R & D TAX CREDIT CASE STUDY 3
A client of ours specialises in manufacturing carbon fibre parts for F1 and WRC teams.
The business is heavily reliant on the motorsport sector and the business has sought to diversify away from this one sector. Much of the technology in the parts has possible applications in the aviation and military sectors.
After much research over several years, the business has used its knowledge of carbon fibre technology to develop two military applications:
The first is to help the army reduce casualties. Currently the military in Afghanistan have two problems.
- Many bridges over dry river beds are natural targets for the Taliban to place IED’s;
- Patrols in remote villages passing through the streets are often targeted by snipers from the flat rooms of the mud brick houses
Traditional ladders are too heavy and cumbersome to carry. The business has invented a multi piece carbon fibre ladder. Each member of the platoon can carry a light weight two piece step attached to their pack. When assembled, the ladder can:
- Serve as a bridge to walk across ravines so avoiding the main bridges
- Enable platoon members to get on the flat roofs of the houses to give covering fire for the rest of the platoon from an elevated position
Best of all, the ladder has been cleverly designed to be the width of a soldier so it can also double up as a stretcher.
The US Marine Corps is now ordering the ladder for its troops!
The second is a 20 piece lightweight carbon fibre bridge. It can carry the weight of a tank, yet is easily transported and assembled. It is ideal for getting equipment across ravines and avoid in the bridges that might be mined. It is also perfect for getting aid vehicles across earthquake hit areas.
As you can imagine, this project was going to involve extensive field testing of many different prototypes in various locations. Right at the start we laid down some guidelines on what testing costs would be eligible and what would be non-eligible. This made capturing the relevant costs for the R&D claim later much easier.