How Schneider Electric Supports McLaren Racing's F1 Wins

In professional sport, teamwork has always been the foundation of success. Nowhere is that more evident than in motor racing, where teams can exceed 1,000 members working toward a single goal.

But it’s not only drivers, engineers and pit crews that make the magic happen. Every top-tier racing organisation depends on a wide network of partners and suppliers to keep operations at full throttle.

Among them, McLaren Racing – a fixture in Formula 1, IndyCar, F1 Academy, and the World Endurance Championship – has found a longstanding collaborator in Schneider Electric, the French leader in energy management and technology.

The relationship between the two companies spans over 20 years, and it’s now entering a new chapter. McLaren has appointed Schneider Electric as its Official Energy Technology Partner across all racing divisions, strengthening a collaboration built on performance and sustainability.

A focus on energy and innovation

Under the renewed partnership, Schneider Electric will be responsible for installing and managing energy infrastructure at race circuits, while also upgrading systems at McLaren’s Technology Centre in Woking. The work will centre on energy efficiency and technological innovation.

Schneider’s remit includes optimising key assets such as McLaren’s wind tunnel, manufacturing facilities, and IT data centres – vital components that underpin the team’s simulation, race strategy, and performance analytics. Efforts will extend to cutting energy consumption through resilient systems, advancing electrification technologies, and integrating digital twin tools to enhance operational insights.

Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing, sees this as an evolution of a well-established relationship.

"We're proud to welcome Schneider Electric as our Official Energy Technology Partner," Zak says.

"This partnership builds on a strong foundation and reflects our shared commitment to innovation and energy efficiency.

"By combining Schneider's expertise in energy technology with McLaren's pursuit of performance, we'll explore new ways to make our operations smarter and more efficient."

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Motorsport as a proving ground

For Schneider Electric’s CEO Olivier Blum, motorsport represents the ultimate testing environment for energy technologies.

"Racing is one of the most challenging environments to demonstrate the value of advanced energy and digital technology," Olivier explains.

"McLaren Racing pushes every system to its limits, which is exactly where our expertise in performance, reliability and efficiency makes the difference.

"We're proud to become the Official Energy Tech Partner of McLaren, providing energy intelligence they depend on, both on and off the track."

The scope of collaboration encompasses trackside power solutions and infrastructure upgrades at McLaren’s Woking base. 

Context and performance

This announcement follows McLaren’s record-setting 2025 campaign, which saw British driver Lando Norris capture the championship title. The team posted revenues of US$714m and a post-tax profit of US$73m for the year.

Schneider Electric, meanwhile, generated €38.2bn (US$45.7bn) in 2024 and employs around 160,000 people in more than 100 countries – making it one of the most influential players in global energy solutions. The partnership signals a meeting of two elite organisations at the top of their respective fields.

Sustainability remains a powerful driver for progress in motorsport. Formula 1, for instance, has made emissions reduction a central pillar of its drive towards a net zero future. Working with Schneider Electric, recognised as one of the world’s most sustainable corporations, positions McLaren ahead of the curve on that front.

Yet sustainability isn’t just about social impact; it’s also a strategic financial decision. Energy use at McLaren’s Technology Centre is substantial due to power-intensive facilities like wind tunnels, manufacturing systems, and simulation technologies. As a result, energy represents one of the company’s largest operational expenditures.

Digital alignment and future goals

Both organisations are aligned in their use of advanced data and analytics. McLaren has invested heavily in simulation and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to optimise aerodynamic design within Formula 1’s wind tunnel restrictions. Schneider Electric, for its part, has grown its digital services and software portfolio, with recurring software sales accounting for 77% of its agnostic software business in 2024.

The collaboration enables Schneider to implement its technologies across different motorsport environments – ranging from temporary circuit setups to permanent manufacturing bases – while providing McLaren with industrial-scale energy systems suited to the sport’s demanding pace.

Both companies will also leverage digital twin technology to generate detailed insights into efficiency and sustainability, although no implementation timeline has been revealed.

As energy partnerships in motorsport shift from performance enhancement to operational efficiency, rising costs and environmental pressures are reshaping team priorities. The timing is apt: the 2026 Formula 1 season heralds new power unit regulations that demand greater electrical output from hybrid systems – an area where this partnership may prove pivotal.