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UTILITY WEEK | 5TH - 11TH FEBRUARY 2016 | 19 Operations & Assets roundings. This is an approach that could boost the resilience of new utility assets as well as their efficiency. The way in which assets are built, deliv- ered and managed could also benefit from racing knowledge. Modular construction and new techniques in racing team facto- ries, such as mobile workstations that shi around the car while it is being built, speed up the development of the car. "Delivery on time is a religion," says Aylett. "No race is ever held up by a failure to deliver. There are shipping solutions that other sectors could benefit from" in order to improve approaches to shipping replace- ment parts in the event of an asset failure for instance. Or, as the MIA chief says, to help speed up the construction of a new wind- farm or treatment works. Former Innovate UK chief executive Iain Gray is one of the many who are pushing for utilities to look beyond their own bounda- ries. "There are some great technology pro- jects within the sector – in water, energy, lighting, waste – but in isolation, they are not enough," he tells Utility Week. While there is not the same competitive edge in utilities as in motorsport – there are no trophies for being the quickest to build a gas power station, for example – there is the drive to build value for money assets as successfully as possible. Therefore, taking innovative solutions from elsewhere and utilising them is crucial, and could help to boost investor returns and customer experience. £9 billion the annual turnover of the motorsport industry (up from £4.6 billion in 2000) 4,500 the approximate number of companies involved in the UK motorsport and high-performance engineering industry 87% of UK motorsport companies export their products or services 25% the average R&D spend as a percentage of turnover for companies in Motorsport Valley (in Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire) – dwarfing even the UK pharmaceutical and IT industries 41,000 the minimum estimated employment base of the UK motorsport industry have beneficial implications across utilities and the development of new assets. Batteries and storage: Hybrid technology is now an important part of F1, with the storage technology being used to provide a boost of up to 120bhp for around 30 seconds per lap. Uti- lising the efficient storage solutions developed on track would be a significant step for utilities. Modular construction: In the event of a crash, the modular design of racing cars means the damaged part can be easily removed and replaced. This also allows for updates simply to be bolted on. Adopting these techniques may help to reduce costs further for the assets of utility companies. "You never win a race if you use the energy you've been given inefficiently." Chris Aylett, chief executive, Motorsport Industry Association CASE STUDIES Williams reaches out Williams has been competing at the pinnacle of motorsport since 1977 and is third most successful constructor in Formula 1 history – surpassed only by McLaren and Ferrari. The Oxfordshire-based outfit extended its operations in 2012 and set up Williams Advanced Engineering. This division is the technology and engineering services business of the Williams Group and provides "world class" technical innovation, engineering, testing and manufac- turing services to other sectors. Aerofoil Energy Williams Advanced Engineering collaborated with UK start-up Aerofoil Energy to develop an aerodynamic device that can reduce the energy consumed by refrigerators in supermarkets and convenience stores. Open-fronted multi-deck refrigerators that line the aisles of supermarkets consume excessive energy, with some of the cold air used to cool produce spilling out into the aisles, resulting in increased energy consumption and "cold aisle syndrome", which can be unpleasant for shoppers. Aerofoil Energy is working closely with Williams to refine the aerofoil concept, utilising Williams' proven expertise in aerodynamic design and testing from four decades of success in Formula 1 racing. Williams Advanced Engineering is using computational fluid dynamics to model and simulate new designs before testing them at the Wil- liams factory in Oxfordshire. The device forms part of a retrofit aerofoil system that keeps more of the cool air inside the refrigerator cabinet, leading to energy savings. Currently, five per cent of the UK's electricity goes into super- markets, of which around 60 per cent is used for refrigerators - this alone accounts for around three per cent of the country's electricity usage. Williams Advanced Engineering is also working with supermarkets such as Sainsbury's and Asda, which have been conducting in-store trials. These trials have already shown an average energy saving of 21 per cent. Hanergy Williams Advanced Engineering has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hanergy Solar Power UK, the entity in charge of commercial solar developments and innovative renewable technolo- gies developments for the UK. Under the terms of the agreement, Hanergy will benefit from Williams Advanced Engineering's extensive experience in different forms of energy storage technology in two clean energy projects aiming to use advanced energy storage technologies to optimise solar power generation. Powering Formula E Williams Advanced Engineering announced in June 2013 that it was partnering Spark Racing Technology to design and assemble a battery system for the 42 cars competing in the FIA Formula E Championship. Spark Racing Technology was formed in 2012 and is focused on the manufacture of the cars to compete in Formula E, the world's first fully electric racing series, which began in 2014. Williams Advanced Engineering signed an exclusive agreement with Spark and will be the sole supplier of battery technology to Formula E. Williams Advanced Engineering's battery expertise originated from its F1 programme, following the introduction of kinetic energy recov- ery systems to the sport in 2009. Williams Advanced Engineering is drawing upon the systems used in its F1 cars to create new batteries and battery management systems that are capable of powering a fully electric racing car. Key numbers