The covers come off

Juan Kouyoumdjian's 'ultimate sequel' to previous Volvo Race winner ABN Amro One was the most eagerly ­awaited of the new designs for the 2008-9 race. When it emerged from builder Killian Bushe's Stockholm facility it did not disappoint. -- Tim Jeffery

Why Ericsson chose to build their pair of Juan K boats in Sweden's 'Silicon Valley' in Stockholm's Kista suburb is plain when you drive up to the facility. There, next door, is Ericsson's world HQ. Some 10,000 employees visited the build facility during construction of the company's new VO70s, plus another 7,000 invited guests and many members of the general public.

And why the Swedish telecoms giant is back for a second crack after a way-below-expectations performance in the last race is equally obvious. Using an SMS text-style message in their marketing, the pitch is simple and strong: 'Dear Mother Nature. We have unfinished business in the Volvo Ocean Race. CU in 2008'.

And Ericsson is back for another reason. They worked their kroners harder than any other team in the last race. There wasn't an airport or stopover in which you didn't see the massed ranks of Ericsson guests.

Unveiling Ericsson 4 (the second new boat) Carl-Henric Svanberg, Ericsson's CEO, told his audience: 'Last time we didn't do so well on the sailing side but it was a great business success because it was so efficient. So we had to do it again.'

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