Composite Design Industrial Placement

Brackley, United Kingdom

Build your skills. Make an impact. Race towards excellence.

Every dream needs a team.

Join the Composite Design Department as we take on the challenge of Formula One’s exciting new era of sustainable technical regulations.

By spending your year in industry with us, you will:

• Apply your learning in one of the most technically demanding global sports
• Take on responsibility as you are supported and trained throughout your year
• Join us for a year-long placement from the end of June 2026 to the end of July 2027
• Work in a fast-paced environment at our state-of-the-art factory in Brackley, United Kingdom
• Be an integral part of a cohort of students working across all functions of our team
  
  

As an Industrial Placement in Composite Design:

You will become an integral part of our design group. We are responsible for the Chassis, Transmission Carrier, Crash Structures, Wings and Floor/Bodywork, so you will have the scope to work on a wide range of car components.

Key responsibilities include:

• Design and development of composite components and assemblies for the car
• Taking ownership for all facets of your projects. From a design perspective this covers the whole process from tooling design through to detailed engineering drawings for components and assemblies. Once designed, you will continue to support the components through feedback for manufacturing queries and resolving any trackside reliability issues
• Working with our process group to create laminate definition information
• Performing simple hand calculations for initial sizing and liaising with our structures group for detailed feedback
• Support other car design groups (such as Powertrain, Mechanical, or Electronics) with design and release of CAD geometry and drawings during the critical launch car and build periods
• The opportunity for you to add your own performance to the race car through optimisation of mass and implementing innovative design solutions
  
  

Successful candidates will:

• Be currently studying a degree with relevance to engineering (e.g. Mechanical, Automotive, Aeronautical, Motorsport)
• Have at least one year remaining on your current course or be enrolled on your next course* from the point at which you start your placement with us (Please note that if you will be enrolled on a Masters or PhD course you will need to be able to evidence enrolment to confirm eligibility)
• Be curious and committed to continuous learning
• Take full ownership of their work, driving projects forward with initiative and independence
• Be adaptable, have a proactive mindset, a collaborative approach and thrive in a team environment
• Show determination and resilience when facing challenges
• Have keen attention to detail
• Possess an analytical and inquisitive approach
• Relish challenges and enjoy pushing for continuous improvement
  
  

Additional desirable criteria:

• Experience and passion for any of the following specialisms would be beneficial: Composite Materials and their production, producing engineering drawings, Finite Element Analysis (FEA), conducting hand calculations to verify the appropriateness of a design
• Practical experience of building, maintaining and/or designing motor/electric vehicles (for example – Formula Student, volunteering or racing in a series, building a kit car)
• Strong communication skills, with ability to present information in formats that make it accessible and understandable to a wide range of stakeholders and business areas
  
  

Skills you could gain from your placement include:

• An ability to use a CAD package (we use CATIA 3DX) to design composite components and assemblies right-first time within a high-end motorsport environment
• Developing an understanding of different approaches to tooling for composite materials
• Developing knowledge of the composites manufacturing process
• Developing an understanding of how to select appropriate materials for different applications
• Knowledge of development lifecycle of a car/component from concept through detailed design, manufacture, test validation, and on-track support
• An understanding of how to work effectively across multiple disciplines (within Composites Design we liaise heavily with different design groups as well as Aerodynamics teams, Materials group, Structural analysis group, and T&D labs)
  
  

Please note that we plan for full training to be provided in CAD, as part of the scheduling of the placement. It does not matter whether you already have an interest in motorsport: We are looking for individuals who are passionate about reaching their full potential and are excited about constantly learning.

Benefits:

When you put the effort in, we give it back. Start with a competitive salary, a generous joining bonus, add in a world-class wellbeing programme (including a free on-site gym), delicious, subsidised food, and private medical cover - all on our riverside campus powered by 100% renewable energy. You’ll have everything you need to thrive both inside and outside of work.

How to apply:

• Submit your CV and cover letter as a single PDF to our Workday portal
• Complete our application form
  
  

Our IP programme is designed with the intent to progress into available graduate roles in the future. You will be required to meet the eligibility criteria of the IP programme including any right to work requirements for your application to progress. As these roles are based in the UK, any visa sponsorship must meet current Home Office immigration rules.

Ref : REQ-250360