WOKING, UK, December 17, 2008 – Global PC manufacturer Lenovo and Vodafone McLaren Mercedes today announced a partnership ahead of the 2009 Formula 1 season. Lenovo notebook and desktop PCs will provide the team’s mission-critical computing solutions, both at the race track and at the team’s headquarters.
Lenovo engineers and technology specialists have already begun to specify the mobile wireless computing technology required by the Formula 1 race team as well as the fast and demanding desktop computing needs of the pit garage and pit wall battlestations. Lenovo technology is being integrated into the heart of the team as it travels the world on the Formula 1 calendar.
Martin Whitmarsh, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes CEO Formula 1, said: “Both Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Lenovo are committed to the competitive advantages from exceptional engineering. We are looking forward to the significant technology contribution that Lenovo will provide through its notebooks and desktop computer solutions.”
The partnership with Vodafone McLaren Mercedes provides a highly visible demonstration of Lenovo’s exceptional engineering as the corporation strengthens its position in the global marketplace. Lenovo is a leader in the technology race for fast, reliable and wireless computing power.
“Vodafone McLaren Mercedes performs at the highest level in Formula 1 and integrates PC technology into every aspect of its car design, development and racing –- as well as its business operations,” said Deepak Advani, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Lenovo. “Lenovo has an excellent heritage of computing performance and reliability in complex, high-profile, global events –- such as the Olympic Games –- and we look forward to making a significant contribution to the team.”
Formula 1 teams have long been pioneering users of high-speed computer technology, using trackside PCs to perform a wide variety of tasks ranging from starting the cars through to the complex analysis of thousands of data points transmitted from the cars to the pits during the races. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes goes a step further, however, supplying statisticians and engineers back in the UK with real-time race data from anywhere in the world. Such a complex operation provides an excellent platform for showcasing personal computing technologies that highlight innovation, reliability and performance.
About Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes operates a global racing team with more than 1,000 people based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking and at Mercedes-Benz engine and automotive development facilities at Brixworth, U.K., and Stuttgart, Germany. Driver Lewis Hamilton took a first-place finish in the 2008 F1 driver’s championship, and the McLaren team took a second-place finish in the F1 constructor’s championship. The team’s drivers are popular worldwide, and the McLaren organisation is well-known in such developing economies as India, China, Brazil and Russia, which are strategic growth areas for Lenovo.
About Lenovo
Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is dedicated to building exceptionally engineered personal computers. Lenovo’s business model is built on innovation, operational efficiency and customer satisfaction as well as a focus on investment in emerging markets. Formed by Lenovo Group’s acquisition of the former IBM Personal Computing Division, the company develops, manufactures and markets reliable, high-quality, secure and easy-to-use technology products and services worldwide. Lenovo has major research centers in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information see www.lenovo.com.