Since 2003 Honda Racing has been using an EdgeCAM intelligent solids-based manufacturing solution to power its in-house machine shop.
'Fast' may well now be the norm, but real raw 'wow, that's amazing' physical speed and acceleration are unique in their power to thrill people - and nowhere more so than at top motorcycle racing events such as the British Superbike and British Supersport Championships. It's not just the speed. We're awed by the riders' skill and courage, and their trust in their team-mates.

Most of us couldn't ride a Superbike at 30km/h never mind 300km/h, but when we're deciding on our next vehicle, an image of the triumphant rider and bike may come to mind.

Yes, maybe we really could own a road bike or a car with that winning brand.

And some of the magic just might rub off.

Honda Racing is there to be first past the chequered flag.

The goal is to win and to win consistently.

To achieve that, Honda Racing needs to give its own and its customers' riders and technicians the best possible combination of machines and backup with which to compete.

The company needs to design, develop and manufacture its components with the same winning combination of quality and reliability.

That is why since 2003 Honda Racing has been using an EdgeCAM intelligent solids-based manufacturing solution to power its in-house machine shop.

The company and its staff of 25 are based in Louth, Lincolnshire, ideally located for travel in various directions to the championship circuits.

The reception area of the modern facility is filled with glorious, gleaming trophies and glorious gleaming motorcycles.

Some of the machines come from Honda ready for use; others arrive as road bikes for conversion or modification into racing bikes.

And now, Honda Racing has developed its own new Superbike based on a Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) machine.

In 2003, Honda Racing decided to expand and improve its in-house machine shop.

According to Chris Kingsland, Workshop Manager: 'We decided to offset the cost by using it to produce affordable race parts for other Honda-supported teams'.

To do this, Honda needed to increase productivity both in the generation of machine tool programs and in the efficiency of manufacture.

There is another very good reason for having the best possible design and production facilities in-house: Honda Racing just cannot afford the risk of failing to meet critical deadlines that may come from external subcontract manufacture.

Senior Machinist Ian Smith investigated the market to select the best combination of CAD/CAM software and CNC machine tools for Honda Racing's requirements.

Two systems reached his shortlist and EdgeCAM from Pathtrace won the day.

Smith recalls: 'EdgeCAM Solid Machinist met our requirements better than any other solution we looked at and it was easier to learn and use, too'.

EdgeCAM Solid Machinist integrates seamlessly with all leading CAD packages, so Honda Racing's choice of design software was totally open.

Even so, the team members chose EdgeCAM Part Modeler.

As relative newcomers to CAD/CAM they needed an easy-to-learn solution for the component design phase and felt that EdgeCAM Part Modeler fitted the bill precisely.

Honda Racing believed that their needs were very specialised and appreciated Pathtrace's understanding of all the relevant issues.

Smith notes: 'In our business, you can't just go out and buy the parts you need'.

'You have to be able to design and manufacture them - and quickly'.

He continues: 'The co-operative attitude and flexibility of Pathtrace was fantastic'.

'We talked requirements and Pathtrace listened'.

And now, thanks to an excellent working relationship, what started as a purchase of CAD/CAM software has evolved into a formal partnership between the two companies.

By the end of 2003 Smith and his colleagues had acquired the means to manufacture these highly complex components in a fraction of the time it used to take, implementing EdgeCAM for their two new Fanuc Robodrill CNC machines.

How were the team members to learn to use the new software?

Because of the tight timescales that Honda Racing works to, off-site training was simply not an option.

The answer was, as Ian Smith puts it 'to jump in at the deep end, with complex components', which is exactly what he and his colleagues did, learning on the job with what they commend as 'fantastic help from Pathtrace'.

The team quickly began to find EdgeCAM addictive as they moved along the learning curve up to 3D and then on to four-axis work'.

'The criteria against which component designs are measured at Honda Racing are function, form and weight'.

'We pride ourselves in the thoroughness of our approach'.

'We try to look at all the problems, and then make the part, right first time', says Chris Kingsland.

However, this is the real world, and even with all of Honda Racing's experience, rapid design changes may become necessary.

EdgeCAM's capability to handle this has proved to be of great value.

Kingsland again: 'Take this top bridge mount'.

'We looked at the one on the road bike we were adapting from, decided our design and quickly made the part with an EdgeCAM programme'.

'We proved it on the 2005 Fireblade ridden to impressive effect by Karl Harris on his debut aboard the machine at an end-of-season nonchampionship event in 2004'.

The testing went well and led to an even better idea: 'We decided to modify the mount slightly so we could adjust the ride more easily without taking out the rear shock absorber'.

Back to the drawing board - or in this case back to EdgeCAM Part Modeler.

Thanks to EdgeCAM's associativity, such changes to complex components can be made in a fraction of the time this would take using traditional methods or using nonassociative software.

The tool paths are associative to any changes made to the 3D model, so that if the model is changed, so are the tool paths - automatically.

Chief Mechanic Chris Pike confirms: 'We made the changes to the design, manufactured the part and had it running on the bike, all within two weeks'.

'That's quick'.

Honda describes itself as 'pushing the technological envelope', and Honda Racing's activities show this in action.

Commercial constraints apply too, of course, even at this top quality end of the market.

Another important aspect of the flexibility provided by EdgeCAM is that it can help the company manufacture components in a cost-effective way without sacrificing quality - meaning greater pricing flexibility without impairing profit margins.

EdgeCAM appeals to each team member at Honda Racing in a different way.

Smith loves the EdgeCAM-assisted timescales, which he illustrates simply by brandishing a new gear lever and saying: 'One and a half hours with EdgeCAM versus two weeks without'.

Machinist Matthew Perry likes the way they can 'try out and preview and change - the advantage of the working model'.

Chris Pike observes: 'It is very user friendly'.

'You can use it without formal engineering training, because the terminology isn't baffling'.

He discovered this by launching into designing with EdgeCAM Part Modeler after one very short lesson.

Chris Kingsland says: 'This is not about volume'.

'It's about flexibility, efficiency and speed of manufacture'.

Kingsland sees EdgeCAM as 'helping us to evolve, demonstrably improving our entire design, manufacture, test and feedback process and improving the way that the company works'.

In its first year using EdgeCAM, not only has Honda Racing been able to develop more complex components than before, it has also been able to significantly increase the volume of components produced.

Kingsland again: 'Many of our components have to be complex and engineered with curved and compound angle to fit into the very tight spaces found on racing bikes'.

'No other software could do this in the way we wanted'.

The benefits however, have come from more than just the software.

'The Pathtrace people have been fantastic'.

'I don't believe anyone could have provided a better service than they have'.

Kingsland's conclusion: 'Pathtrace and EdgeCAM enable organisations such as ours to raise the standard enormously for production efficiency and quality - and, of course, speed'.