Andy’s Auto Sport
Andy’s Auto Sport has sponsored the team for the 2014 season. Andy’s Auto Sport is one of the world’s leading retailers of autmotive products including body kits, cold air intakes, and other accessories. Check them out at www.andysautosport.com!
Once again, the kind people at SureShot Dispensing Systems have provided the team with CNC and laser cutting capabilities.
Based in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, SureShot manufactures many different precision dispensers for the food industry including sugar and cream dispensers for coffee chains. If you see a cream, milk, or sugar dispenser in North America, chances are it was made by SureShot in Nova Scotia. We even ran into one in Pennsylvania when we were driving to Michigan.
This year, SureShot laser cut our bellcranks, differential mounts, and steering rack mounts.
They also CNC milled our uprights and hubs. They are works of art.
Thank you so much to Mike Duck, Brian Gay, and everyone else at SureShot Dispensing Systems!
Sigma Performance has provided us with a discount on their Honda CBR 600 slipper clutch. While a normal CBR 600 RR clutch only requires the driver to clutch in on downshifts, Sigma’s slipper clutch allows the driver to avoid using the clutch altogether. This makes downshifting faster and easier, and simplifies the design requirements for our new electronic paddle shifting system. Thank you Sigma Performance!
Bruce & Monahan Chartered Accountants have offered to sponsor us this season!
Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Bruce & Monahan offer accounting and tax advising services to clients throughout Atlantic Canada.
Thank you Bruce & Monahan!
The team brought the car to Mic Mac Mall to join Engineers Nova Scotia for Engineering Month events. We had fun showing off the car and helping out with promoting engineering in Nova Scotia.
Thank you Engineers Nova Scotia for having us out!
Protocase have made some fantastic parts for us: A shiny aluminum fuel cell, and a snazzy aluminum electrical box for our electrical components. Based in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Protocase makes custom electrical enclosures, and they make them fast. Both the fuel cell and electrical box were in our shop within days of sending in designs.
Thank you Protocase!
Royal Purple has sponsored the Dalhousie FSAE again, providing us 24 quarts of tasty 10W40 as well as some mugs, umbrellas, chairs, flashlights, and more!
Thanks Royal Purple!
For the third year in a row, Cartesian Tube has provided the team with sponsorship and an accurate frame kit.
Cartesian Tube has provided Dalhousie with another impossibly accurately profiled tube kit for the new frame. Cartesian’s ability to cut precise tube profiles saves the team thousands of hours and makes the frame accurate and very easy to assemble.
This is a huge step for us as this is the first time in Dalhousie FSAE’s short history that the frame has been built in the fall semester – the earliest in a season. This puts us one step closer to our goal of finishing construction early enough that we can thoroughly test our 2013 car before competition in May 2013.
This year’s frame is expected to be up to 2 kg lighter than the 2012 frame – nearly a 10% weight reduction. Will the rest of the car follow suit? Time will tell.
Thank you Cartesian Tube Profiling for another amazing job!
Last Thursday, we returned to the Annual Dalhousie Engineering Alumni Golf Tournament at Glen Arbour Golf Course. It was great to meet some alumni, and it was a great opportunity to publicise the car and our sponsors. We had a putting challenge on the practice green and lured unsuspecting professors and former Dalhousie students on the cart path between holes nine and ten. We managed to raise some money, and one skilled putter won a new smartphone.
Bell Aliant has once again graciously offered to match the money we raised, making them Silver Sponsors. Thank you Bell Aliant, and thank you to everyone at the event. We had a great time!
For the third year in a row, SolidWorks has offered the team sponsorship. SolidWorks 3D modelling software continues to play a vital role in the design and construction of the car. It is easy and intuitive, but capable enough to allow for a wide range of designs and simulations. We’re looking forward to using SolidWorks 2013 to design our new car!
2012 car designed and rendered with SolidWorks
We had a great showing at competition this year, placing in the top half for the first time in the schools history! Specifically, we placed 58th out of 120 University teams from all around the world! Highlights include:
6th place in design drawings
30th place in the marketing presentation event
34th place in the skidpad event
33rd place in the autocross event
Official scores can be found here: http://www.sae.org/students/fsae2012result.pdf
We were on track for a top third finish with the car performing extremely well, unfortunately part of the bodywork tore off when a cone was hit during the endurance race and they would not allow us to remove it. There is only one shot at the endurance race and it is worth 450 out of 1000 points so this hurt our overall score.
Aside from this, a lot of interest was shown in our car and all of the event organizers and judges were very impressed with the overall integration of components and the clean look. We were told many times that we had a really nice looking car.
Here are a few more pictures from competition (I will upload more pictures and videos once they are all compiled):
Fueling up with Duke in the background:
Getting tested for noise (had to be below 110 dB). With a few adjustments we passed with 108 dB:
Once again, thank you to all of our sponsors. We did our best to represent you well at competition and will continue to promote all of you throughout autocross races in the summer and University events!
We are off to a good start here in Michigan!
We placed 6th out of 120 teams in CAD model drawings:
We flew through the tech inspection and tilt test:
Had a great result in the cost event with 73/100 pts earned and one of the lowest costed cars. We were actually audited because our cost was so low and we had to run through every component in our cost report and show it on the car. Everything checked out though!
We also received positive feedback from our marketing presentation and the design judging went reasonably well!
We are looking forward to the dynamic events tomorrow!
