Dunk,
Story 1. Many years ago I had a young and talented Formula 3 driver who asked me to change the differential ramp angle to solve a power understeer corner exit problem. It was his first race. He did ask me that in a middle of a qualify cession! He probably heard in a conversation with other drivers or engineers or mechanics that such a setup change could solve his specific problem but because he never worked on the car himself he probably thought that changing the differential ramp angle was as fast as adjusting the front camber of the rear ride height.
Story 2. A few years ago the team who win the FSG design competition was able to explain how any of the car part was manufactured. The new exactly any of the car part manufacturing process (CNC, metal cutting, welding, composite work) everything (
Story 3 (And that one relates to your actual work so you will tell me if I am write or wrong). I have observed that car manufacturers are more and more order givers and less and less designers and manufacturers of their own components. In the last 30 years I have observed the knowledge of car components manufacturers or even complete subassembly suppliers or consulting companies growing quicker that the ones of the car manufacturer engineers. And with more efficiency and less bureaucracy.
Story 4. At OptimumG we do simulation software. I do not ask our vehicle dynamics engineers to be prefect OOP programmers but I do ask them to have enough skills and experience to have intelligent conversation with the core programmers.
Story 5. One of the reasons that makes OptimumG seminars successful in the professional racing or passengers cars world is our ability to connect the dots (tires, aero, kinematics and compliances, damping…. you name it) even if we are 5 to 10 times less qualified than any of the F1 specialists in their very specific domain. The hyper-specialization and the oversight of the fundamentals is what often creates confusion, bureaucracy , lack of efficiency. But that is also why we have a business. On the other end, in fairness and objectivity, even if we are more efficient and agile, small consulting companies like ours do not have the financial power to compete in similar project even. Well, that is also why we are too small to fail
Put the 5 stories together and you will understand that even it makes perfect logistical and budgetary sense for a car manufacturer to by parts outside, if I was one of these car manufacturers and I had to hire an engineer I will want to have one who knows how to design and manufacture the parts he is in charge of, even if the parts design and manufacturing is made outside the company.
And that is what my point was: FSAE not a kit car competition. I know that you can’t compare a 250K$ 80 students 10 years of experience big university access to lab and excellent faculty advisor to a 25 K$ 10 students small university no real good teachers first year team but I still will give students more praise (and most probably points too ) to students who design and manufacture parts than students who buy them. That is what FSAE / FS is supposed to be: prepare them for their career. If not, well they can play Lego.
Back to story 1. Back to the talented but unknowledgeable driver. After that race I arranged to have that driver to spend 3 weeks, 6 days/week, 14 hours/day working with the mechanics and completely assemble and disassemble and setup a car. Just as an example, when he saw how complicated it was to get the fuel pump back inside the fuel tank via a very small window on the rear bulkhead of the monocoque, he started to appreciate and respect the mechanics’ work. We even sent him in a van to pick up parts and engines in Italy for a 30 hours non-stop round trip. We put him as a passenger in the semi-trailer that went with his car to a test cession. We made him wash gear ratios and rims. With good workshop jokes, laughing lunches and 1 or 2 beers after the long working days, these 3 weeks did really bind the team together. Engineers, mechanics and the driver acquired respect and even admiration for each other. The driver didn’t anymore ask to make in 2 minutes a setup change that takes really 45 minutes. We won the championship that year and the driver made it to Formula One 3 years later. He is still my friend. We won for many reasons but one of them was the common knowledge and appreciation of each other work