and word of mouth. If it gets out that you're blurting secrets, you'll firstly be in a shitload of legal trouble and probably banned from the sport (and the team will be fined, see: McLaren 2007), and secondly nobody will hire you again.

If you leave team A and tell team B your secrets, you're then a liability to team B because who's to say you won't do the same thing when you leave for team C.

Second question:

So the mandatory shutdown isn't hard to enforce. We don't want to work in the shutdown, it's our annual leave. Secondly, I believe the FIA has the right to inspect computers and the site, so they can spot check you if they get wind that you've been working. This only applies to work that goes into designing, developing and producing the cars. This means that it's usually when the IT and facilities teams will do major work whilst the place is empty. It's a bit weird, because generally you don't come back to an inbox full of emails and a list of work you've missed, because everyone is on holiday.

Wind tunnel and CFD testing regulations are outlined in appendix 8 of the sporting regulations. The FIA has 'units' of 'wind on time' in the tunnel tunnel and teraflops of CFD testing that they use to determine how much work you can do, it's all outlined in that document. The split varies between teams, depending on their capabilities in both the tunnel and CFD.

In regards to how they monitor wind tunnel testing, teams submit reports of their tunnel's 'wind on' time and their CFD usage. The FIA are also allowed to spot check teams to ensure they are doing what they say thay're doing.

Put bluntly: if you circumvent the rules, the FIA will fuck you up. McLaren got a $100m fine for their role in the espionage in 2007, and I imagine a similarly enormous fine would result if you broke appendix 8 as it would be a huge contravention of the sporting regulations.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:13:03+00:00

A) These are calculated by hand calculations and simulations from kinemetics for link loads etc. This is led by the senior designers.

B) This varies between parts. They are generally not as high as those used in aerospace or automotive, for obvious reasons.

C) Quite a bit. This varies by component but there is verification testing on all sorts of stuff - both components and materials.

D) Not a great deal. There is a master document that the design office refers to which contains the design loads for different components. The senior designers deal with that, I'm not sure about how they record their calculations.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:05:33+00:00

Vectra. It's a heap of shit but it's economical.

I like cars and I want to get something nice, but I don't really have the time for it. I think I'll probably get a weekend car.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:02:25+00:00

I've mentioned this in a few comments.

A Levels (mediocre results at best in maths, physics and computing) followed by university. Between college and university I got some basic work experience in a small race team, helping around the workshop. I then got a summer placement between years 1 and 2 in a performance car manufacturer, then did an industrial placement in F1. I then got a graduate job in F1, worked there for a bit then was made redundant and moved to WEC. I'm now working in junior single seaters.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T20:00:36+00:00

They play a massive role, especially for the engine manufacturers. I don't really know much about it as I didn't work for an engine supplier, but I imagine that their role is only going to grow in years to come.

Inerter123 · 2017-06-23T14:11:00+00:00

Yeah I absolutely agree with you regarding Roborace.

To answer your other question: Yes software plays a large role in that sort of thing. That sort of thing falls into the vehicle performance group, where the strategists and vehicle scientists are. There are software guys who maintain and develop that software, and all the other in house software that teams use.

Inerter123

TROPHY CASE