Motorcycle Designer Looks to Pro/ENGINEER for Complete Design Solution

0108/2010

Although the Norton Motorcycle brand has been in existence since 1898, the latest chapter in Norton’s history started in 2008 when Stuart Garner bought the company and moved it from Oregon, USA to the United Kingdom. The new owner embraced the Norton designs, but understood they would have to make some changes to meet today’s market requirements

The challenge

The small design team at Norton soon realised that the bikes needed to be totally re-engineered from the ground up. In order to sell the motorcycles in regions such as Europe and California, a fuel injection system was necessary to meet environmental regulations. This would require extensive changes to the original bike, which was only designed to run on carburettors.

The solution

Using Pro/ENGINEER, the Norton engineers were able to create all of the parts, as well as complete all of the surfacing for the motorcycles. They also enlisted a computer numerical control system to try out new parts incredibly quickly, and finite element analysis to test the frame and various components.

Result

Norton Motorcycles was able to design three new motorcycles in about 12 months – an incredibly rapid turnaround time. The motorcycles are now in production, with several hundred of the bikes already pre-ordered and paid for. The company is expanding rapidly and plans to double both staff and the size of the facility over the next year, as it starts designing its next line.