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Pushing the boat out
Pushing the boat out
Composites have transformed the marine industry beyond all recognition over the past 40 years. Resin maker Scott Bader looks at some of the innovations over the period, many of which it played a key role in.
to believe it had great In the first half of this potential and the century, most people drive to promote and would be forgiven for sell the idea was on. thinking that boats were built of wood Like many radical and ships of steel and new inventions, the that was the way it idea was received was likely to stay. with a great deal of Their impressions scepticism but there were formed, on the is an adage which 14.8 m Per-e&a Motor Cruiser 1954 Halmatic Ltd. Considered to be the one hand by trips to says that, if you persist, you will eventhe seaside where as world’s first large GRP boat. tually find someone part of the scene, that affected them resulted in an as far sighted or as eccentric as small boatyards built beautiful, expansion of their mandate that you are. As a result of this persisgraceful, and for the most part, was hard to imagine at the time. tence, a Tod 3.7 m dinghy was built exclusively wooden boats. Or by by W&J Tod in 195 1, this is now adverts for shipping companies like It was at this time in Scott recognized as being the frost GRP Cunard White Star, Royal Mail and Bader’s development laboratory in hull. Union Castle Line which promoted Wollaston, UK, that a wooden male passages around the world in their elegant steel built ocean liners. But in the late 1940s the scene was set to change the future of both the boat builders and the ship owners. For the ocean liner, it was air travel, and for the boat builder, glass reinforced plastics (GRP) and in their separate ways the changes
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
plug, approximately 30 cm long, was fashioned in the shape of a boat hull and a laminate constructed from unsaturated polyester resin and glass reinforcement, was moulded around its contours. The results of mechanical and other tests carried out on the laminate led the development team
Some pioneering companies emerged, one of them being Halmatic. In 1954, helped by a new range of boat building resins developed by Scott Bader under the Crystic brand name, it built a 14.8 m motor cruiser, aptly called Perpetua. In its time this was an astonishing achievement and with-
0034-3617/96/%15.00 CopyrightG1996, Elsevier Science Ltd. AU rights reserved.
Pushing
out doubt a milestone marine and GRP industries
tbe boat out
for the alike.
In the next ten years the foundation of today’s UK boat building industry was established, Many companies recognized the commercial opportunities the technology offered; versatile tough and durable products which were significantly cleaner and quicker to build than similar products manufactured using traditional materials. It was also relatively inexpensive to set up in business; a mould, a moulding shed, some engineering services, a maximum amount of enthusiasm and you were in business. It was from these humble beginnings that some of the sophisticated production boat builders of today have their roots. Hand in hand with these market developments, refinements in materials and processes were taking place as confidence in the product increased. Isophthalic resins compli-mented ortho-phthalic and sur-
The Hovermarine resin.
HM2 MKIII, a rigid sidewall
face coatings by way of moulded-in gel-coats developed apace, helping the industry to progressively penetrate commercial and naval mar-
The Sir Thomas Lipton, which won the Single Handed example of sandwich construction.
Tranatlantic
Race, was an early
hovercraft
moulded
in Clysticpolyester
kets. In 1964 a fleet of trawlers of between 22.5 m and 26.8 m were built in South Africa using Scott Bader technology. A few years later Hovermarine started building the 16 m HM2 Hovercraft which in its design exploited the weight/ strength benefits of GRF’ composites. In 1968, a further step forward in the engineering of composites took place when the Sir Thomas Lipton, a 17.4 m yacht and an early example of sandwich construction, hit the headlines by winning the Single Handed Transatlantic Race. Further firsts followed. In 1975 Halmatic moulded and William Osborne fitted out the first of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) now famous 16.5 m Aran class lifeboat. In the commercial field, Watercraft captured world markets with its range of ships, lifeboats, and in the late 1970s after its usual thorough evaluation, the Admiralty ordered the first of the new internationally accepted all GRP mine counter measure vessels which were constructed by Vosper Thornycroft and Yarrow Ship-
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
Pushing
the boat out
