Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. is sponsoring the Formula SAE program by SAE International for the 2016 competition year. Formula SAE brings together engineering students from more than 220 universities around the world in a design contest where students build Formula-style race cars.
Student teams are judged across eight events, which include categories such as design, marketing, cost, and on-track performance, allowing students the opportunity to gain expertise in multiple areas of automotive engineering. Restrictions are placed on the car frame and engine, so the students’ knowledge, problem solving, creativity, and imagination are tested. This year’s Formula SAE events will be held May 11-14 at the Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Mich. The Formula SAE Lincoln and Formula SAE Electric events to be held June 15-18 in Lincoln, Neb.
To assist students in selecting tires for their vehicles, Cooper provided Avon race tires, a brand manufactured by the company’s Cooper Tire Europe subsidiary, to Calspan Corp.n, a testing organization. The resulting “force and moment” tire performance data, funded by Cooper, was provided to Formula SAE teams by the Tire Test Consortium, a volunteer-managed organization of member schools that pool their financial resources to obtain tire data for the Formula SAE competitions. This data is used in simulations, which help guide the development and tuning of the vehicles, and offers a competitive edge in making a final tire selection.
“Cooper is proud to be a first-time sponsor of the Formula SAE program,” says Chuck Yurkovich, senior vice president of global research and development. “The Cooper engineering team was able to work with Calspan, in conjunction with the Tire Test Consortium, to help provide these highly talented students with real-world testing data for Avon tires to help their teams address challenges and improve vehicle performance.
“The Formula SAE competition gives engineering students invaluable experience. It promotes careers and excellence in engineering as it encompasses all aspects of the automotive industry including design, manufacturing, testing, marketing, and management. Formula SAE takes students out of the classroom and gives them the opportunity to apply textbook theories to real world experiences."
Find information on Formula SAE here.
For more information on Cooper, visit www.coopertire.com.
