Hexagon and Hendrick Motorsports aim to improve quality in motorsport and contract manufacturing sectors

Hexagon and Hendrick Motorsports have re-ignited its partnership as both companies come together to try and increase quality assurance in the motorsport and contract manufacturing sectors. The reconnection occurred at the International Manufacturing Technology Show in September 2022, where Hexagon saw Hendrick’s commitment to augmenting its metrology capabilities.

For Hendrick Motorsports, the NASCAR team are looking for ways to find a competitive advantage following the implementation of NASCAR’s latest rules. The team has predicted that implementing a cultural change on how the company quality controls its parts and how parts are used, will be the biggest incoming change.

About Hendrick Motorsports

Hendrick Motorsports was first established as All-Star Racing in 1984. The team was founded by Rick Hendrick, a self-titled “gearhead.” The team have won a record 297 NASCAR Cup Series races, as well as 14 Cup Series championships, the most recent being in 2021. In May 2021, Hendrick Motorsports became the winningest team in the history of the Cup Series, with the team currently holding every major statistical record at NASCAR’s top level.

The Hexagon technologies adopted by Hendrick Motorsports

To improve its quality assurance levels, Hendrick Motorsports have opted to adopt a variety of systems and technologies from Hexagon. These tools are set to allow the NASCAR team to quantify the quality and performance capabilities of parts, chassis, and aerodynamic properties of a race car. Once quantified, the data aims to help improve the correlation between real-life and simulation tools.

Among the new technologies adopted by Hendrick are Hexagon’s optical coordinate measuring machine (CMM) and its robotically loaded CMM designed for the measurement of smaller components. Both machines aim to free up engineers' time to allow them to work on more useful tasks. Hendrick Motorsports have taken delivery of a 7.10.7 SF CMM that will help with the inspection of in-process pistons and other first articles at its engine production facility. The machine is well suited for the shop-floor work environment as inspections can be completed near the point of use. This benefits the race car developers as it allows the engineers to improve the parts flow through the shop, while also increasing the capacity within the existing quality control lab by relocating the work.

In addition to the CMMs, Hendrick Motorsports will be using Hexagon’s portable measuring arms to measure the chassis and suspension components to input them into its simulation tools. The arms will also be used with the AS1 (Absolute Scanner) scanner during the body hanging build process, which aims to help maximise the aerodynamic performance of the race car. Hexagon’s equipment will also be used in the reverse engineering of parts, which will help speed up the design process while also improving the accuracy of parts created by the design group.

The measuring arms are used to measure suspension features on a car during the set-up process, which ensures the parts are in the desired location from the simulation tool. Additionally, specific suspension parameters are checked to ensure that they are compliant with NASCAR’s regulations. Before the car is loaded, the final body and underwing details are adjusted and verified, to ensure maximum aerodynamic performance. And the final step of the inspection process sees a Leica tracker verify that fixtures and plates are all correct and calibrated.

“This partnership will certainly provide Hendrick Motorsports with the technological abilities of Hexagon metrology equipment, but the key to taking full advantage of this relationship is access to people from Hexagon who have technical acumen,” said Tad Merriman, Engine Engineering Manager and Quality Control Manager at Hendrick Motorsports. “We truly believe that the people using the tools are what make us successful, and the ability to work with these individuals to improve our methods and processes is the real value of the relationship.”

Key specs of Hexagon's 7.10.7 SF CMM

• Reduces waste whilst also increasing productivity.
• Features touch-screen interface and PC-DMIS touch software.
• Lightweight bellows and covers.
• Thermal and vibration isolation elements.
• Integrated fixturing system.
• Compatible with various Hexagon Metrology touch triggers and scanning probes.
• LED lighting and fixture plate system.
• Message lighting system which will alert the user of the machine's status. 
• Uses standard 110/220-volt outlets.

How the partnership has impacted the two companies moving forward

Through the mutually beneficial partnership, Hexagon and Hendrick Motorsports can communicate engineer-to-engineer regarding new tools that the former is developing. Typically, these developments will aim to accelerate inspection times while also improving efficiencies. Hexagon hopes to harness this feedback and improve both hardware and software products, which in turn can benefit Hendrick and Hexagon’s other customers. As a result of the partnership, both companies will also be able to build solid relationships with small to medium enterprises (SMEs).

“As collaboration takes place and information is exchanged, there’s [an] opportunity for the development of improved hardware and software that will ultimately better serve Hendrick Motorsports,” said Scott Grumbles, Commercial Operations Manager at Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence Division. “In line with this close relationship, the Hendrick Motorsports campus will also become a site at which new concepts can be demonstrated and where we can receive valuable feedback from Hendrick as a high-end user of our systems.”

When asked how the partnership will hopefully benefit the NASCAR champions, Roy Crump, Quality Control Supervisor at Hendrick Motorsports responded, “For Hendrick Motorsports? More wins and championships! Realistically, the future holds tools that will help elevate the QC group to in turn help the race teams find performance. For Hexagon, I hope it holds a fantastic showroom that can be used to demonstrate use cases for the tools it provides.”

For Hendrick Motorsports, the impact of the partnership is clear, the new technologies that the company has adopted will allow Hendrick’s to grade the quality of parts, enabling the developers to determine which parts have the biggest performance advantage. When implemented, these superior parts will hopefully translate to an on-track advantage.

While the technologies from Hexagon are set to help Hendrick Motorsports with its ambitions to increase its race victory and championship stats, finding a competitive advantage on-track will always remain a challenge. On the topic, Merriman said, “As motorsports have evolved, the constraints we are required to work within have become significantly tighter, so the margins have become ever smaller.” But Hexagon’s portable arms and CMMs help Hendrick Motorsports characterise the components of a race car for both acceptance and tuning. And the NASCAR racers can now fully understand the features of its inventory and combine components in a favourable way, which will hopefully result in a performance advantage that can also increase over time.

For further insight into Hexagon and Hendrick Motorsports' partnership, members from both parties answered some of our questions which you can read in full here.