The Design Process...

I'll do the 3D conversion of Lars' 2D designs, no problem!

Hi Lars,

what for a computer program I need for those designs?

Best Regards

René

Thank you, for the info!

René

That explains EVERYTHING! Whenever I've met creative & talented people... they were using a Mac.

an online concept

Lars has shown his way, he's a designer and a very good one!
This is how I start a concept, I'm not a designer, see the difference?
Challenge to our on-forum design gurus: turn these boxes into a yacht, online, in view of all.
Interactivity is welcomed from the 1000+ members.
Interesting experience, no?

Lars,

In response to your question... "is the market ready for big powercats?"

I met with John Winter, the builder of the 86' Pacific Harmony Catamaran at the Ft. Lauderdale Boat Show. Pacific Harmony has MANY outstanding performance characteristics, i.e., low fuel consumption, low wake signature, excellent stability at rest or underway, etc. Basically, all of the things we've come to know about catamarans.

He raised the same question during our meeting. Is the market ready for this type of vessel? Unfortunately, yachting is a somewhat traditional sport, but it's not immune to change. Witness the proliferation of catamaran based center console sportfish boats. A whole new segment of the industry has flourished.

While John has not yet sold the original Pacific Harmony, he remains confident there is a market for them, possibly on a smaller scale for now, therefore they are moving forward with the development of a 50-55 foot trawler with a catamaran hull. It makes good sense. The trawler market in this range is quite strong. But as we know, the full displacement hull presents certain limitations. The cat hull could very well permeate this market, IF... interior volume can match that of their monohull counterparts.

I've toured Pacific Harmony and watched video segments of its performance, which is impressive. It's very fast and requires very little horsepower. It does however, have one notable drawback... the engine rooms in each sponson leaves very limited room for maintenance or repair.

Pacific Harmony has certainly proven that a catamaran can be as aesthetically pleasing as any monohull counterpart (much like your design above!). I really think part of the problem has been the lack of attractive styling in previous (and current) catamaran launches or model lines.

With your design talent... you could turn a barge into a luxury yacht! But... can you overcome the limitations of interior space with the cat hull on a smaller scale?

I agree... diesel-electric power may be a good choice for cats, given their ability to plane and sustain cruise speeds with less power. Good idea for multiple gen-sets and weight distribution as well!

But when I was referring to interior space, I was thinking about accomodations, not engine room space. The wavepiercer designs probably offer the most viable solutions to this problem, but they are more expensive to produce and have some quirks in certain water conditions as I am told.

A solution may be a true cat hull with a shallow tunnel, configured in a "V" form to offset wave impact (much like a wavepiercer). Still, this design would not offer the interior volume of its displacement counterpart, but with good space utilization, could approach a viable alternative.

Just some random thoughts...

Lars,

Just recieved a press release and it pertains our discussion. I don't want the "Design Process" thread to get off track, but this was relevant...

*************************************************************

Solomon Technologies adds catamaran builder to client list

TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. – Another French catamaran manufacturer has joined Solomon Technologies, Inc.’s (SOLM) list of OEM builders now offering its electric propulsion system, the company reported in a recent statement.

Alliaura Marine, builder of Privilege Luxury cats, indicated it expects to begin production later this month of its first Solomon Technologies powered electric vessel, a Privilege 395, Solomon said.

Alliaura and the Catamaran Company plan to introduce the electric Privilege 395 at the Miami Strictly Sail Boat Show in February.

Lars,

Normal Cats and especially Power Cats have an awful behaviour in rough seas. There is an alternative called SWATH (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull), an innovative hull concept for smooth service in rough seas. The cross section at sea level is minimized and thus only a minimum is exposed to the lifting forces of the waves. Go to Abeking & Rasmussen to explore more about the SWATH. There you can even see movies comparing the behaviour of monohulls and a SWATH


http://www.abeking.com

Regards

Bernd

total energy plan

I fully agree to the diesel-electric technology where the propulsion and energy supply comes into discussion for my powercats, or for any other yacht for that matter.
Some weeks ago I started a thread in the technical discussion chapter on this.
Having looked at Solomon Technology's site, thy're OK but limited in power and therefore in size of yacht-application.
I know of a number of US companies building jet-engined gensets. They're lighter (very important on a cat), smaller (also very usefull) and requiring much less maintenance than a diesel.
I agree some problems have to be addressed, and that suitable electric motors have to be sourced.

In sticking with the TRY brief, at 30m, I submit the following.

I always start with a freehand pencil sketch to establish where we might be going. I will often submit 10-20 of these quick sketches to a client and see if any strike some interest. Often some will be judged terrible and some okay, then I'll try to combine features of the okay profiles. Then we start looking at arrangements, and end up re-doing the profile all over again. And so it goes.

Tad

Just for fun!

Hi Tad,

The online design game is just for fun, see how people react to the powercat idea.
Nothing professional here.
Sorry if my previous reactions were misleading!