Porsche, Bcomp collaborate on racing car with all-natural fiber composite bodywork

It was reported on Sept. 24 that Porsche Motorsport partnered with Bcomp (Fribourg, Switzerland) and Four Motors racing team to deliver its Cayman 718 GT4 CS MR featuring a full natural fiber composite bodywork kit via Bcomp’s powerRibs technology. The car was premiered at the 24 Hours Nürburgring (Nürburgring 24h) race on Sept. 26-27, 2020, and was run by Porsche customer racing team Four Motors.

Inspired by the veins on the backs of leaves, Bcomp’s powerRibs is said to create a 3D grid on one side of a thin-walled shell element, which maximizes stiffness at minimal weight. It is also said that, compared to carbon fiber, the natural fibers far outmatch in performance and sustainability, including equivalent stiffness to weight, up to a 75% lower CO2 footprint for a composite part, increases safety, is 30% lower in cost and leaves no residual waste by the end-of-life (EoL) of the parts (see “McLaren, Bcomp use natural composite fibers in F1 racing seat”).

According to Bcomp, the same manufacturing technology and molds as the carbon fiber parts were used. However, consumables, such as bleeders and breathers were eliminated, further reducing the environmental footprint and costs.

According to Porsche, this is not the first time it has led the way on sustainability. In 2019 Porsche Motorsport launched the Porsche Cayman 718 GT4 CS with natural fiber doors and rear wing. It is said that the company was also the first case to replace carbon fibers with natural fibers in serial production for motorsports, resulting in Porsche’s shortlisting for a JEC Innovation Award together with Bcomp and the Fraunhofer WKI (Braunschweig, Germany). According to Porsche, this further led to the German Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture, Julia Klöckner, later using this door as a showcase on the press conference presenting Germany’s new bio-economy strategy.

“It has been a fascinating journey since we started our collaboration with Porsche three years ago, resulting in the first natural fibre bodywork in serial production — the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport,” says Christian Fischer, CEO at Bcomp. “We are humbled and proud to collaborate with Porsche and its reputable partners, reaching an important milestone towards a widespread use of sustainable performance materials in tomorrow’s mobility.”