I assume it has something to do with what/how much you manufacture in-house rather than outsourcing? I can't seem to find anything that just lays out a definition though.
#What does it mean to be a "works" team?
minor eagle
humble arrow
A works team is a team that is directly tied to an OEM. The most recent example I can think of is Red Bull Honda. All of Honda's efforts were exclusively aimed at their partnership with Red Bull. Other examples in the past would be McLaren Mercedes and BAR Honda.
This term is not to be confused with customer or factory teams. Customer teams simply source their power unit from a third party without sort of extended partnership.
Factory teams design and create (nearly) all components of a car including the power unit in house. Obvious examples here are Ferrari, Mercedes, and Alpine.
Having said all this, the term 'works team' is sometimes interchangeably used to also include factory teams and I don't think there's a very concise definition that everyone agrees to.
minor eagle
Awesome thanks. So is it fair to say that a customer team + long-term committed partnership = works team? I know you said there isn't necessarily a concrete definition, but making it an equation helps me understand lol.
small acorn
I think it’s Customer team + long term+ made custom. Being a works team would mean the engine supplier is working with you to find a middle ground where as just being a customer you have to work around the engine for placement and other stuff
Not the most detailed but I’m guessing on a surface level that should be it. If I’m wrong let me know
minor eagle
Ahh that makes sense, thank you!