builders. To this day they remain the largest GRP vessels to be built. The rapidly growing industry on the 1970s was not without its problems. Blistering, or to give it its proper name, osmosis, became the subject of much debate and considerable heartache. Varied and often ill adFlippin’ Eck used high toughness thin laminates based on Crestomer vised remedial treatments only sures will play their part in shaping compounded the problem. Until in the future. Work continues to the mid- 1980s determined and develop processes and products to sustained scientifically based rehelp the industry move forward. As search culminated in the introducrecently as the late 1980s Cougar tion of the Crystic matched built a 13 m power boat designed performance system, which comfor speeds up to 150 km/h. High bined sound workshop practices power to weight ratios were essenwith selected resins and reinforcetial and the initial evaluation of new ments to produce a laminate capresins used in conjunction with able of resisting blister formation Kevlar”” polyaramid fibre and glass for an acceptable service lifetime. reinforcement indicated that a sigThe adoption of the system by the nificant reduction in weight could industry brought the problem unbe realised. The key was toughness der control, and time has proven its and flexibility which Scott Bader’s effectiveness. Crestomer@ resins provided, allowThe recession of the late 197Os/ ing the laminate to be designed by early 1980’s saw a number of well deflection theory as opposed to the known and respected boat builders traditional bend theory. A laminate fall by the wayside, with others half the thickness of a conventional diversifying to reduce their dependency on the industry. In truth, it probably accelerated the demise of these companies in what was becoming a crowded workplace. In the course of time some of the supervisors have sought out and established niche markets which a handful, Marine Projects, Fairline and Sunseeker to name a few, have earned themselves international reputations as quality, volume, leisure craft builders. What of the future? The industry faces a maturing market where without doubt, environmental pres-
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
one was the end result. The technology enabled the craft, called Flippin’ Eck, to perform to its design speed, and but for an oil leak it may well have won the 1990 World Power Boat Championships. The results of this, and other initiatives, are still filtering through resin. into the industry. A good example being the Crestomer products which are increasingly being used as structural adhesives in the GRP boat building industry, a trend already well established in the aircraft industry and one which is quickly changing the building and work practices in boat construction. In the 40 or so years since GRP was adopted by those pioneering boat builders the industry has moved from small numbers of wood or metal boats sold to a mass production industry that has made boating accessible to the general public. GRP played a significant role in this revolution. Long may this dynamic partnership continue. n
To advertise in this magazine contact: Paul Mulligan on +44 @)I865 843808 or in the USA Donna Carroll on + 1 (906) 872 0774
Composites have transformed the marine industry beyond all recognition over the past 40 years. Resin maker Scott Bader looks at some of the innovations over the period, many of which it played a key role in.
to believe it had great In the first half of this potential and the century, most people drive to promote and would be forgiven for sell the idea was on. thinking that boats were built of wood Like many radical and ships of steel and new inventions, the that was the way it idea was received was likely to stay. with a great deal of Their impressions scepticism but there were formed, on the is an adage which 14.8 m Per-e&a Motor Cruiser 1954 Halmatic Ltd. Considered to be the one hand by trips to says that, if you persist, you will eventhe seaside where as world’s first large GRP boat. tually find someone part of the scene, that affected them resulted in an as far sighted or as eccentric as small boatyards built beautiful, expansion of their mandate that you are. As a result of this persisgraceful, and for the most part, was hard to imagine at the time. tence, a Tod 3.7 m dinghy was built exclusively wooden boats. Or by by W&J Tod in 195 1, this is now adverts for shipping companies like It was at this time in Scott recognized as being the frost GRP Cunard White Star, Royal Mail and Bader’s development laboratory in hull. Union Castle Line which promoted Wollaston, UK, that a wooden male passages around the world in their elegant steel built ocean liners. But in the late 1940s the scene was set to change the future of both the boat builders and the ship owners. For the ocean liner, it was air travel, and for the boat builder, glass reinforced plastics (GRP) and in their separate ways the changes
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
plug, approximately 30 cm long, was fashioned in the shape of a boat hull and a laminate constructed from unsaturated polyester resin and glass reinforcement, was moulded around its contours. The results of mechanical and other tests carried out on the laminate led the development team
Some pioneering companies emerged, one of them being Halmatic. In 1954, helped by a new range of boat building resins developed by Scott Bader under the Crystic brand name, it built a 14.8 m motor cruiser, aptly called Perpetua. In its time this was an astonishing achievement and with-
0034-3617/96/%15.00 CopyrightG1996, Elsevier Science Ltd. AU rights reserved.
Pushing
out doubt a milestone marine and GRP industries
tbe boat out
for the alike.
