Why January Is an F1 Factory’s Busiest Time

Why is this period so important?

“It’s a really intense time for people in the factory because these departments are operating on shift patterns 24/7,” Rob says. “People show huge levels of commitment.

“There’s so much going on and everything must come together for these deadlines.

“It’s crucial at this time of year to stick to the timeframes and leave no stone unturned. We know that’s what’s required to put us in the best condition to go testing and racing. Otherwise, we’ll find problems further down the line that have a much bigger impact.

“We’re always trying to find that balance between speed and quality.”

This busy period is really underpinned by our behaviours and Rob explains how the team has adapted and developed over time.

“We’ve worked hard for years on behaviours in the team and making sure we have a defined set of values.

“It’s really this time of year where it comes together, everyone is in [the factories] and each department is an expert in what they do.

“But to deliver the car, it relies on every department interacting so closely together. Everything is done respectfully, but very fast. There’s a line of trust in each area. There’s never finger-pointing. If anyone has an issue, they’ll fix it and if they need help, they’ll come and ask.”

How has this period of year evolved, over time?

Rob joined the Brackley team in 2010, at the beginning of Mercedes’ return to Formula One. This period of the year has always been busiest.

“There were detailed plans [when Rob joined the team], but they weren’t really respected,” he says. “A lot of internal dates were a bit optional, and we’d do our best to hit those deadlines, but generally we didn’t.

“Things got later and later and what you ended up was people working in a chaotic firefighting way, trying to get parts together.

“We wouldn’t get either the result we needed from performance or reliability either. That all leads to going to the first races in a massively sub-optimal condition, not getting the learning you want and leading to people being burnt out.”

Strong leadership from the engineering and operational areas helped smooth out the issues. The team is now in a place where deadlines are met while still ensuring we look after our team-mates.

Ultimately, all this work is crucial because we only have one winter test to learn as much as we can before the racing begins. Completing as many laps as possible is therefore vital.

To do that, we need to deliver a reliable car, in the best possible condition, built and maintained by the hard-working people in the factories.