The Right Track’s regular feature, ‘Spotlight on’, gets under the skin the different Millbrook departments. This time it’s the turn of Track Control, so read on to find out what the business unit does, who for and how it’s done.
The area of Millbrook that is most familiar, although often seen under a number of different guises, is the impressive 45 miles of Track facilties. These can simulate a range of driving terrains, including undulating hills, off-road, motorway and city routes, and are a cornerstone of Milbrook’s 40 year history. Millbrook’s Tracks are used for a wide range of activities from vehicle testing, to filming the latest blockbuster movies and have played host to some of the most demanding prototype testing over the years. Today the tracks are the site where some of the most advanced testing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles takes place.
It’s all in the detail
The nature and sensitivity of the work that takes place on the tracks calls for rigorous organisation, high security operations and stringent health and safety checks in order to be successful and to control operations. The meticulous attention to detail required from Millbrook’s track control team can often go unnoticed as the team work hard behind the scenes at any time, day or night, to guarantee that even the most minor details are not overlooked.
The range of uses Millbrook’s tracks have attract a wide range of organisations and individuals, so for the track control team, no two days are ever the same. The team works together to organise and co-ordinate track activity to minimise risk and ensure best use of space and time available.
The tracks are used by on-site engineers as part of Millbrook’s test and development work. This ranges from emissions testing through to durability and component work. In addition, a large proportion of activity carried out on the tracks is with outside businesses including vehicle manufacturers, motoring press, film crews and driver tuition companies. It’s not just cars that get put through their paces on Millbrook’s tracks; they are regularly used to test buses, military vehicles and other types of transportation.
Top Secret….
Each day’s track activity is scrupulously planned in advance. A key area of expertise of the track control team is the ability to coordinate and use the track safely; ensuring clients have adequate instruction on how activity on the track should be conducted in a safe manner. The team also balances the mix of secretive automotive prototyping work that utilises the tracks on a daily basis with the demands of Millbrook’s media clients who often access the track and top for location filming photo shoots.
The tracks have provided the location for many high-profile media projects including the complex stunt in Bond film Casino Royale, which involved a record-breaking roll of an Aston Martin. It was also used in blockbuster ‘44 Inch Chest’ and has recently been used to film one of the latest plotlines in a leading UK soap opera.
Investment in the future
Being part of Millbrook through all of its history, the tracks have seen a lot of change and development in the automotive industry. The track team have seen and been involved in all stages of vehicle development including the introduction of airbags through to the development and testing of electric vehicles and continues playing its part in the advancements of industry.
A recent addition to the track’s capability is the new 30 degree off-road gradient slope, developed to replicate environments that robust vehicles, particularly in the military industry, are increasingly subjected to. Despite the demands and pressures of the heavy duty vehicles that us it, the hill – the first of its kind – offers much sought after off-road repeatability testing. As home to the UK MOD’s Battlefield Mission, working closely with the military allows Millbrook to understand how their needs are changing and develop facilities that are focused on solving the vehicle engineering problems that are faced today, and in the future.
No matter how far advancements in technology, CAD design and modeling take the industry in the future, the track will always be needed as there is no substitute for a real person testing a real car.
Indeed, with client requests for electric charging points on track and hydrogen testing there is an exciting future in store for the track team. Watch this space for exciting new developments and next time you see a complex car action scene on the latest blockbuster you can try to spot if it was filmed at Millbrook!
More Information
For more information about Proving Ground & Tracks please contact Nick Wignall on +44 (0) 1525 408267 or email nick.wignall@millrook.co.uk or contact our Business Development Team on +44 (0) 1525 408408.
