The Formula K EVO 30 chassis was the 2020 FIA Karting World Champion in the highest gear class, the KZ. This is the first worldwide success for the brand of the IPKarting Group (which is also the manufacturer of Praga Karts, OK1 and RS Kart). So let's find out about the details of the body's production process and the characteristics of the accessories machined from solid blocks for this model.
The shell of the Formula K EVO 30 has a classic design and is made of 30 mm diameter tubes. More than the shape of the body, it is interesting to analyse the welding process which, unlike the other major kart manufacturers, is manual. That's right: the IPKarting group relies on expert hands to build their bodies.
The IPKarting philosophy is: "The manual process allows you to have control over every single weld by skilled workers". Unlike automated welding, this extends the production time of the chassis, in fact, to weld a Formula K EVO 30 chassis an operator takes about 2 hours and 15 minutes while, on average, a robot can take about 40 minutes to complete a body. In IPK, manual welding takes place with state-of-the-art welding machines able to better manage voltage fluctuations to obtain a homogeneous welding line. In addition, welding machines adjust the intensity according to the distance of the torch (gun) from the chassis and accelerate or slow down the output of the welding line according to the movement of the operator's hand.
The phase preceding the welding, i.e. bending of the tube, takes place through an automated tube bender that uses an electrically operated system, thus excluding hydraulic systems that depend on the oil temperature (colder at the start of processing, especially in the winter months) and which therefore could bend differently depending on the temperature at which they operate. Automated machinery allows you to obtain absolute precision, with a tolerance of a tenth of a degree in bending.