12 Feb 2010 | Ref. 031
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BAE Systems is supporting
the efforts of Great Britain’s short track speed skating team at major championships
Farnborough - BAE Systems is supporting the efforts of Great Britain's short track speed skating team at major championships, having constructed a mounting bracket to increase the mobility and speed of British athletes.
The skate innovation, designed to mimic the movement of bone structure in the human leg, improves on current models by reducing the weight of the skate whilst also increasing stiffness and stability to aid control, particularly around corners.
To develop the brackets, engineers at BAE Systems used sophisticated computer modelling software normally used to design jet fighters and submarines, in building up a complete picture of the stresses and strains a typical skate undergoes during a race.
Having substituted aluminium for titanium, the new brackets are also three times the strength of previous models, allowing elite speed skaters to drive more energy into the ice potentially gaining valuable milliseconds on their competitors. The new design also means the skates are simpler to set up and maintain, reducing from hours to minutes the amount of time coaching staff need to get the skates race-ready.
British speed-skaters will benefit from the bracket modification after successful quick-response trials undertaken by BAE Systems at the request of UK Sport, showed favourable results in testing. The brackets were also used at the recent European championships where the GB short track speed skating team amassed a haul of five medals.
Stuart Horsepool, Performance Director for the Great Britain short track speed skating world class programme commented: "Even minute changes to the alignment of the skates can have a huge impact in terms of performance. A real problem for us was the tendency of the old aluminium brackets to warp or bend. Even changes in atmospheric pressure were affecting the alignment of the skates. This caused a number of issues for the team when we travelled by aircraft to competitions and needed to put equipment in the hold.
"The technology BAE Systems and UK Sport has developed has helped us to find a creative way to tackle a genuine issue we were facing, and is demonstrating genuine benefits on the ice."
Owen Evans, UK Sport technology partnership project manager at BAE Systems, added: "Prior to our research, there was virtually no data available to show how a skate performs during a race. In only a short space of time we were able to create a simple, but innovative solution that has already proven itself a success in a competition.
"As far as we know, no other country in the world has access to the type of technology we have developed."
The project is the latest to stem from BAE Systems' £1.5 million value-in-kind technology partnership with UK Sport aimed at helping British athletes in their quest for sporting success at World and European Championships as well as the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Launched in January 2008, the five-year partnership gives British sport access to the technical knowledge and engineering expertise of BAE Systems' UK-based engineers. In addition to the work with short track speed skating, BAE Systems and UK Sport are working together to develop new technologies for several of Britain's other sports, including skeleton, cycling, shooting, wheelchair racing and taekwondo.
About BAE Systems
BAE Systems is the premier global defence, security and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded US $34.4 billion (£18.5 billion) in 2008.
For further information, please contact:
Kate Watcham, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 1252 383550 Mob: + 44 (0) 7793 420731
kate.watcham@baesystems.com
Harry Ronaldson, Biss Lancaster
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7467 9218 Mob: +44 (0)772 0773 258
harry.ronaldson@bisslancaster.com
Issued by:
BAE Systems, Farnborough, Hampshire GU14 6YU, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1252 384719 Fax: +44 (0) 1252 383947
24hr media hotline: + 44 (0) 7801 717739
www.baesystems.com
