Despite a change of working environment, Williams' new tech boss Paddy Lowe won't feel surrounded by unfamiliar faces in Melbourne.

Lowe is already acquainted with most of his new colleagues and team members, some of which were already at Williams when the 54-year-old engineer enjoyed his first spell there two decades ago.

So it will be business as usual this weekend albeit with a dose of thrill and excitement always associated with a "back to school" day.

"I’m very happy to be back at Williams, the team where I started my Formula One career," Lowe says.

"We have a very talented group of people here and two great drivers with whom I haven’t worked before, so I’m looking forward to stepping into the paddock with them in Melbourne to start the 2017 season.

"Coming back to the paddock has that feeling of being “back to school” after our winter away: everybody energised for the new season ahead, meeting friends again and welcoming new faces."

Despite his years in F1, Lowe admits it's always a special moment when cars head out onto the track for the year's first "quali".

"I always feel that the first qualifying session of the year is the most intense and interesting hour in the entire Formula One calendar, as that is the point when all the smoke and mirrors of winter testing must stop and the real pace is finally put on the table.

" It is only then that we will see how the cars and drivers perform and get our first true indication of the season which will unfold."

Given the impact of F1's new regulations, lap times are sure to fall at Albert Park this year, but Lowe will also be attentive to how his drivers hold up behind the wheel of the physically demanding new cars.

"The race itself is always eventful with more than the usual degree of incident and car failure as the cars and drivers engage in their first competition of the year.

"And the spectators bring extra enthusiasm to Albert Park, many of them having come from all over the world to see this first race of the F1 season.

"From a technical point of view, the tyres for this year’s race are not only wider but also softer - having the ultrasoft in play at Melbourne for the first time - so we will without doubt see some record breaking lap times this weekend and perhaps more evidence of driver fatigue in the race than we have seen in recent years."

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