Archived Marine Sector News - 2009

Editors - please refer to the Notes to Editors for background information on Umeco plc and its operating divisions.

ACG Announces Official Supplier Agreement for the Multi One Design Program

‘The best-looking one-hulled Raceboat of 2009’ – Seahorse Magazine rate the Green Marine IRC60 ‘Jethou’ built exclusively with ACG Prepregs

ACG’s New VTM®260 and MTM® Series Matrix Systems Take Centre Stage at METS 2009

A Classic Combination . . . Sunseeker Style, Trend Marine Expertise and ACG Advanced Prepregs

ACG Congratulates the Winning Team in the Volvo Ocean Race

ACG Secures 3-Year Supply Agreement with Southern Spars

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ACG Announces Official Supplier Agreement for the Multi One Design Program - 19th November 2009

One of the biggest and most exciting race boat building projects in history becomes a reality with the advent of the Multi One Design 70’ Trimaran, the rebirth of the popular and extreme Orma 60’ class.

ACG, part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, is pleased to announce that it has been selected as Official Prepreg Supplier to the Multi One Design 70 project. ACG will supply its VTM®260 and MTM®57 Series prepregs for the build of a series of up to twelve trimarans that have been designed by VPLP (Naval Architects Marc van Peteghem and Vincent Lauriot Prevost), world leaders in Multihull realisation. The MOD 70 fleet will participate in a race series that will culminate in a full round-the-world challenge, and will promote a message of ‘Eco-Responsibility’.

Multi One Design SA, a new company based in Lausanne, Switzerland, will manage the project from inception to completion. With a team comprising CEO Marco Simeoni, Executive Director Franck David and experienced multihull sailor Stève Ravussin as Technical Director, the company has the collective expertise to make this dream project become reality.

The racing program for the Multi One Design fleet will operate on a three year cycle. Main events will include short-handed transatlantic races and an annual European Tour to be hosted by six to eight European cities. Each race cycle will climax with The Oceans World Tour.

A team of top European boat yards and spar makers will build up to 12 of the MOD 70’s using ACG’s customised prepreg materials.

Henry Nicholson-Cole, ACG’s Marine Market Sector manager, commented: “ACG is very pleased to have been selected as Official Prepreg Supplier to the Multi One Design 70 project and looks forward to many years collaborating with Multi One Design on this exciting project.”

Photograph © Multi One Design

For further information please contact:

Advanced Composites Group
Henry Nicholson-Cole – Marine Market Sector Manager. E-mail: hnicholson-cole@acg.co.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)1773 766200
Web site: www.acg.co.uk

‘The best-looking one-hulled Raceboat of 2009’ – Seahorse Magazine rate the Green Marine IRC60 ‘Jethou’ built exclusively with ACG Prepregs - 19th November 2009

Prepreg materials manufactured by ACG, part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, were used by Green Marine Products Ltd to build a new IRC60 yacht that has been hailed by Seahorse Magazine (October 2009) as the “Best-looking one-hulled raceboat of 2009 . . . perfect in every detail with gleaming clear-coat carbon everywhere you look, she is the definitive example of boatbuilding as art – in IRC at least!”

The new IRC60 yacht is the latest addition to the portfolio of Green Marine, a Lymington - UK based boat builder with a longstanding reputation for premium quality boats.

The Judel/Vrolijk designed IRC60 racing yacht is a truly stunning example of performance balanced with eye-catching beauty; it is a masterpiece of composite workmanship.

ACG were involved in the project from the onset and worked closely with Green Marine’s project managers Simon Smith and Marcus Attridge to ensure the fulfill the brief from the owner, Sir Peter Ogden, for an ultra-lightweight racing boat finished to a high quality clear carbon weave finish throughout the whole boat (inside and out).

Collaborating with the structural engineers, SDK Structures, ACG’s customised prepreg formats facilitated further optimisation of the boat’s structure, while ACG’s automotive specification ‘special visual quality’ (SVQ) grade carbon fabrics helped realise the owner’s aesthetic vision.

Green Marine’s skilled and experienced build team constructed the hull from female mould tools that were faired and refined to a flawless finish, which was then translated to the boat. The team’s skill and experience again shone through as material was carefully selected and weave patterns mirrored to create perfect visual symmetry.

ACG’s VTM®260 Series of prepregs, which was specified for the construction of the hull, deck and internal structures of Jethou, has an unparalleled track record in the America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race. This prepreg system, which offers a broad range of processing options from 65 to 120°C (150 to 250°F), has become the system of choice in the marine industry. On this project, its ‘step ahead’ curing characteristics ensured that the ‘black diamond’ structure would have the stability to withstand potential surface temperatures in excess of 100°C (212°F) without risk of distortion.

