German Formula One team selects EDM partner

Mitsubishi Electric Europe has concluded a three-year partnership agreement with Sauber Petronas, the German Formula 1 Team, to supply wire-cut and die sinking systems.

Mitsubishi Electric Europe has concluded a three-year partnership agreement with Sauber Petronas, the German Formula 1 Team.

Under the terms of this agreement Mitsubishi Electric will supply wire-cut and die sinking systems to Sauber Petronas.

Both companies have agreed on a close collaboration to develop specific know-how in this advanced manufacturing discipline.

In addition Mitsubishi Electric will also receive extensive marketing and advertising rights "EDM technology has been gaining increasing importance in recent years, giving our designers new potentials for shaping components, which clearly surpass those of conventional machining techniques," states Willy Rampf, Sauber Petronas' Technical Director.

Toshio Moro, Mitsubishi Division Manager for Mitsubishi Electric EDM, sees the collaboration with Sauber Petronas as a competitive challenge: "Top performance in racing requires top performance in the production and manufacture of components for the racing cars".

"Mitsubishi Electric, the technology and world market leader in the field of wire-cut EDM, meets these prerequisites in an ideal way." * About Sauber Petronas - Peter Sauber (61) founded PP Sauber AG in Hinwil, Switzerland in 1970.

He got his start in motor sports by building racing cars for the Swiss national hillclimb championships, initially driving them himself.

The Swiss racing team first attracted international attention in 1976, when Herbert Muller won the European Interserie title in a Sauber C5.

In the mid-Eighties Sauber then became the works team for the Mercedes-Benz sportscar racing program.

The highpoints of this partnership included the double victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1989 and two consecutive wins of both World Sportscar titles in 1989 and 1990.

In 1993 Sauber switched to Formula 1 and sensationally won two world championship points in his very first race, the South African Grand Prix in Kyalami.

Since then the Sauber Petronas team has achieved six podium finishes and its best world championship classification was fourth place in the constructors' title in 2001.

In the 2005 Formula 1 season Sauber Petronas is competing with Jacques Villeneuve (Canada) and Felipe Massa (Brazil) as drivers.

Back to top