How IoT and Dell EMC Are Transforming NASCAR

Dell EMC announced last week that, for the first time ever, the company is sponsoring a NASCAR team, JTG Daugherty Racing. Through this partnership, Dell EMC is working with JTG Daugherty Racing to help provide a competitive edge through the implementation of technology within the race car, on the track and at the shop.

"A race engineer's computer must be able to handle multiple tasks running simultaneously to support the race team. It's crucial that it is fast and reliable," No. 37 BUSH'S Beans Chevrolet race engineer Brian Burns said. "During races, we are required to execute race simulations, perform database mining, utilize race strategy software, monitor pit crew data systems and much more."

Specifically, the JTG Daugherty Racing team is using Dell IoT and client solutions and Dell EMC enterprise technologies to help improve performance of the team at the racetrack and manage shop floor operations. This collaboration is reflective of a growing trend within NASCAR to leverage more powerful technologies and data in new ways to help improve performance at all levels of the race team – for the drivers, throughout practice and testing and at the track on race day.

"In NASCAR, we process large amounts of data quickly to gain insights, then develop conclusions and solutions," JTG Daugherty Racing team owner Tad Geschickter said. "Additionally, we leverage resources located in remote locations so there is a need to move data to multiple points quickly."

With insights and analytics, JTG Daugherty Racing expects tangible advantages, including the power to control their garage and shop in North Carolina from afar and improving team performance on the track.

Specific solutions to help the auto racing team

• Enhance productivity and power simulation workloads with Dell Precision 7510 Mobile Workstations
• Gain real-time insights about timing and scoring, from track to server with the Dell Edge Gateway 5000 Series
• Enable testing of shock with Dell Embedded Box PC 3000 Series, designed to withstand the harshest of environments
• Improve tire matching via barcodes with Dell Latitude 12 Rugged Tablet
• Deliver driver overview of speed and performance with Dell Latitude laptops.
• Support applications for predictive modeling to help JTG Racing identify when critical parts are approaching end of life in the race car
• Support race engineers and tire specialists to make smarter, faster decisions trackside or in the garage using Precision 7510 Mobile Workstations and Latitude 5000 Series laptops to run real-time decision making software
• Streamline operations with ruggedized Dell EMC PowerEdge servers in JTG Daugherty Racing's Harrisburg, N.C. shop and on the haulers that transport cars to the races; the servers store vital race car information aimed to help simplify car set-up when transitioning to a new track

"From sharing, collecting and analyzing all kinds of data, computing critical fuel mileage and pit windows during the race, all the way down to monitoring crucial weather data, a lot of what we do requires some serious computing power," said No. 47 Kroger ClickList Chevrolet race engineer Tony Palmer. "The ability to run faster simulations increases our productivity to help find that critical extra tenth of a second."

Joyce Mullen, SVP and GM of Global OEM and IoT Solutions, Dell EMC commented, "The presence of technology is growing in sports, especially auto racing, where there's no better proving ground than a race car to show what technology is capable of."

For more information, visit: dell.com/IoT