Sep 4 2010
Composites specialists to offer Zircotec’s range of composite coatings for race and road applications including F1, NASCAR and Single Seater formulae
Increasing demand for high quality durable coatings that protect composites against the effects of wear and abrasion has led Italian specialists CRP Technology to become the first reseller of Zircotec’s technologies. CRP will now offer its customers a range of Zircotec’s robust ceramic and metallic protective coatings for their own mouldings and parts.
“Race car builders ordering composite components from CRP can now specify one of our coatings to be applied before they receive the part,” says Zircotec’s sales director Peter Whyman. “This simplifies the ordering process and reduces additional shipping and handling.” For motorsport specialists CRP, the coating offers its race engineers a one-stop shop for composite components. “We are delighted to enter into a partnership with Zircotec, offering a deeper collaboration between companies operating at the highest engineering levels.” states Livia Cevolini, sales and marketing director of CRP. “Zircotec’s coatings are ideally suited for use with our Windform material used in additive manufacturing, a process of joining materials to make objects from 3D model data.”
Zircotec’s ThermoHold coatings are used to solve heat and wear issues throughout a racing car. This year, driven partly by higher vehicle weight and the introduction of blown diffusers, Zircotec’s coatings are unlocking performance and durability gains for over half the F1 grid, notably for braking and chassis and aero parts. In the US, CRP will increase accessibility to teams in NASCAR, Grand-Am, Indycar, Drag, Sprint and Midget car racing. “US Race teams can now receive their parts ready coated, once again eliminating costs, delays and risks of shipping their parts to the UK,” continues Whyman.
Zircotec’s surface finishes can also be applied to CRP’s Windform rapid prototype material. This will allow teams to test thermal barriers without the expense or time of using tooled composite parts. “Our latest coating can be applied to a range of substrates including sintered nylon, glass fibre, PEEK and most epoxys.”
Beyond automotive applications, both CRP and Zircotec expect the heat barrier and wear resistant coatings to be adopted in the other engineering fields that CRP is active. “Our high value service and innovation is attractive not only to motorsport but also in aerospace and other sectors with proven results,”concludes Livia Cevolini.