In the next ten years the foundation of today’s UK boat building industry was established, Many companies recognized the commercial opportunities the technology offered; versatile tough and durable products which were significantly cleaner and quicker to build than similar products manufactured using traditional materials. It was also relatively inexpensive to set up in business; a mould, a moulding shed, some engineering services, a maximum amount of enthusiasm and you were in business. It was from these humble beginnings that some of the sophisticated production boat builders of today have their roots. Hand in hand with these market developments, refinements in materials and processes were taking place as confidence in the product increased. Isophthalic resins compli-mented ortho-phthalic and sur-
The Hovermarine resin.
HM2 MKIII, a rigid sidewall
face coatings by way of moulded-in gel-coats developed apace, helping the industry to progressively penetrate commercial and naval mar-
The Sir Thomas Lipton, which won the Single Handed example of sandwich construction.
Tranatlantic
Race, was an early
hovercraft
moulded
in Clysticpolyester
kets. In 1964 a fleet of trawlers of between 22.5 m and 26.8 m were built in South Africa using Scott Bader technology. A few years later Hovermarine started building the 16 m HM2 Hovercraft which in its design exploited the weight/ strength benefits of GRF’ composites. In 1968, a further step forward in the engineering of composites took place when the Sir Thomas Lipton, a 17.4 m yacht and an early example of sandwich construction, hit the headlines by winning the Single Handed Transatlantic Race. Further firsts followed. In 1975 Halmatic moulded and William Osborne fitted out the first of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) now famous 16.5 m Aran class lifeboat. In the commercial field, Watercraft captured world markets with its range of ships, lifeboats, and in the late 1970s after its usual thorough evaluation, the Admiralty ordered the first of the new internationally accepted all GRP mine counter measure vessels which were constructed by Vosper Thornycroft and Yarrow Ship-
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
Pushing
the boat out
builders. To this day they remain the largest GRP vessels to be built. The rapidly growing industry on the 1970s was not without its problems. Blistering, or to give it its proper name, osmosis, became the subject of much debate and considerable heartache. Varied and often ill adFlippin’ Eck used high toughness thin laminates based on Crestomer vised remedial treatments only sures will play their part in shaping compounded the problem. Until in the future. Work continues to the mid- 1980s determined and develop processes and products to sustained scientifically based rehelp the industry move forward. As search culminated in the introducrecently as the late 1980s Cougar tion of the Crystic matched built a 13 m power boat designed performance system, which comfor speeds up to 150 km/h. High bined sound workshop practices power to weight ratios were essenwith selected resins and reinforcetial and the initial evaluation of new ments to produce a laminate capresins used in conjunction with able of resisting blister formation Kevlar”” polyaramid fibre and glass for an acceptable service lifetime. reinforcement indicated that a sigThe adoption of the system by the nificant reduction in weight could industry brought the problem unbe realised. The key was toughness der control, and time has proven its and flexibility which Scott Bader’s effectiveness. Crestomer@ resins provided, allowThe recession of the late 197Os/ ing the laminate to be designed by early 1980’s saw a number of well deflection theory as opposed to the known and respected boat builders traditional bend theory. A laminate fall by the wayside, with others half the thickness of a conventional diversifying to reduce their dependency on the industry. In truth, it probably accelerated the demise of these companies in what was becoming a crowded workplace. In the course of time some of the supervisors have sought out and established niche markets which a handful, Marine Projects, Fairline and Sunseeker to name a few, have earned themselves international reputations as quality, volume, leisure craft builders. What of the future? The industry faces a maturing market where without doubt, environmental pres-
Reinforced Plastics September 1996
one was the end result. The technology enabled the craft, called Flippin’ Eck, to perform to its design speed, and but for an oil leak it may well have won the 1990 World Power Boat Championships. The results of this, and other initiatives, are still filtering through resin. into the industry. A good example being the Crestomer products which are increasingly being used as structural adhesives in the GRP boat building industry, a trend already well established in the aircraft industry and one which is quickly changing the building and work practices in boat construction. In the 40 or so years since GRP was adopted by those pioneering boat builders the industry has moved from small numbers of wood or metal boats sold to a mass production industry that has made boating accessible to the general public. GRP played a significant role in this revolution. Long may this dynamic partnership continue. n
To advertise in this magazine contact: Paul Mulligan on +44 @)I865 843808 or in the USA Donna Carroll on + 1 (906) 872 0774