Bentley make light weight of it at AMRC

Members of the Lighweighting Excellence programme, which includes the AMRC Composite Centre, at the site of the new press

A high pressure press is being installed next to Factory 2050 for use by AMRC Composite Centre staff.

Clara Frias, who is leading the project, said: “This will be a unique facility that will improve our capabilities and also benefit the UK.”

The AMRC is working with several other organisations on a Government-backed project to achieve weight loss of 20 per cent in some vehicle parts.

The press will be a world first in terms of capabilities and size — standing six metres high and seven metres wide — allowing it to make several components at a time.

The aim is also to find the middle ground where the need for customisation meets high volume production.

As well as Bentley, the project involves the AMRC working with Sigmatex, Expert Tooling & Automation, Granta Design, Cranfield University and Group Rhodes.