Motorsport and advanced technology company Prodrive have created a remote support hub, in order to provide real-time technical support for its hundred of race and rally customers, competing across the world. The hub will be located at the companies headquarters in Banbury, Oxfordshire, with a focus on live data, feeds, as a result, allowing engineers to monitor the performance of the vehicles whilst competing at events.
With teams in a whole range of different series, ranging from the Dakar Rally to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, along with the increased focus on Covid-safe travel and quarantine rules across the world, the hub was created to ensure customers could still receive the best technical advice.
Gus Beteli, head of performance at Prodrive, said: “Our primary aim is still to have engineers and technicians on stages and at circuits whenever possible as there is nothing to beat that face-to-face contact. However, some outright travel bans and lengthy quarantine periods mean remote support is often the only practical option.”
Although the Covid-19 pandemic bought the remote support hub to life, the creation of the remote hub also allows a more inclusive look at technical support in motorsport, helping many teams when on event technical support may have been deemed unnecessary. The hub itself will allow functions such as the ability to live stream the telemetry of the cars from anywhere in the world, analyze the data and provide advice directly to the teams and drivers.
“The time and cost savings of not having to travel around the world means we can offer a very cost-effective remote service,” said Beteli. “This has led to a significant increase in the number of customers, who previously ran their cars themselves, now seeking our additional technical support, which can help find those fractions of a second which make the difference between winning and losing.”
