Danish-Infiniti aim for innovative super-sailer
Danish Yachts and Infiniti Yachts have announced that engineering is underway for the Infiniti 100S high performance cruising yacht, scheduled to start building in the second quarter of 2013.…
Danish Yachts and Infiniti Yachts have announced that engineering is underway for the Infiniti 100S high performance cruising yacht, scheduled to start building in the second quarter of 2013.
"We've been working together for the past 6 months, pulling the agreement together, and we're just about ready to start building," says Hugh Welbourn, naval architect and principal of Infiniti Yachts, who pioneered the Dynamic Stability Systems technology using a lateral retractable foil for enhanced performance and stability, which reduces heel angle and provides progressive dynamic lift.
"The great thing is, as you go up in size, the scale effect works in our favour: I've done the numbers up to two hundred feet and it just keeps looking good, Welbourn says. The biggest yacht so far to employ the DSS foil is on a 40 footer in Australia. "When you run the foil out, and ignoring whatever it's doing for the yacht's speed, the boat always feels like it's probably 20 feet bigger than it is," Welbourn says. "It smooths the motion down: movement through and around the waves is easier. It's just a nicer ride." Welbourn expects these effects to translate into the 30m Infiniti 100S, which Danish Yachts will build at their facility in Skagen, Denmark.
The yacht will be built in carbon fibre composite, which Danish excels at, having delivered both the J-Class Ranger and the motor yacht Shooting Star, among other projects. "Danish Yachts have some good carbon technology and we've got some people from the top end of carbon work in on the project. The point of the joint venture is to get a facility with enormous capabilities, and at the end of the day, we're all about producing the same sort of animal."
"It's taken a long time to get over the usual, 'it can't possibly work,' chatter from certain quarters. We've been out and visible for over six years now, and many of the initial critics have come sailing on the boats and we're getting a lot of interest now."
Gordon Kay from Infiniti Yachts said, “With Danish Yachts’ strong ethos in the traditions of superyacht build combined with the Scandinavian crafted finish and can-do approach, technical excellence is a given. Add to that the commercial reliability of a sound business partner, we firmly believe that we have the right mix to bring the Infiniti range to the forefront of the large sailing yacht market. In short, we have a unique boat that will perform to outstanding levels, supported by technical data from an excellent design team.”
Patrik von Sydow, CEO at Danish Yachts, said, “We are very much looking forward to moving into the second phase of build for these performance sail boats with Infiniti Yachts. Our joint co-operation over recent months has undoubtedly proven that we have a totally unique and fresh approach, and the end result will not only be fast, it will also have an appeal for an owner wanting a truly distinctive and exquisitely finished sailing yacht – we have looked at the interior and the exterior from completely new angles and the end result will reflect the highest possible standards for which Danish Yachts is renowned.”
"We've been working together for the past 6 months, pulling the agreement together, and we're just about ready to start building," says Hugh Welbourn, naval architect and principal of Infiniti Yachts, who pioneered the Dynamic Stability Systems technology using a lateral retractable foil for enhanced performance and stability, which reduces heel angle and provides progressive dynamic lift.
"The great thing is, as you go up in size, the scale effect works in our favour: I've done the numbers up to two hundred feet and it just keeps looking good, Welbourn says. The biggest yacht so far to employ the DSS foil is on a 40 footer in Australia. "When you run the foil out, and ignoring whatever it's doing for the yacht's speed, the boat always feels like it's probably 20 feet bigger than it is," Welbourn says. "It smooths the motion down: movement through and around the waves is easier. It's just a nicer ride." Welbourn expects these effects to translate into the 30m Infiniti 100S, which Danish Yachts will build at their facility in Skagen, Denmark.
The DSS foil visible at work on the Infiniti 36 GT
The yacht will be built in carbon fibre composite, which Danish excels at, having delivered both the J-Class Ranger and the motor yacht Shooting Star, among other projects. "Danish Yachts have some good carbon technology and we've got some people from the top end of carbon work in on the project. The point of the joint venture is to get a facility with enormous capabilities, and at the end of the day, we're all about producing the same sort of animal."
"It's taken a long time to get over the usual, 'it can't possibly work,' chatter from certain quarters. We've been out and visible for over six years now, and many of the initial critics have come sailing on the boats and we're getting a lot of interest now."
Gordon Kay from Infiniti Yachts said, “With Danish Yachts’ strong ethos in the traditions of superyacht build combined with the Scandinavian crafted finish and can-do approach, technical excellence is a given. Add to that the commercial reliability of a sound business partner, we firmly believe that we have the right mix to bring the Infiniti range to the forefront of the large sailing yacht market. In short, we have a unique boat that will perform to outstanding levels, supported by technical data from an excellent design team.”
Patrik von Sydow, CEO at Danish Yachts, said, “We are very much looking forward to moving into the second phase of build for these performance sail boats with Infiniti Yachts. Our joint co-operation over recent months has undoubtedly proven that we have a totally unique and fresh approach, and the end result will not only be fast, it will also have an appeal for an owner wanting a truly distinctive and exquisitely finished sailing yacht – we have looked at the interior and the exterior from completely new angles and the end result will reflect the highest possible standards for which Danish Yachts is renowned.”
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