Gloucestershire global tech leader Renishaw is celebrating its role in Britain's bid to go for gold in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

In a shared project with Hope Tech and Lotus Engineering, British Cycling, which is limbering up for the next Olympic games with Team GB, has just unveiled the new bikes that the squad will be riding – and they showcase crucial input from Renishaw's additive manufacturing (AM) technology division.

Building on the revolutionary Hope-Lotus track bike that Team GB used at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, the latest generation uses integral componentry from Renishaw that helps target the key challenges of weight and aerodynamics.

A spokesman told Punchline-Gloucester.com: "Renishaw has helped to design and manufacture a number of components on the bike, including the crank, seat stay bridge and dropouts, as well as a first-of-its-kind seat post created in aluminium.

"Using additive manufacturing (AM) to manufacture these parts allows the British Cycling team, alongside Renishaw, to change the design throughout the process and create complex and aerodynamic geometries that would not be possible using traditional manufacturing technologies."

Renishaw helped to design the internal structure of the titanium crank, to deliver an optimised lightweight part. By using an internal lattice structure that is not possible using other manufacturing methods, the firm based at Wotton-under-Edge has been able to maintain the strength of the part, whilst keeping it lightweight enough to accommodate overall weight limits.

Ben Collins, Renishaw's Lead AM Application Engineer, said:"After Team GB brought home seven Olympic medals from the Tokyo Olympics, we were delighted to be asked to continue our partnership with the British Cycling team.

"Bringing together the best of British engineering talent, we have been able to refine the design even further and showcase how additive manufacturing can deliver strong, yet lightweight parts for cycling, while demonstrating these benefits to other industries."

Every bike is tailored to the measurements of the athletes, which is more difficult and costly using traditional manufacturing techniques, he said, aking the project a great example of the role of AM in bespoke manufacturing.

He added: "It was great to see the success of Team GB and the bike in the last Olympic cycle and we are excited to see how the bike performs in Paris after creating the split seat post, seat bridge, dropouts and crank."

Renishaw's aim is to use the Olympic bike to push the boundaries of AM technology, "whilst still achieving high-performance components that are tailored to the riders and meet Olympic requirements for strength and weight".

Oliver Caddy, Lead Project Engineer at British Cycling, said: "As industry leaders in AM, Renishaw has provided support in design and production of wind tunnel models and prototype parts during the development of the Paris Olympic bike, however, Renishaw's contribution is not limited to development as crucial elements of the bike, including the seat posts and crank, have now also been produced by additive manufacturing, showcasing its power in the cycling industry."

He added: "It's clear that [Renishaw] are as committed as we are to delivering excellence on this project. It's also appreciated by the athletes that are working hard to ready themselves for their events in the summer."

● The new cutting-edge bike will be ridden by Great Britain's cyclists at the Paris 2024 Olympics track cycling events. These take place between August 5 and 11 at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games National Velodrome.