Studio

Ben Willshire is the founder and Managing Director of Driven International.

With 17 years of international design experience, Ben brings an eye for detail and executive level expertise to projects ranging from initial project definition and business cases to master planning, design, engineering and construction.

Ben established Driven International in 2015, and since its inception the company has grown to become an award-winning, innovative, dynamic and experienced team of designers, architects, engineers and visualisers.

He graduated with BSc (Hons) Motorsport Technology and Management, and during his career, Ben has held senior roles at both small and large multi-disciplinary firms, including undertaking the role of Group Manager of the Engineering Product Testing team at the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) in the UK.

Some notable early career projects include leading the design and construction monitoring of the Bahrain International Kart Circuit and the Silverstone Porsche Experience Centre. Other notable projects since founding Driven include the design of the Mandalika International Street Circuit and leading the design team through the upgrade of the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, which played host to the famous title deciding race of the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.

Underpinning his work is Ben’s passion for racing and outdoor sports. He is a former national karting champion and still competes on track today with DTO Motorsport in the BMW 116 Trophy, racing at the UK’s top circuits.

Alan brings over 30 years of international business experience to the Driven team​.

After building and operating successful IT and property businesses across his career, Alan advises the Driven team on the strategic growth of the business, implementing sound commercial structures and providing access to new markets through his extensive business contacts.

Scot Elkins brings a wide range of expertise to Driven, with over 25 years of experience in the motorsport and automotive industries.

He is currently the Race Director of the FIA Formula E Championship and DTM Championship and serves as the Deputy Race Director of the FIA Formula 1, 2 and 3 Championships. Scot is also an FIA Platinum Grade Circuit Inspector.

Scot provides operational, engineering, safety and logistical support with a wealth of experience from across his career, and as Driven’s USA Representative he plays a key role in helping us expand our reach across North America. He graduated from Indiana State University with a degree in Manufacturing Engineering Technology and now lives in Los Angeles.

Previously, Scot served as IMSA Vice President of Competition, Champ Car Technical Director, and worked as a race engineer in NASCAR, IndyCar, ASC, SCCA, and the Skip Barber Race Series. He is also the COO of the Motorsport Safety Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving safety standards in motorsport.

With over 20 years experience in events management, brand marketing and public relations, Baba-Jallah Epega brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to Driven, serving as our Africa Representative.

Baba attended the Queen Mary University in London, studying Economics (Mathematics and Statistics) and Spanish, and went onto work as a mathematician and banker at Bloomberg TV and Barclays Capital.

Drawing on the skills he acquired during his time there, Baba founded EMC3 in 2000, providing expertise in areas including client entertainment concierge packages, the booking and co-ordination of corporate functions, brand marketing, events and experiences. Their London head office is supported by partner offices in Africa, the Middle East, mainland Europe and the United States.

Baba’s experience, expertise and creativity brings a unique perspective to Driven’s process, using a detailed approach to realise bespoke answers that cater to the particular needs of each project.

Graham is a RIBA qualified architect and urban designer, working as our in-house Principal Architect and playing an integral part in the design of our site masterplans.

With a Diploma in Architecture and Urban Design from Oxford Brookes and his RIBA Part III Architecture from the University of Westminster, Graham has over 12 years of industry experience working as an architect for top international design firms, such as Broadway Malyan and KSS. In 2016, Graham established himself as an architectural and urban planning consultant to provide high end residential architectural services to a number of private clients in and around London.

After delivering several successful projects, Graham joined Driven in 2017 bringing a skillset that enables us to offer architectural designs and site plans from concept, through detailed design and construction phases. Graham also heads up our virtual reality and augmented reality design work.

Chris is Driven’s Principal Civil Engineer and leads our civil engineering planning and design work.

He has been working in engineering consultancy since graduating university in 2015 where he obtained a MEng in Civil Engineering. After spending almost 5 years with a large engineering consultancy working across a wide range of sectors, he joined Driven International in 2020 to enhance our multi-disciplinary offerings.

Chris has provided advice on civil engineering projects from concept through to construction and has experience from small highway improvements up to nationally significant infrastructure projects.

