Supersonic Bloodhound Sniffs Out Automotive Talent

Engineering and technical talent is in short supply in the auto industry so Jaguar Land Rover is reaching out to the Bloodhound Project, the U.K.’s bid to set a new land-speed record and travel 1,000 mph (1,610 km/h) within the next two years.

Andy Green, a veteran Royal Air Force fighter pilot tapped to drive the Bloodhound SSC (supersonic car), says one of the principal objectives is to interest students at U.K. universities in careers in science and technology, specifically within the automotive business.

The U.K. auto industry is eager to maintain the momentum behind its recent renaissance. After nearly sinking into oblivion in the 1980s when its most storied names, including Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, Bentley and Rolls Royce, were sold off to German and American competitors while other English brands such as Austin Healy, Morris, Sunbeam, Talbot and Triumph vanished as Britain de-industrialized.

Nowadays, however, the U.K. automotive establishment is attracting new investment in part because of its reputation for engineering excellence, which has been honed in Formula 1 racing, according to Michael Hawes, the former Bentley executive who serves as CEO of the U.K.’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

Hawes notes during a recent conference in China the British auto industry does more than build Formula 1 race cars. Fabled brands such as Bentley and Rolls Royce are enjoying major success and the U.K. has become an exporter of automobile engines. JLR sales have climbed 10% this year following a 19% jump in 2013. Deliveries are up in China, Asia Pacific, Europe and North America as well as the U.K.

Green says during a visit to the U.S. that maintaining the momentum behind the resurgence of the U.K. automotive industry will require getting top students from even the poshest universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge, interested in technology and the car business.

Project Bloodhound, with its blend of speed, glamor, danger, and advanced technology drawn from the automotive and aircraft industry, has become a major attraction all by itself, adds Green, an RAF wing commander who once led U.K. fighters enforcing the no-fly zone over Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. He visits schools and universities to pitch the project to students.

The Bloodhound SSC (supersonic car) basically is an earthbound jet powered by a 135,000-hp Rolls Royce aircraft engine. It weighs 8.3 tons and is more than 40 ft. (12 m) long, sitting on a 4-wheel undercarriage that turns it into an automobile designed to go 1,000 mph.

The Bloodhound is being assembled at the Bloodhound Technical Center in Bristol, England. It is scheduled for runway testing at up to 200 mph (320 km/h) in the U.K. before it’s shipped to South Africa for further tests.

Green holds the world land-speed record of 763 mph (1,228 km/h) set in 1997 in the Thrust SSC, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Plans call for challenging the current record next summer on a course laid out in the South African desert, then attempting to break the 1,000-mph barrier in 2016.

Green notes the engine’s 135,000 hp is more than six times the power of all Formula 1 cars on a starting grid combined. The front half, where the driver sits, is a carbon-fiber monocoque like that of a racing car and the back half comprises a metallic framework and aircraft-like panels.

“If it was only a matter of reflexes, I wouldn’t do it,” Green says. “But experience is important.”

JLR, which emerged from the global recession of 2008-2009 when both Jaguar and Land Rover were sold by Ford to Indian automaker Tata, recently signed on to serve as a co-sponsor and supplier of the Project Bloodhound.

“The Bloodhound project is one of the most inspirational and innovative currently in existence. Jaguar is delighted to be part of a project which inspires the next generation of scientists and engineers, whilst also supporting Jaguar's commitment to high-performance technology,” Phil Popham, JLR director-global marketing, said at Los Angeles.

Jaguar’s 5.0L, 550-hp supercharged V-8 engine will provide hydraulics and drive the Bloodhound’s oxidizer pump. This pump will supply 208 gallons (800 L) of high-test peroxide in just 20 seconds, equivalent to nine gallons (40 L) every second, designers calculate.

Green says Jaguar also is helping with the design of the cockpit, creating the environment and controls required for electrical, hydraulics, engine-start and control systems, as well as safety monitoring and braking.

JLR, the U.K.’s largest automotive employer, has programs designed to attract the next generation of engineers and technicians to help develop technology meant to spur global sales growth. But the shortage of skilled engineers in the region is an ongoing challenge; the Royal Academy of Engineers predicts there will be a shortfall of 200,000 by 2020.

Jaguar Land Rover also is offering to help its U.K. suppliers recruit new employees through its “Inspiring Tomorrow’s Workforce” traineeship program. During the fall, the automaker brought on 200 new apprentices.

The program targets 16- to 24-year-olds and offers them a mix of training and work experience in the automaker’s manufacturing plants to prepare them for apprenticeships and other job opportunities. The course has helped more than two dozen young people gain employment since it was launched in November 2013 and is being expanded.