DNV Approval for Composite Manufacturing in Klipphausen
Connova Deutschland GmbH has been approved by DNV as a manufacturer of fibre-reinforced plastic components.
Experience in motorsport, especially Formula 1, as well as premium, tuning and special vehicles
Less weight, stiffer body, better performance
Implementation of orders within the shortest possible time
Lightweight yet rigid composite components have become indispensable in motorsport and the automotive industry. We have been manufacturing components for a Swiss Formula 1 team for many years. In other racing series, as well as for premium, tuning and special-purpose vehicles, we have built up extensive know-how and a broad wealth of experience in composite applications over the years. This enables us to meet the most demanding product and process requirements even at very short notice – customized and certified.
Not every component is improved by using fiber-reinforced composites. The decision depends not on the material, but on the load case, the required stiffness, and the production volume.
Composites demonstrate their strengths in applications where mass is moved or accelerated, where stiffness needs to be adjusted depending on the direction, or where thermal expansion is a problem. Carbon fibers can be laid along the load paths. A CFRP component is therefore not simply a replacement part made from a different material, but a different design—and must be engineered as such from the very beginning.
The density values are guidelines for the material groups. The project-specific parameters depend on the fiber type, matrix system, and layer configuration, and are determined during the design phase.
We will give you this assessment even if it argues against placing an order with us. That is why every project starts with a feasibility analysis – not a quote.
Which automotive components we manufacture for vehicle manufacturers, racing teams and Tier 1 suppliers, using which process, and in what typical batch size.
Tool-side contour accuracy typically ±0.2 to ±0.5 mm depending on component size; CNC-machined mating surfaces and hole patterns down to ±0.05 mm. We define the tolerance chain together with you before the tool is designed.
Individual components up to approx. 2,500 × 1,200 × 800 mm. We produce larger assemblies in segments and join them in our own assembly department.
On request, we deliver ready to install: machined, painted, inspected and with inspection documentation. Manufacturing depth and assembly are all in-house.
Visible outer-skin components have different requirements than load-bearing structures. The surface must not only carry the load but also match the released design surface – right down to the reflections.
We take over the process chain from the released design surface: strak preparation, ply layup design, tool design and construction, manufacturing and surface finishing. Each of these steps changes the surface slightly – through shrinkage, springback and rework. Anyone who outsources these steps separately loses sight of this tolerance chain.
Strak preparation, ply layup design, tool design, toolmaking, manufacturing and surface finishing are all carried out in-house. Creating the design surface itself remains with you or your design studio – we take over once that surface has been released. For small series, prototypes and motorsport vehicles, this means one point of contact from the surface to the painted component.
Our expertise and technologies in the use of composite materials enable us to offer industry-leading solutions specifically tailored to the needs of high-performance vehicles and racing cars. Here we present our key areas: from tailor-made development and manufacturing to comprehensive support and optimization.
As experts in composite technologies for the automotive sector, we offer a wide range of services: this includes both consulting and product development for the automotive industry, including the design and analysis of vehicle components as well as the improvement of vehicle systems.
Unsere Spezialisten sichern durch ihre umfassende Erfahrung in der Produktion von Hochleistungsverbundwerkstoffen für den Motorsport die effizienteste Fertigungsweise für Ihr Automobilprodukt, stets unter Berücksichtigung strengster Qualitätskriterien und garantierter Zuverlässigkeit bei der Lieferung.
Our offering includes an extensive portfolio of CNC services specifically tailored to pattern making, toolmaking and the final machining of composite components in the automotive industry. We guarantee the highest dimensional accuracy, down to a hundredth of a millimeter.
Our service portfolio covers all aspects of mechanical processing and support. This includes both essential contributions to the production process of your automotive composite components as well as additional support for your internal production.
Tools and components are made at the same site. That may sound like an organizational detail, but it determines schedules and tolerances: if a tool needs rework after the first part, it is done in days rather than weeks.
Our scope of services in mold making for automotive applications includes pattern making, tool and mold making, CNC milling of composite and metal components, and mechanical finishing. For customers who manufacture themselves, we also offer pure contract manufacturing – as a CNC supplier for automotive projects without their own composite requirements.
The process determines component quality, cycle time and tooling costs. We choose it based on the component and quantity – not on available capacity.
When designing a specific component, we usually compare two processes and disclose the cost calculation for both variants.
Whether a one-off fiber composite part or a series component: the path is the same, only the scope of qualification differs.
We review the load case, installation space, quantity and target date and tell you whether composite is the right design approach.
Layup, fiber orientation and load introduction are designed and verified by calculation.
Process, tool split and demolding concept are defined – together with production, not afterwards.
Pattern and tool are made in-house. This keeps rework after the first component short.
