British F1 teams offering vital tech support during fight against coronavirus

British-based Formula One teams are offering their cutting-edge tech support to help alleviate the burden of the National Health Service during the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

With ventilators increasingly in short supply for those suffering with the most serious and life-threatening advanced conditions, F1 factories have the capabilities and technology to manufacture these complicated ventilator units at short notice.

The teams based in England with the means to build the units are Mercedes, McLaren, Williams, Red Bull, Racing Point and Renault, whilst Haas has its European headquarters in the country. And, according to a statement released by Formula 1, a ‘tangible outcome’ could be reached with the government in the coming days.

“A collective of UK-based Formula 1 teams, engine manufacturers and their respective technology arms is evaluating support for the manufacture of respiratory devices in response to the UK government’s call for assistance,” read the F1 statement.

“The teams are working in collaboration with F1, the UK government and other organisations to establish the feasibility of the teams producing, or supporting, the production of medical devices to help in the treatment of coronavirus patients.

“All the teams have expert design, technology and production capabilities, and specialise in rapid prototyping and high-value manufacturing, which is hoped can be applied to the critical needs set out by government.

“Working with Innovate UK, the High Value Manufacturing Catapult team and University College London and UCL hospitals, the teams are evaluating a number of routes to support in conjunction with existing manufacturers and organisations from the aerospace and automotive sectors. It is hoped this work, which is being rapidly progressed, will produce a tangible outcome in the next few days.”

According to statistics reported by City AM, the NHS currently has just over 8000 ventilators across the country, but Prime minister Boris Johnson has stressed that a further 20,000 would be required during this time of need to combat the life-threatening respiratory symptoms.

Two of those British teams helping in the fight against coronavirus, Williams and Racing Point, are partnered by a company that it also doing its bit to support workers and companies during this time of crisis.

Bering a global leader in cyber protection, Acronis is traditionally used to fighting other types of virus – namely the digital kind. And now, in an effort to keep businesses safe during uncertain times, the company is making Acronis Cyber Files Cloud free to all service providers through July 31, 2020, so they can help their clients quickly transition to working remotely whilst keeping vital data secure.

In these turbulent times, it's not just about protecting all data, application and systems. We're committed to ensuring our employees, partners and their families are protected too.

How is your organization adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic? https://t.co/yPvPJauphM

— Acronis (@Acronis) March 19, 2020

“The world has changed dramatically during the past few weeks and days as we all respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. As organizations adjust to the new normal – both personally and professionally – Acronis wants to reassure our partners that we are here to support them,” said Gaidar Magdanurov, Acronis Chief Cyber Officer and COO.

“We understand the challenges of our service provider partners – providing a secure collaboration environment for their customers – and we are able to support them in this time by allowing them to enable remote work for their customers at no additional cost during the outbreak.”

And it’s not only the British-based teams that are joining in the fight against coronavirus with the Agnelli family, owners of Ferrari and Fiat, donating 10m euro to the Italian government and buying 150 extra ventilators.