LOCAL engineering firm Renishaw is once again helping Team GB in hopes of the team reaching gold at the Olympics. 

Renishaw - which is based in Wotton, Stonehouse, Woodchester and Charfield - has developed and manufactured key components for the track bikes used by British Cycling. 

Engineers have designed a number of parts on the bike, including the crank, seat stay bridge and dropouts, as well as a first-of-its-kind seat post created in aluminium. 

The company used additive manufacturing to allow the British Cycling team to change the design throughout the process creating complex and aerodynamic geometries. 

The business previously designed the bikes Laura Kenny and Jason Kenny rode to win multiple medals in Tokyo 2020.

Seven medals - three gold medals, three silver and one bronze - were won in 2020 by British athletes riding bikes Renishaw helped design.

Gazette Series: 3D printed titanium crank on the British Cycling track bike - which was designed and manufactured by Renishaw 3D printed titanium crank on the British Cycling track bike - which was designed and manufactured by Renishaw (Image: SWpix.com / Renishaw)

Ben Collins lead additive manufacturing application engineer at Renishaw said: “After Team GB brought home seven Olympic medals from the Tokyo Olympics, we were delighted to be asked to continue our partnership with the British Cycling team and develop components for the Paris 2024 bike.” 

“Bringing together the best of British engineering talent, we have been able to refine the design even further and showcase how additive manufacturing can deliver strong, yet lightweight parts for cycling, while demonstrating these benefits to other industries. 

“Every bike is tailored to the measurements of the athletes, which is more difficult and costly using traditional manufacturing techniques, so it's a great example of the role of AM in bespoke manufacturing.”

“It was great to see the success of Team GB and the bike in the last Olympic cycle and we are excited to see how the bike performs in Paris after creating the split seat post, seat bridge, dropouts and crank.

“Our aim for this Olympic bike is to push the boundaries with AM technology further, whilst still achieving high-performance components that are tailored to the riders and meet Olympic requirements for strength and weight.”

Gazette Series: Renishaw

Oliver Caddy, lead project engineer at British Cycling said: “As industry leaders in additive manufacturing, Renishaw has provided support in design and production of wind tunnel models and prototype parts during the development of the Paris Olympic bike.

“However, Renishaw's contribution is not limited to development as crucial elements of the bike, including the seat posts and crank, have now also been produced by additive manufacturing, showcasing its power in the cycling industry.”

“The Renishaw team has been incredibly reliable throughout the entire process of developing parts ahead of the 2024 Olympics.

“It's clear that they are as committed as we are to delivering excellence on this project. 

“It's also appreciated by the athletes that are working hard to prepare themselves for their events in the summer.”

The new bike will be ridden by GB cyclists at the Paris 2024 Olympics track cycling events. 

These take place between August 5 and 11 at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games National Velodrome.