The first component is measured and inspected. Deviations are fed back into the tool and process.
Documented approval with measurement and material certificates. The standard is the first article inspection report according to EN 9102, on request according to VDA Volume 2 or PPAP.
The process is frozen and monitored. Changes are managed via a defined revision level.
We support series production, maintain tools and carry out repairs on delivered components.
Typical lead time from design release to first component: six to twelve weeks, depending on tooling effort. Shorter if a pattern already exists or the geometry is simple.
In electric vehicles, every kilogram saved pays off twice: in range and in the sizing of the chassis, brakes and battery.
Fiber composites are used not only in the body, but in the drivetrain itself. High-speed electric motors require the magnets to be secured against centrifugal force. CFRP bandages and sleeves perform this task with lower weight and a higher speed limit than metallic solutions. In pumps and auxiliary units, CFRP containment cans separate rotor and stator while avoiding the eddy current losses of metallic cans. We manufacture both component types in series using the filament winding process.
Centrifugal retention for high-speed rotors. Fiber orientation, preload and wall thickness are designed for the speed and temperature profile of your motor.
Pressure-resistant separation of rotor and stator without eddy current losses. Series production using filament winding with reproducible wall thickness.
Managing Director, Connova Deutschland GmbH
Thomas Leschik combines automotive research with many years of composite serial manufacturing. His diploma thesis at TU Dresden already addressed chassis components for the BMW 7 Series in hybrid lightweight design (top grade 1.0). Over more than a decade at CarboFibretec – latterly as Managing Director – he then took responsibility for developing and producing demanding CFRP components, including intelligent lightweight structures with integrated microelectronics. Several of his 42 patents relate to mobility propulsion applications – for example a fully integrated e-bike with a transverse flux machine under 12 kg. For performance-oriented automotive and racing projects, his further strength is taking highly loaded CFRP parts into reproducible series production with micron tolerances.
Why You’ll Benefit from His Expertise:
— Thomas Leschik, Managing Director, Connova Deutschland GmbH
In addition to ISO 9001, we are certified to EN 9100 – the quality management system of the aerospace industry. For automotive and motorsport customers, this means a level of requirements that goes beyond standard industry specifications.
Through the innovative use of composite materials, we are revolutionizing the automotive and racing industries. Our advanced racing and sports car components offer an unbeatable combination of lightness, strength and durability. They significantly improve the aerodynamic properties and thereby contribute to a significant increase in fuel efficiency and overall performance. Through these technological advances, we are setting new standards in the world of motorsports and performance-oriented automobile manufacturing.
In a vehicle, mass acts in three places at once: when accelerating, when braking and in every corner. In motorsport, this translates directly into lap time and fuel efficiency; in production vehicles, into consumption and range.
Minimum weight of a Formula 1 car from the 2026 season – around 30 kg less than in the previous season.
Source: FIA Technical Regulations 2026
Operating temperature withstood by our composite heat shield for the Porsche 918 Spyder.
Production cycles per component for which the series tool for the heat shield was designed.
Weight savings compared to the metal version with the same component stiffness.
How much weight can be saved in a specific case depends on the load case. For components subject to bending, the advantage is greater than under pure tensile loading. We calculate the reliable value for your component as part of the feasibility analysis – before the quote.
In close collaboration with Porsche AG, the Connova Group has developed a composite heat shield for the Porsche 918 Spyder that can withstand operating temperatures of 350°C. The activities included the material definition, the development of a special high-temperature coating on the composite surface that is suitable for withstanding the extended endurance tests, the tool design for series production of at least 1000 manufacturing cycles per component as well as the entire process development up to full series maturity and support during series production.
350 °C operating temperature · 1,000+ production cycles · Series production incl. support
The Connova Group is a long-standing partner of Formula 1 and impresses with its reliable and precise production of a wide range of ready-to-install components. Thanks to a high level of vertical integration (tooling, composites, assembly, painting), we can also meet very short delivery times and guarantee process security even with frequent short-term changes.
Over 30 years of Formula 1 experience · Ready to install on delivery
The Connova Group also masters the weight or aerodynamic tuning of sports cars. For example, we are responsible for the complete carbon conversion of the Porsche Turbo 997 into the Sportec SPR1. From mold making to components to painting for the production of small series, our small team of specialists realizes every customer request.
Complete conversion from mold making to painting · Small series
The Connova Group has been supporting ETH’s successful “Formula Student” team as a technology partner for years. The aim of the commitment to the electric racing car program is to show and convey the latest composite technologies to the AMZ team.
Technology partner · Electric race car · ETH Zurich
Six points that describe our position in Formula 1 and automotive engineering – each with a verifiable reference on this page.
