Optical manufacturer Siltint recently fitted BMW's winning entry at Le Mans with an anti-reflection coated headlight cover.
The company's research and development manager, Dr Nigel Danson, was given the task of providing a suitable coating for the car's centrally located 'cyclops' headlight. He produced a coating designed to work effectively at a 35 angle to the incidence of the light source, allowing maximum light transmission. Dr Danson's efforts were well rewarded as driver Pierluigi Martini and his co-drivers, Joachim Winklehock and Yannick Dalmas, finished in record time for BMW's first-ever win at the event, held in June. Siltint managing director Gerry Biggs said: 'The technology that goes into producing specialist solutions like the BMW headlight cover, is also utilised every day to produce great AR coatings for ophthalmic lenses.'