How the speed of Formula One helps to save lives
One of the most spectacular achievements of Formula One teams is their speed.
Not just the velocity their cars achieve on track but also the lightening efficiency they achieve during pit stops.
By way of illustration, the Red Bull team changed all four tyres on driver Max Verstappen’s car in just 1.88 seconds during the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix!
It looked something like this…
Quite impressive don’t you think?
What’s even more remarkable, is how each member of the crew seamlessly interacted with the others to get the job done not only quickly but also effectively.
Why do Formula One teams care so much about good pit stops?
The reason teams spend so much time practising and refining this drill is that each second counts in racing.
A few moments saved in the pit box can translate into valuable points gained on track.
It’s these points than can win championships.
And championships mean more money for the teams.
Applying Formula One pit stops practices to hospitals
Another area where fast and effective cooperation between team members can have a big impact is in hospitals.
Often, it can mean the difference between life and death.
One of the most dangerous aspects of life-saving surgery occurs when the patient is transferred from the operating theatre to intensive care.
Simple errors in communication can have drastic implications: in 1995, a man in Florida had the wrong leg amputated after an internal handoff went wrong.
At the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London, the staff have benefitted from studying how the Ferrari Formula 1 pit crew operate to improve patient transfer protocols.
Arguably, the most important man in the pit is what they call the “lollipop man”.
His job is to indicate to the driver when it’s safe to release his brakes and leave the pit box.
He does this by carefully observing that each member of the team has fully completed their task before giving the green light.
If a wheel gun man hasn’t finished tightening his wheel bolt, he will hold the driver until it is completed.
Assigning a “lollipop man” in the operating room and during the transfer of the patient has the same effect.
The patient isn’t moved until all the necessary tasks are completed.
The result is dramatically improved chances of a healthy recovery.
How Toyota used lessons they learnt to help a charity
Another example of sharing industry knowledge to bring about benefits somewhere else comes from the popular Japanese car manufacturer.
Toyota is famous for introducing the ‘kaizen’ method of continuous improvement to automotive production.
It’s one of the reasons the company’s cars are frequently rated the most reliable in the world.
Interestingly, it was also what saved Porsche from bankruptcy in the early 1990s when their production costs had spiralled out of control.
In the US, Toyota used its knowledge of efficient production processes to help Food Bank.
Food Bank is a charity providing meals for the hungry and one of their challenges was reducing waiting times for its customers.
By applying similar techniques as used on its production line, Toyota managed to cut down the waiting time for a meal from as much as 90 minutes to 18.
What is cross-functional learning?
The story described above is an example of “cross-functional learning”.
This is any situation where the lessons learnt in one domain are transferred to another leading to an improvement.
To take advantage of this phenomenon requires an open-minded approach to learning new skills or ideas.
Often what you think won’t have any application to your job might end up adding some value to your function.
What are some great examples of cross-functional learning that you’ve come across? Share them in the comments below.