Since its founding, the Connova Group has been developing and building structural components as well as high-temperature and aerodynamic components for Formula 1. As the use of CFRP in this area is becoming increasingly widely accepted in the automotive industry, the Connova Group is increasingly working for leading OEMs and large suppliers to the industry. Every year, the Connova Group invests in even more efficient production facilities in order to continuously keep the processes at the cutting edge of technology.
Carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) and glass fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP) dominate in vehicle construction. CFRP is used where stiffness and weight are critical to function – in structural, aerodynamic and visible exterior components. GFRP is more economical and is used for less highly stressed panels. Aramid fibers supplement the layup where impact resistance is required. Epoxy resin systems dominate as the matrix; thermoplastic systems are gaining importance where short cycle times and recyclability are the priority.
The threshold is not a fixed number but the ratio of tooling costs, cycle time and material usage. Prepreg autoclave processing is suitable for single parts up to medium series because tooling costs remain moderate, although the cycle time is long. Hot pressing and RTM pay off from the point at which the more expensive tool is amortized over the quantity. As a guideline: prepreg autoclave processing is viable from one-off production up to around 5,000 units per year. In the feasibility analysis, we usually calculate two process variants and disclose both cost calculations.
Five factors determine the price: the material system (fiber type and matrix), the material usage resulting from the layup, the tooling costs and how they are distributed over the quantity, the manufacturing process and its cycle time, and finally the scope of rework and inspection. For qualified components, the effort for first article inspection and documentation is added. The greatest lever almost always lies in the design, not in purchasing – a component designed for composites is significantly cheaper than one carried over from metal.
In modern motorsport, these include the monocoque, front and rear wings, underbody and diffuser, body panels, exhaust heat shields, seat shells, as well as attachment and suspension parts. We have been manufacturing structural components as well as high-temperature and aerodynamic components for Formula 1 since our founding years and deliver them ready to install on request.
With a density of around 1.5 to 1.6 g/cm³, CFRP has about one fifth the density of steel and just over half the density of aluminum.However, this does not yet describe the actual weight savings on the component: they depend on the load case.
The extremely high tensile strength combined with low elasticity is what makes CFRP unbeatable. This is the main reason why bending loads in particular can be absorbed so well.
The weight advantage is therefore significantly greater for components subject to bending than under pure tensile loading, because stiffness plays a disproportionately large role in the design. We determine the reliable value for your component during the design process – not by rule of thumb.
On the tool side, we typically achieve a contour accuracy of ±0.2 to ±0.5 mm, depending on component size. CNC-machined mating surfaces and hole patterns are produced to within ±0.05 mm. The individual value matters less than the tolerance chain: tooling, curing, demolding and rework all add up. We define this chain together with you before the tool is designed and measure the first component with our own inspection equipment.
We take over the process chain from the released design surface: strak preparation, ply layup design, tool design, manufacturing and surface finishing. This keeps the tolerance chain in one hand all the way to the painted component. Creating the design surface itself remains with you or your design studio.
Yes. Pattern making, mold and toolmaking, as well as CNC milling and contract manufacturing, are core competencies at our sites. As a result, tools and components are made at the same location, which significantly shortens rework after the first component. We also offer pure contract manufacturing for customers who produce themselves.
In electric vehicles, weight directly affects range and the sizing of the chassis, brakes and battery. In addition to body and structural components, composites are found in the drivetrain itself: CFRP bandages and sleeves secure the magnets of high-speed rotors against centrifugal force and separate rotor and stator in pumps and auxiliary units without eddy current losses.
The Connova Group is certified to ISO 9001 and additionally to EN 9100 – the quality management system of the aerospace industry. For automotive and motorsport customers, this means documented traceability from the material batch to the delivered component, as well as approved special processes for curing, bonding and surface treatment.
With decades of experience in lightweight construction for the automotive and racing industries, we have the necessary know-how to make your visions come true. We warmly invite you to a professional consultation where we will explore together ways in which we can support you as your future partner. Of course, this consultation is non-binding and free of charge for you.
In aviation, the material proportion of composite components is traditionally high and amounts to up to 60%.
Unmanned aircraft and drones for a wide variety of applications are shaping the future of mobility.
Very light and ultra-stiff carbon fiber composite structures are the standard for demanding structures in aerospace.
Composite components are becoming increasingly important in mechanical engineering, automation, and robotics, particularly due to their greater cost-effectiveness over their service life.
Fiber composites in shipbuilding combine low weight with high corrosion resistance.
Composites follow different design rules than metals. We have these laws in our genes. You have the advantage.
Connova Deutschland GmbH has been approved by DNV as a manufacturer of fibre-reinforced plastic components.
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