He has experience in a wide range of engineering sectors, with his core skills focusing around highways, drainage and earthworks. He also maintains a good working knowledge of industry standard modelling software and standards for use on Driven projects.

Matt is our Communications Lead, playing a key role in the initial stages of projects in producing design concepts and presentations as well as maintaining Driven’s marketing content.

He joined the company in 2018 with a degree in BA (Hons) Visual Communication from Arts University Bournemouth, and in his role Matt combines his graphic design prowess with a lifelong passion for motor racing and track design.

Matt’s expertise in editorial design, typography and visual communication sees him working alongside some of our clients to design additional graphics and marketing material for projects, such as bespoke brochures, coffee-table style books and investor presentations, all produced to an exceptionally high level of attention to detail.

Alongside his project responsibilities, Matt also maintains Driven’s company brand including the website, brochure, and social media. He also works closely with the directors in client liaison and business development.

Dan is responsible for ensuring that our track designs and layouts meet the required technical and safety standards, using our in-house CAD and track simulation software.

He started his passion for track design and motor racing through online gaming and worked for many years as a freelance graphic designer, before joining Driven in 2017.

Dan is responsible for the design of race tracks and driving courses from concept level through to schematic design as well as assisting the team in the final detailed design phases. He has also taken his online racing into the real world, holding an ARDS License (Association of Race Driver Schools) which allows him to compete in race events and continually expand on his track knowledge, bringing that back to the design team and applying his creative flair on our projects, whilst meeting the requirements of governing bodies such as the FIM, FIM and CIK.

Anthony works alongside our architecture team to develop motorsport and leisure building sketches, visualisations, drawings and masterplans.

Developing his skills in computational and parametric design, Anthony’s passion for organic shapes and fluidity in architecture brings a fresh approach not typically seen in many motorsport buildings.

He earned his Master’s degree in Sustainable Building Design from Solent University, following his undergraduate studies in Lebanon at the Holy Spirit of Kaslik where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture. He joined Driven in 2022.

Dimitrios has been working in engineering since 2017 and is experienced in producing high quality deliverables for our clients.

He graduated with an MSc in Civil Engineering from the University of Birmingham and worked at a research consultancy for 2 years in pavement lab testing, becoming familiar with asphalt properties itself, before joining a large engineering consultancy firm in 2019, and then Driven in 2021.

Dimitrios has worked in a wide range of sectors from small scheme upgrades in the highway network to highly important infrastructure, developing his CAD and 3D software skills along the way. This combined with his background in pavements and highways means Dimitrios plays a key role in preparing full engineering packages following relevant guidelines and specifications.

With his background in architecture and industrial design, and a lifelong passion for motorsports, Sangam joined Driven in 2022 as an Architectural Designer.

After completing his Masters in 2019 at Coventry University, Sangam moved back to his native India to work as a full-time architect for a new race track project. During this period, Sangam worked alongside an FIA Circuits Commission member where he acquired a breadth of knowledge about race track design and safety, whilst progressing his architectural design and visualisation skills.

Sangam now works at Driven as an Architectural Designer, working alongside our Principal Architect and the visualisation team on concept designs, developing visualisations, sketches, masterplans, FIA track design and schematics.

Keegan works alongside our engineering team to provide assistance with engineering designs, utilising his background in highways and drainage.

After graduating in 2018 from Loughborough University with a MEng (Hons) in Civil Engineering, Keegan started his career working for an engineering consultancy, spending 4 years working in a multi-disciplinary team using his core skills in highways, drainage and earthworks to lead residential development projects from concept to construction.

During that time he developed his knowledge of national standards and legislation, as well as honing his skills in CAD and 3D modelling software, and in 2022 he joined Driven to enhance our civil engineering offerings.

Jake is working with the team at Driven alongside his studies in becoming a fully qualified architect.

He currently assists the architecture on projects, producing concepts and presentations for projects, as well as providing technical support across the company. Working at Driven combines his passion for architecture, design and technology with his other passion for motorsport.

Jake has an unconditional offer from the University of Westminster in London to study the BA Architecture course in 2023.