Finding the baseline

In the first of a new series analysing composite raceboat structures, Mark Saunders looks at the evolution of modern America's Cup engineering

Summary

This series of articles will examine the structural design and composite engineering of ACC yachts, and is based upon a current year university engineering degree thesis. The first article begins by looking at the original development of America's Cup structures in modern composites, and the design of current ACC structures. The subsequent articles will look at the more general analysis of composite raceboat structures using Finite Element Analysis.

Development of America's Cup structures

Ever since the yacht America trounced the British opposition in 1851, the America's Cup has pioneered major innovations in structural engineering and technology. Prior to 1987, yachts designed to compete for the America's Cup had been constructed from conventional materials. However, this was the year that the first composite America's Cup yacht appeared on the world stage. While all of the other yachts built to challenge for the America's Cup in 1987 had been built using aluminium, Kiwi Magic was built using sandwich construction with skins of R-glass/epoxy laid up wet and vacuum bagged onto a core of Nomex honeycomb. This, predictably, caused uproar but a new era of yacht construction had arrived.

To read the remainder of this article please go to the May 2004 edition of Seahorse, available at selected newsstands or by calling: + 44 (0) 1590 671899 or by email at: info@seahorse.co.uk

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