KEYNOTE PRESENTATION • October 27, 2021 • 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Manufacturing in Motorsports
Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, and led by racing legend Michael Andretti, the Andretti Autosport team fields multiple entries such as the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Championship and the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship LMP3 division.
As Manufacturing Engineer for Andretti Autosport, Charlie Mitchell will present about the continuous improvement and speed of manufacturing parts in the racing industry. Prior to Mitchell’s arrival in 2015, the Andretti team relied on “Form-Fit-Function” processes while manufacturing and developing parts for competition. Mitchell was quick to implement traditional metrology methods with quality control inspection and determine how many in-process inspections were needed to ensure traceability and accountability of critical racing components. In addition to the process currently used by Andretti, the team is implementing software to automate the process while continually improving the speed of manufacturing critical parts while maintaining quality, inspection, and traceability.
Charlie Mitchell
Manufacturing Engineer
Andretti Autosport
Charlie Mitchell is in his seventh season as Manufacturing Engineer at Andretti Autosport. In his time with Andretti, the team has recorded two Indianapolis 500 wins (2016, 2017), 12 NTT INDYCAR SERIES victories and 15 pole positions. Mitchell graduated from the Lynn Vocational and Technical Institute in 1980, where he has degrees in manufacturing engineering and manufacturing process engineering. Prior to his career in motorsports, Mitchell’s professional experience included time at General Electric and Arwood Machine, where he oversaw the manufacturing efforts for key components on the Hubble Space Telescope and Space Shuttle program. Mitchell’s racing resume also includes wins in Top-Fuel drag racing and competing with the Nissan LMP1 team in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.