Learning from both lanes
Wirth Research launch WR AeroKit at Britain’s largest road freight transport event
The WR AeroKit, a cutting-edge and innovative application of British motorsport technology that results in drag reduction and lower carbon emissions for HGV’s received it’s launch at the CV Show.
At the same time, the company also announced that the first adopter of this new technology, with an exclusive strategic partnership, is the UK’s leading multimodal transport and logistics brand, Eddie Stobart Limited.
Eddie Stobart CEO, William Stobart, said: “We have pioneered several environmental initiatives in our industry over the years, such as modal shift from road to rail, in biomass renewable energy and now in drag and carbon reduction on the road. It really excites me that this is championship-winning motorsport aerodynamic technology applied to the road, and I’m proud that we are the first to use it as we roll out the kits to new trucks coming on to the fleet.”
Wirth Research started the development of the WR AeroKit in 2010 in a bid to use the learnings of its thorough motorsport experience to enhance the aerodynamics of HGVs. The company started detailed Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis to understand the designs and air flow modifications required to reduce the aerodynamic drag of HGVs, and if such modifications were feasible.
Nick Wirth, President of Wirth Research, said: “Having worked in F1 and most other levels of motorsport since the 1980s, I am always looking for the next challenge, and in many ways, enhancing the drag performance of HGVs is the ultimate aerodynamic challenge. The results have been such that we have committed to invest heavily in the research and tooling to develop and bring the WR AeroKit to market, so convinced are we of the technology’s benefits to drag reduction and the lowering of carbon emissions.”
The WR AeroKit is a proprietary set of components from Wirth Research that can be tailored to each type of vehicle, and includes in-house designed roof and chin spoilers, bumper turning vanes and trailer kits.
Fitted to an unkitted truck from new, the Wirth Research WR AeroKit reduces aerodynamic drag by 33%. Compared to existing air management systems popular among many UK road haulage fleet operators, the Wirth Research WR AeroKit delivers 10% less aerodynamic drag
More than 500,000 miles of real-world intensive physical testing of the WR AeroKit was conducted on a trial fleet of Eddie Stobart tractor units and trailers during the course of 2014. Independent and physical testing at both the Motor Industry Reseach Association (MIRA) and Millbrook in Bedfordshire followed, and the results matched, and in some cases exceeded, those gathered by the CFD testing lab and super computer at Wirth Research HQ in Oxfordshire.
