MOTORSPORT / AUTOMOTIVE WIND TUNNEL FACILITY FOR SALE
MOTORSPORT / AUTOMOTIVE WIND TUNNEL FACILITY FOR SALE
OFFERS ARE NOW INVITED FOR THE FACILITY INCLUDING THE FREEHOLD OF THE LAND AND BUILDING - GUIDE PRICE £2.50M* + VAT. *UK Pounds Sterling The facility is owned by London based Peer Group PLC (https://peergroup.co.uk), the company founded by the late Martin Birrane, the previous owner of Lola. Peer Group (or subsidiary companies) has owned the facility since it was first established in 1998. This sale is expected to be of interest to organisations working to improve vehicle aerodynamics and efficiency, including race car manufacturers, race teams, automotive OEMs and those providing motorsport and automotive engineering services. Offered for sale is a state-of-the-art moving ground wind tunnel facility that in 2024 has been the subject of a major systems upgrade to meet the very latest motorsport and automotive aerodynamic testing needs. This wind tunnel features many advanced capabilities, has exceptional aerodynamic correlation with track / road and has proven race car championship winning credentials. Its key differentiator is airflow quality, underpinned by extremely low and consistent turbulence levels, which enable superior test results in comparison to most other wind tunnels worldwide. The facility is in Huntingdon, UK, and it was designed, built and continually developed by Lola Cars, the famous race car manufacturer. Lola originally acquired the wind tunnel from British Aerospace, re- locating and re-engineered it to create an advanced motorsport and automotive aerodynamic testing facility. It quickly became a central part of Lola’s in-house research and development processes and provided third-party aerodynamic services to other race car teams and automotive OEMs. The upgrades were completed in May 2024, and the tunnel’s control systems have been the subject of a 12-month £0.5 million investment to bring them fully up to date with the latest aerodynamic testing standards, including the provision of constant motion testing and the use of the latest data sampling and resolution technologies. The facility is now offered for sale at its location in Huntingdon, UK. It is also possible for a purchaser to relocate the Wind Tunnel to another location. The tunnel is of modular steel construction making it perfectly suitable for disassembly and transportation worldwide.
WIND TUNNEL DETAIL
Flow Quality The test section accommodates up to 50% scale race car models for maximum accuracy. A combination of flow conditioning screens and high contraction ratio were specified to ensure excellent turbulence and boundary layer control for a tunnel of this size and type, yielding superior quality, accuracy and repeatability of results. Air Management The tunnel’s high top wind speed delivers test results with excellent correlation to full- size performance. Heat generated by the main fan is dissipated through a large heat exchanger positioned in the air stream and a 520KW chiller unit, preventing temperature build-up and hot spots. Environmental The tunnel was designed to provide an extremely low noise signature as required for 24/7 testing. Balance System A 6-component overhead balance system manufactured by aerodynamic equipment specialists Aerotech (https://www.ate.co.uk) is at the heart of the wind tunnel’s data gathering system. It facilitates precise measurement of lift, drag and lateral forces, along with their associated moments of yaw, roll and pitch. The overhead balance is mounted on an independent pile foundation to eliminate the influence of external vibrations. Accuracy is maintained by a self- correcting calibration system.
Model Control Hydraulic control of the model’s attitude is fully computerised, enabling constant model motion during runs including yaw and roll plus front wheel steering up to plus ± 10 degrees. A unique feature of the system is the ability to change wheelbase and track from the control room, increasing productivity and flexibility. Rolling Road Control The entire rolling road section can be yawed with, or separately from, the model to simulate the aerodynamic effects of slip angles and crosswinds. This data is especially useful for vehicles with less downforce and / or more frontal area (i.e. road cars, EVs). Computer system The wind tunnel is controlled by the latest Cosworth Diablo software which was originally designed specifically for complex wind tunnel applications. Diablo provides a high degree of test automation with tests configured in advance, then automatically managed to run through a sequence of test conditions, controlling and coordinating subsystems, whilst collecting the experimental data and logging it to the PC storage. Data can be analysed while the test proceeds, and performance metrics written into a SQL database. Computer hardware was renewed in 2024.
FACILITY DETAIL
The 10,600 sq.ft. (985 sq.m) building is of standard industrial building steel frame clad construction and is spread over 3 floors. The wind tunnel sits within the facility on separate concrete foundations designed to eliminate movement and vibration. It was designed by Lola to be a stand-alone vehicle Research & Development facility. The ground floor contains various workshop areas and access to the wind tunnel rolling road. It also includes a workshop housing a valuable 7-post chassis rig, designed to test and develop vehicle structures and dynamics. It can run a full range of road and race chassis simulations, including use of aerodynamic load data generated during wind tunnel testing. The rig has not been used for several years and requires recommissioning. The first floor contains the wind tunnel working section and the wind tunnel control room plus a large workshop and tooling for wind tunnel model manufacture and modification. There is also a large lift / elevator for transporting test models and equipment from the ground floor. The second floor provides access to the wind tunnel balance equipment as well as significant tunnel plant and equipment, together with a large area for storage. The facility is served by a large car park and dedicated secure service yard.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
PLEASE CONTACT DAVID MCROBERT D.MCROBERT@FLYFIVE.CO.UK 07552 012755 (UK) OR + 44 7552 012755 (INTERNATIONAL)
MOTORSPORT/AUTOMOTIVE WIND TUNNEL FACILITY FOR SALE
WIND TUNNEL SPECIFICATION
Maximum model scale: Maximum wind speed: Maximum rolling road speed: Wind temperature stability: Rolling road temperature: Test Section dimensions: Diffuser configuration: Main fan motor power: Turbulent intensity: Wind Temperature: Fan configuration: Overhead Balance: Model attitude control: Pressure scanning system: Rolling road dimensions: Maximum model elevation: Motion envelope: Rolling road yaw angle: Software:
Typically 50% (for open wheel models) 65m/sec (145 mph) 80m/sec (180 mph) Less than 0.08% Automatically controlled to 20°C (68°F)
1 °C during test 14 °C (nominally) 2.7m wide x 2.47m high 7:1 contraction ratio 650KW (872 bhp) 5-blade carbon composite 6-component with accuracy greater than 0.04% of range Pitch, heave, roll, yaw, wheel steering Up to 192 sensors 2.0m wide x 4.0m long 600mm above rolling road surface ± 5 degrees yaw, ± 3 degrees roll and pitch ± 10 degrees Cosworth Diablo (with EtherCat interface)
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