Here is a pic from the panoramic picture with us lined up next to TU Graz.. gives a good idea of what we are up against:
Thanks again to all our sponsors! More to come very soon!!
Program Event Guide:
http://students.sae.org/competitions/formulaseries/fsae/eventguide2012.pdf
SKF has provided us with silver level sponsorship in the form of free bearings which will be used in our bellcranks, steering wheel and differential. SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems and services. Thanks to Dave and everyone at SKF!
Hoosier Tire provides bronze level sponsorship in the form of discounted tires for competition. They are known for making the best racing tires these days. They have developed a specific tire with a softer compound for light weight FSAE cars. This makes it a lot easier to get heat into the tires and ultimately have more grip.
Two Brothers Racing provides bronze level sponsorship with a discount on a new muffler! They are a world leader in motorcycle exhaust systems and offer a wide range of race proven mufflers, exhaust systems and motorcycle accessories. We were able to get a deal on an after market muffler, with several different sound suppressing tip options to ensure we are able to pass the noise test at competition. The muffler is in and it looks sharp!
NSK has provided the team with silver level sponsorship, helping the team out for the second year in a row by providing us with bearings for our wheels and our differential. NSK is a comprehensive bearing manufacturer and responds to the needs of a wide variety of fields. They strive for technological innovation which integrates both motion and control. Thanks to Edward and everyone at NSK for the support and quality products!
Shoreside Service has provided bronze level sponsorship for the second year in a row! Shoreside owner, Luke Porter has been working in the marine repair industry for 13 years and has had a hand in all aspects of marine repair from polishing and painting to structural repair. Above this, he is also an avid sailor and even teaches sailing. Luke has sprayed our body mold with gel coat once again this year in preparation for our carbon fiber layup. Thanks a lot for the continuing support of our project!
Here is a picture of the body mold with the gel coat:
Shoreside Service on FACEBOOK
Oil pan design by Julian Gurnell, bellcrank design by Andy Clement & diff mount housing design by Damon Surgernor
Martec has provided the team with a bronze level sponsorship in the form of a monetary donation. Martec is a leading Canadian engineering firm specializing in advanced engineering simulation technology for the design and analysis of complex structures and systems – such as aircraft, ships, armoured vehicles, ports and harbours, and offshore structures. Thanks to Dave Brennan and the rest of the Martec staff for the help.
GasTOPS Ltd. has provided silver level sponsorship by providing us with a large 7075 Aluminum solid round bar for our hubs to be machined out of. GasTOPS provides advanced products and services for machinery condition assessment and control that reduce the cost and risk of machinery development and operations. Thanks to Brennan West and everyone at GasTOPS!
Davies Craig has provided bronze level sponsorship for the second year in a row in the form of a discount on an electric water pump. The ability to create new solutions to problems, and a commitment to technology, service and quality, has made Davies Craig one of Australia’s most successful exporters, providing high flow automotive cooling fans and electric water pumps to markets around the world.
Composites Canada has provided the team with bronze level sponsorship in the form of discounted carbon fiber and vacuum bagging supplies. They provide an excellent selection of products and are very knowledgeable. The turn around time was impressive, with some orders arriving within 24 hours of being placed. Thank you to John Mai and everyone at Composites Canada for all the advice and great service.
Fastenal (Halifax branch) has provided us with silver level sponsorship for the second year in a row. They have once again provided us with all the fasteners necessary to assemble this years car. Fastenal is a large fastener and supplies company with many store locations which allows them to provide excellent customer service and satisfaction. Big Thanks to Jake Alward and Dan Woodman for all the help!
igus has provided the team with bronze level sponsorship in the form of a donation of plastic bushings and bearings. The mission of igus® is to use its innovative polymer materials to develop products that provide creative solutions and exceed our customers’ expectations while delivering fast, accurate service. The provided bushings serve to reduce friction in rotating shafts and reduce backlash in suspension rod end mounts.
Dailey Engineering has provided the team with bronze level sponsorship with a discount on our dry sump oil pump. Dailey Engineering specializes in custom Dry Sump Oil Pumps, with Roots Style scavenge rotors and spur gear pressure sections, for all levels of racing engines. To date, Dailey Engineering has created over 800 unique configurations based on a customer request for something to suit their needs.
Plascore Inc. has provided the team with Aluminum honeycomb cores to be used for our impact attenuator. Plascore Inc. is a global manufacturer of honeycomb core, composite structures and cleanrooms. Their honeycomb core is specified wherever high strength-to-weight ratio, energy absorption or directional qualities are desired. By using their honeycomb core for our impact attenuator we were able to absorb more than the minimum amount of required energy while reducing the overall weight of the component.
Click below for a 4 page report summarizing the impact attenuator test results:
The team had the car on show all day today in Engineers Nova Scotia’s display for engineering month at Mic Mac Mall. It was a great opportunity to support engineering in the community and promote our program and our sponsors. Thanks a lot to Mark Macdonald for helping us throughout the day!
Wilsons Gas Stops has provided silver level sponsorship for the second year in a row! Wilson’s is a provider of home heating solutions and an independent gasoline retailer and supplier within the Maritime provinces. They are also a proud supporter of Dalhousie and their local community. Thanks for the continuing support of our efforts!
Thermotec has provided the team with bronze level sponsorship in the form of an in-kind donation of exhaust header wrap and other heat insulation products. Thermotec is the industry leader for automotive insulation products. The header wrap they have provided will keep exhaust gas temperature and velocity higher, while keeping the engine compartment and driver cell cooler.