The versatility of the VTM260 also allowed for a low temperature cycle during the critical stage of curing the inner skins, thereby reducing the risk of air pressurisation in the honeycomb cells, which can lead to delamination.

Jethou is campaigning on the IRC Circuit and is competing in her second regatta since her launch at the Maxi Rolex Cup in Porto Cervo in September.

Photograph © Lloyd Images

For further information please contact:

Advanced Composites Group
Henry Nicholson-Cole – Marine Market Sector Manager. E-mail: hnicholson-cole@acg.co.uk
Telephone: +44 (0)1773 766200
Web site: www.acg.co.uk

ACG’s New VTM®260 and MTM® Series Matrix Systems Take Centre Stage at METS 2009 - 21st October 2009

Advanced Composites Group Ltd. (ACG), part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, will exhibit its VTM® and MTM® Series prepregs – ‘the prepreg systems of choice in the marine industry’ - on Stand No.: 01.609 at the METS 2009 marine show, which takes place between the 17th and 19th November.

ACG is a world leading manufacture and supplier of carbon and glass reinforced prepreg materials into the Marine industry. With over 30 years’ experience operating at the forefront of composites technology, and with manufacturing facilities in Europe and the United States, the Group offers an unparalleled one-stop formulation, manufacturing and combined design and product application service for structural and tooling prepreg solutions with a focused approach to providing prepreg materials formulated for specific applications.

2009 saw the Ericsson Racing Team win the Volvo Ocean Race with ACG as its official supplier for all prepreg composite materials for boat construction, confirming ACG as the materials supplier of choice at the highest levels of yacht racing.

ACG VTM260 Series prepregs offer ease of handling in the workshop, long freezer out life and controlled flow combine with a broad processing window with a 65°C low temperature initial cure or reduced total cycle. Process innovations such as ZPREG® partial impregnation technology and supporting range of surface plies and adhesives have further enhanced the range, making VTM®260 series one of the most user-friendly prepreg systems available.

VTM®267, a new addition to the range, offers improved workshop handling through reduced temperature sensitivity and controlled tack levels. The flow profile of VTM®267 improves fibre wet out, thereby reducing void levels, improving laminate quality, making it particularly suited to the partial impregnation of heavier reinforcement fabrics.

For applications where the flexible cure profile of the VTM® system is not required, two new 80 to 120°C curing variants, MTM®57-2 and MTM®57-3, offer the same enhancements to the Group’s already successful MTM®57 prepreg, which has proved popular with spar makers.

For further information please contact:

Advanced Composites Group
Henry Nicholson-Cole – Marine Market Sector Manager
John Nixon - Technical Marketing Manager

ACG Ltd. Tel: +44 (0)1773 766200

A Classic Combination . . . Sunseeker Style, Trend Marine Expertise and ACG Advanced Prepregs - 20th October 2009

Variable Temperature Moulding (VTM®) carbon epoxy prepregs from Advanced Composites Group Ltd (ACG), part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, have helped British marine glazing manufacturer Trend Marine Products Ltd of Catfield, Norfolk, UK, develop a line of rigid, lightweight, aesthetically pleasing sliding carbon fibre/toughened glass sunroofs that have opened up new design possibilities for a growing number of production boat builders. Using ACG’s prepregs and its composites manufacturing expertise, Trend Marine has attained the enviable reputation of being the premier designer and manufacturer of sliding carbon roof for the boat building industry and now supplies the largest OEM manufacturer in the world.

The recently launched Predator 54 and 60 yachts built by Sunseeker International Ltd, based in Poole, UK, have benefited from the application of Trend Marine’s expertise and ACG’s advanced prepreg materials. Working to a stringent design specification, Trend Marine build and delivered a composite sliding roof system that was both functional and aesthetically pleasing, meeting every requirement laid down by Sunseeker.

The roof panel, as with any structure positioned high on the boat, is weight critical. The weight has a direct bearing on the stability of the craft and also the mechanisms which operate the roof. Equally, the roof structure must be stiff. Its sleek, slender skeletal frame must span a 3m aperture while also supporting the plate glass glazing, and prevent flexure, which could jam the mechanism or cause vibration at the near 50knot speeds that the Sunseeker yachts can achieve.

ACG’s vacuum only processing VTM260 Series prepregs have proved highly effective, combining structural efficiency and low cost processing. ACG’s VTF261 cosmetic surface ply creates the desired aesthetic “carbon” surface finish, resulting in a solution that is in harmony with the light, airy ambience of the exquisite cockpit.

With the success and consistency of the carbon roof panels on the Predator range, Sunseeker are considering employing the concept on other models.

At the METS 2009 marine show, which takes place between the 17th and 19th November, ACG will exhibit its VTM260 prepregs – “the prepreg system of choice in the marine industry” - on Stand No.: 01.609 while Trend Marine Products Ltd will exhibit a finished roof on Stand No.: 11.321.

