Jim Schenck, Director of R&D
 

B.S. Mechanical Engineering,

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1996. 
Jim began his work with FFR as a customer, building his first Factory Five in 1999.  He now owns and races an FFR Challenge Racer, competing in every series race he can feasibly attend.  He has earned distinction and admiration for his technical driving skill and ability to make winning look easy and comfortable.  Jim is a licensed road-racer, graduating from the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving.

 

Jim is the engineer in charge of all new vehicle design and development, and we cannot think of a more skilled person at the helm. 
 

He is a member American Society of Auto Engineers and grew up sharpening his skills as an Eagle Scout. 

Jim has approx. 10 cars, all of which would never run again if anything were ever to happen to him.  The consummate car guy, Jim has been known to have a supercharger in his bathtub and a dirt bike in the kitchen.
 

Vital Statistics: 

Jim’s daily driver is a (custom) supercharged BMW M-Coupe. 


He owns and races his own challenge car and has earned numerous NASA roadracing wins.  Among other notable racing credentials, Jim took 1st place at the 2005 Charlie Gibson 300 at Virginia International Raceway.

 
Dave Riha, R&D / Special Projects
 

B.S. Mechanical Engineering

University of Massachusetts, 2005 

Dave is one of the most intelligent and gifted engineers we’ve ever worked with.  Although he worked full time at Factory Five, Dave was able to breeze through Engineering School on his way to his degree and the top of his class.

Dave has worked in almost every capacity at Factory Five and currently has taken on the role of hit man for the company’s special projects.  Dave’s ability to see order in a world of chaos is one of the unique gifts that allow him to succeed where others have failed.

 

Vital Statistics: 

Dave owns two FFRs, a pristine red roadster and a Challenge car, both of which he built to his own exacting standards.

He is also a licensed with NASA for road- racing, and is as gifted of a driver as he is an engineer.

 

Dave has won many NASA road-racing events and has competed in the 25 hours of Thunderhill.
 
Eric Jacobs, R&D / Special Projects
 

B.S. Mechanical Engineering,

Union College, NY  2005

Returning to Factory Five after a hiatus to attain his Post-Baccalaureate pre-Med requirements, Eric has undertaken a Special Projects role at Factory Five.

 

Because of his unique vision as someone coming in from the outside, coupled with his passion for surgery, he has been able to slice through barriers and get things done quickly and effectively.  For that reason, Eric is another hit man working directly for company president Dave Smith on Special Projects in all areas of the company.

 

Eric has worked in several different areas of the company, dating back to an Engineering Internship in 2004, and will remain with us until he enters Medical School in the Fall of 2008.

 

Vital Statistics:

Making the most of his daily commute from Boston, Eric splits his time behind the wheel of a street-legal Challenge Racer and a 2007 Pontiac GTO.

 

The Challenge Racer was actually his second Factory Five, followed by a Mk1 (FFR 2897K) built at the age of 19.