ORRCON - STEEL WITH SPEED

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When many people think of steel the first thoughts that come into their mind is black, dirty and heavy. However, Orrcon is a steel company that is always thinking outside the square when it comes to getting people excited about its product and ensure it is used in a variety of applications.

One of the latest projects using Orrcon product is the recently launch=d Ford FG Falcon V8 Supercar.

With the FG model based on the Falcon XR8 road car, the new race car w=s jointly designed and built by leading Ford teams, Ford Performance Racing, Triple Eight and Stone Brothers Racing, in conjunction with one of the world's top racing engineers Paul Ceprnich.

Ford Performance Racing was responsible for the upfront design and bui=d of the shell, Triple Eight led the aerodynamic package development and the homologation process.

The FG project has been over six months in the making with the first c=assis taking almost three months to manufacturer.

During his career Ceprnich has worked with some of the top line manufa=turers and racing teams in the world.

Since the late 1990s Ceprnich has resided in Australia and was the lea= engineer for the successful Paul Morris Motorsport operation in the Super Touring and V8 Supercar Championships. He was also a part of the winning LMP team at the 1999 LeMans 24 hour race and has previously worked as a part of the ALMS series in America.

In addition to the project of building FG Falcons Ceprnich and his tea= at PACE Innovations are also consultants for the Lamborghini team in the FIA GT and LeMans Series Championship

‘The FG Falcon project has certainly been an exciting one and it is =reat to be able to use an Australian-made product in the process,’ said Ceprnich.

‘Effectively all of the steel used in the chassis that isn't chrom= moly is Orrcon supplied product. We have used 100mmX100mm RHS in the outer chassis rails along with 100mmX50mm RHS and 75mmX50mm RHS throughout the build process. Orrcon were able to source sheet material on 0.8mm, 1mm and 1.2mm thickness for use in the floor of the car.

‘Also incorporated in the build process were various other Orrcon pr=ducts used to manufacturer the jig.

‘All of the steel used in the FG project has been top quality and th= service provided to us by the team at Orrcon Steel has been sensational, not only have they provided the team at PACE with faultless products but also useful product and technical knowledge.’

Once the work of Ceprnich and his fabrication team is complete, the ch=ssis is then sent to the respective Ford team to finish the chassis and implement their running gear, panels and other components.

The fit-out process on the initial ‏test' car was completed by the=Ford Performance Racing team prior to the car taking to the circuit for the first time at Sandown in early June.

A total of three fabricators with input from the designers and enginee=s worked on the process for a month once the chassis entered the Melbourne factory ensuring everything was in readiness for a demonstration run by the new model.

Since the initial model left the PACE workshop at Yatala in Queensland=during February, Ceprnich and his team have produced another four FG base chassis to which have already been distributed to the Ford teams in the V8 Supercar Championship.

By the end of the year Ceprnich anticipates the team at PACE will have=produced almost a dozen Ford FG Falcon V8 Supercars using Orrcon product and ready to take to the circuit early next year at speeds up to 300 km/h.

FPR is one Ford team that has already received its first FG Race car a=d it has been all systems go to ensure the car will be ready for its debut.

‘After being a part of the build process for the test car, it has be=n great to get our first FG ‏race' chassis into the workshop to put the finishing touches to it,’ said FPR Fabrication Manager Tim Collard.

‘The chassis comes to us all but complete, effectively we put in som= extra mounts here and there, a little bit of reinforcement where our engineers believe is required and then it is set to get fitted out with running gear before being ready to hit the track.’

When the Ford FG Falcon V8 Supercar does take to the circuit for the f=rst time, Orrcon product will be there for more than just a fast ride - it will be a part of the new era in V8 Supercar racing.