Sauber and Oerlikon expand partnership

Oerlikon is now a Premium Partner of the Sauber F1 Team. The high-tech group is intensifying its involvement with the traditional Swiss racing team, and the Oerlikon logo will be prominently displayed on both sides of the upper engine cover of the new Sauber C31-Ferrari as well as on team gear and equipment.

In addition, the previously announced plan to build a solar park at the company headquarters in Hinwil, featuring thin-film silicon panels based on Oerlikon technology, is to be driven forward.

Team Principal Peter Sauber comments: “We have long held Oerlikon Balzers in esteem as a technology partner supplying special coatings for high-stress components. In 2011 we began to further expand our partnership with Oerlikon in the interests of improving our company’s environmental performance, and we can see great potential for numerous know-how transfer possibilities in the future.”

Michael Buscher, CEO of the Oerlikon Group, elaborates: “We are pleased to play a part in further enhancing the environmental compatibility of the internationally renowned Sauber F1 Team. Formula One is a highly innovative sport with a global profile, making it an ideal platform to communicate our positioning as a leading technology enterprise to the world.”

Oerlikon products are integral to the automotive world. The company’s Textile segment supplies tyre cord, technical fibres for lightweight components and special yarns for racing gear. Oerlikon’s Drive Systems provides high-performance gearing systems for sports cars. Oerlikon’s Vacuum segment offers solutions for vehicle paintwork, the Coating segment provides coatings for high-stress engine components in Formula One and general vehicle construction, and Oerlikon Advanced Technologies’ machines manufacture computer chips used in mobile navigation and safety electronics systems. “All our business segments are directly or indirectly represented in automotive construction and motor racing with innovative solutions. On the basis of these diverse links, the partnership between Sauber and Oerlikon is an excellent match that is further reinforced by a shared Swiss heritage,“ says Oerlikon CEO Michael Buscher.