"While we previously had to manufacture parts and test them, we are now able to get to the final product faster,
fitting it in the serial production of the cars."
– Tamir Plachinsky
CEO and Co-Founder of Griiip
HyperWorks goes to work – driving innovation with high-end engineering
High-end products such as race cars must endure harsh conditions, so the design has to be
able to withstand a lot. The drivers take the cars to the extreme on the track, accelerating
and braking sharply and making cornering maneuvers. As a racing car has to be very strong and at the same time very light, it is a very demanding product from an engineering perspective. Simulation software such as the Altair HyperWorks suite can provide many answers to the engineering challenges when developing a racing car, as the tools provide solutions to optimize the parts for loads, stress, weight, and endurance. "We optimize every
part in the G1, every system in the car to be the best," said Tamir Plachinsky, CEO and CoFounder of Griiip. "The structural integrity and efficiency are critical for success in the races.
Using Altair HyperWorks allows us to test a wide range of physics."
Griiip uses simulation to reduce the development time and the many iterations needed
before getting to the final product and each component. "For us, the use of simulation
provides the ability to achieve a better product in a shorter time. While we previously
had to manufacture parts and test them, we are now able to get to the final version of
each component, fitting it in the serial production of the cars. We are also able to further
improve the design after manufacturing the first cars, based on the experience we are
gaining on the track. This is another area in which Altair products have proven to be
very helpful," explains Tamir. "We have very good simulations and case studies on the
improvement of the frame we built. By using Altair, we have managed to increase the
frame stiffness and reduce the weight of it, only by changing the diameters of the tubes
in the frame. We did not actually need to physically test the stiffness, but the performance
on the track has indicated that it is really stiffer," he continues.
Sharing the experience: Griiip provides access to the motorsport world
Griiip is extending its business activities to Italy, where the cars are built, and is planning to
expand its business further to the international market. While the company started with
the design of race cars, Griiip has now grown into a racing platform provider. The company
delivers live video and data, prediction analysis, advanced insights, and mixed reality races to
a platform, giving fans and drivers the most exciting destination to engage with motorsports.
"Having understood that our users are not only the drivers, Griiip is now also focusing on the
viewers as our potential customers. To achieve this, we have developed a media platform that
will create a new exciting race-viewing experience that no one has ever given you before,"
says Tamir. This way, in keeping with their motto "bringing motorsports back to the people"
and combining innovation and passion, Griiip opens up new, unprecedented possibilities for
drivers and fans to connect with racing and the world of motorsports.
Innovation fostered by Altair
Implementing new technologies in the series enabled Griiip to reduce the cost of racing and
to create a new and exciting viewing experience. The new data related technology helps
to collect, analyze, and distribute different data and allows, for example, the drivers to
improve their skills and knowledge about the setup of the car without requiring an expert
in the middle. The data is collected from the cars, analyzed, and provided to the drivers
so they can compare it with data of other drivers in the series, thus improving their skills.
Griiip is considering expanding its usage of Altair's IoT and data mining solutions. Altair’s
solutions played a big part in Griiip’s successful realization of their innovative platform
project – in fact, they are a key factor in the engineering process to reach the goals Griiip
set out itself. With its Startup Program, Altair helped the young, innovative company to get
its feet quickly off the ground by supplying software and support. Today, Griiip is using the
CAE solutions available within the HyperWorks suite in almost every engineering area, and
has even started to explore new manufacturing methods such as additive manufacturing
technologies where dedicated Altair solutions can be employed to streamline production
processes and further improve component design.