Formula One is a human capital business. Without world class talent matched to a profound commitment to go beyond the definition of the normal understanding of commitment, success in Formula One would be an elusive goal.
It follows therefore that Williams' staff are its most important asset. The company prizes itself in a positive level of engagement, support and reward for its workforce, reflected in the number of employees who have served 25 years or more with the organisation.
Today Williams employs around 600 personnel at a 40ha technology campus based in the heart of the UK’s ‘Motorsport Valley’ in rural Oxfordshire. The company’s core competencies are the design and manufacture of Formula One race cars, and the deployment of this expertise in running the team’s entries into the Grands Prix each season.
Below are the different businesses within the Williams family:
Williams F1 Team
Although Williams has expanded over recent times, we believe we have kept the family within the team and a supportive and friendly environment. Williams F1 Team was founded back in 1977 by former team owner Sir Frank Williams and automotive engineer Patrick Head.
We are an independent Formula One team with a philosophy and history of winning races.
Williams Advanced Engineering
Williams Advanced Engineering, part of the Williams group of companies that includes the world famous Williams F1 Team, takes the cutting edge technology that has its origins in Formula One and adapts it for a range of commercial purposes. This includes the development of high-power composite flywheel energy storage systems, commercial applications of the Group’s motorsport simulation technology, the design and manufacture of high performance vehicles and engineering consulting and systems integration services.
Based at the Williams F1 factory in Oxfordshire and the Williams Technology Centre in Qatar, Williams Advanced Engineering brings the best of Formula One engineering to the wider world.
Williams Hybrid Power
Williams Hybrid Power (WHP) is the division of Williams F1 that develops electromechanical flywheels for mobile applications such as buses, trams and high performance endurance racing cars. A type of hybrid system that uses a spinning composite rotor to store energy, these flywheels help a vehicle save fuel and ultimately reduce its CO2 emissions.
WHP was first established in 2008 and immediately set about developing a new flywheel energy recovery system for the Williams F1 Team after the introduction of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS) into Formula One for the 2009 season. While other teams were pouring their efforts into electric battery systems, Williams F1 opted to go down the flywheel route because of a strong belief in the technology's wider applications. Whilst it was never raced in Formula One due to technical changes, WHP has since seen its technology adapted for a range of applications. For example, the hybrid car that won the 2012 Le Mans 24 Hours used a WHP flywheel. WHP has also seen its flywheel technology introduced into a series of buses as part of a deal with the Go-Ahead Group, one of the UK’s biggest transport operators
Williams Technology Centre
In partnership with the Qatar Science & Technology Park, Williams F1 established the Williams Technology Centre, Qatar (WTCQ) to develop and commercialise technologies that have their origins in Formula One. This is currently focused on two R&D projects that will help Qatar achieve its 2030 National Vision.
The flywheels being developed are designed to help make Qatar's ambitious public transport infrastructure the most environmentally friendly in the world. Introduced into a new metro system for example, our flywheels can offer significant reductions in CO2 emissions. The road safety simulators being developed are helping to train local regular and commercial drivers to improve Qatar's road safety record and educate drivers on how to drive in a more fuel efficient manner.
Beyond its technology programmes, WTCQ is actively supporting education in Qatar in a variety of ways including mentoring final year student engineering teams, running multiple summer internship programmes to expose students to rapid engineering culture, and the hiring of local graduates.