Advanced Composites Group Ltd
Henry Nicholson-Cole – Marine Market Sector Manager
Telephone: +44 (0)1773 766204

ACG Congratulates the Winning Team in the Volvo Ocean Race - 1st July 2009

Ericsson Team wins the 08-09 Volvo Ocean Race

Advanced Composites Group Ltd (ACG), part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, congratulates the skipper, Torben Grael, and the International crew of Ericsson 4 on their outstanding victory in the 08-09 Volvo Ocean Race (VOR), and extends this to the skipper, Magnus Olsson, and the Nordic crew of Ericsson 3 for their impressive 4th place.

Having amassed an impressive total of 108 points, giving a 13-point cushion over second place, Ericsson 4 had already clinched victory when it finished Leg 9 of the VOR in Stockholm on 15th June.

Ericsson Racing Team chose ACG as its ‘Official Supplier’ for composite materials for Ericsson 4 and Ericsson 3 way back in late 2007, when the planning stages commenced. Both boats use a range of ACG’s ocean racing pedigree advanced carbon fibre marine products for their hull and decks.

The skippers, crews and the boats have withstood everything that nearly 37,000 nautical miles of the world’s oceans could throw at them, and have come out at the end as conquerors in their own right.

The boats, designed by Juan Kouyoumdjian and built by Killian Bushe, have travelled the world’s oceans at a remarkable pace in indescribable conditions, with Ericsson 4 breaking the 24 hour record on route. Both Kouyoumdjian and Bushe were familiar with ACG’s materials from the onset, having had a close association with the Group for many years. ACG’s Technology Centre and its highly skilled formulators and marine experts have shown their dedication to providing the best materials and build techniques for past and present builds, something that was also apparent in the 06-07 Volvo Ocean Race.

Killian Bushe has been at the forefront of composite boatbuilding technology since the early eighties and has produced many high quality lightweight racing, race yachts. Indeed, Bushe now has the enviable reputation of having built the winning boats for the last three Volvo Ocean Races - Illbruck, ABN 1, and now Ericsson 4. And it doesn’t stop there; Bushe also built the Swedish Americas Cup yacht for Victory Challenge, which was manufactured in Gothenburg.

The proven pedigrees of the skippers, crews and support personnel for Ericsson 4 and Ericsson 3 have coalesced with the skills of the Kouyoumdjian and Bushe, proving that experience goes a long way when looking for the recipe to success.

Image: Copyright Oskar Kihlborg/Ericsson Racing Team

For further information, please contact:

Advanced Composites Group Ltd
Henry Nicholson-Cole. E-mail: hnicholson-cole@acg.co.uk

ACG Secures 3-Year Supply Agreement with Southern Spars - 10th March 2009

ACG, part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, is proud to announce the signing of a 3-year supply agreement with Southern Spars, the world renowned manufacturer of award-winning carbon fibre spars.

With manufacturing facilities in New Zealand, South Africa and the USA, Southern Spars is the world leader in carbon spar design and engineering. Employing more than 300 staff worldwide, in an operation that spans the globe, Southern Spars has notched up an outstanding record of success in grand prix yacht racing, America’s Cup campaigns, Round the World races, Fastnet races, Sydney-Hobart races, Ton Cups, Olympic campaigns and World Championships. ACG is pleased to have been selected as Southern Spars’ supplier and enter into an agreement that represents a significant achievement for ACG in the competitive global marine industry.

ACG’s success in supplying prepregs into Formula One racing, the America’s Cup, and other prestigious Round the World racing campaigns, were significant factors in Southern Spars’ decision to select ACG as its preferred supplier. David Glen, Southern’s Group General Manager, noted that, “ACG’s commitment to the manufacture and supply of high quality prepregs, developed specifically for optimum mechanical performance and ease of processing, was a highly attractive proposition for Southern Spars.”

ACG’s celebrated range of structural resin systems and customer specific prepreg formatting, allied to the Group’s continued leading edge developments, will ensure Southern Spars maintain their position as the world’s principal spar manufacturer. ACG‘s close working relationship with leading carbon fibre manufacturers will ensure that the exacting standards Southern Spars demands for its structural materials are met in full and, working together, these companies will forge relationships that will bring about the development of new and innovative rigs for the future.

Bernard Twist, ACG’s Export Sales Manager, said, “It was clear from the outset that there was a very good fit between the capabilities of ACG, as a global prepreg supplier, and the objectives of Southern Spars, the world’s leading designer and supplier of carbon spars.”

Initial deliveries of prepregs have already been made and both ACG and Southern Spars now anticipate a busy period of close co-operation as manufacture of the first rigs made with ACG’s MTM® prepregs gets under way.

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