Boat Design

If you were looking to buy a new car.....

If you were looking to buy a new performance car and you were offered you a car based on designs from the 1950s and 1960s wouldn't you think

"Surely designs have improved since then?"

Of course you'd be right. So how come when offered boats based on designs from the 1950s and 1960s people still believe it's a fast hull? Doesn't make sense does it?

Advances in computational power and design technology mean that boats can be designed to minimise resistance and offer the correct volumetric displacement in the right places.

Vespoli's new 'E' hulls are the result of 21st Century technology applied to boats

Vespoli - 21st Century Boats for the 21st Century!

The New 'E' Hulls From Vespoli

The 'E' hull series is VESPOLI’s newest ‘break through’, high speed racing hull. Designed by Manolo Ruiz de Elvira, design team leader for Alinghi, winners of the America’s Cup in 2003 and 2007. The VESPOLI design team, with the benefit of the most ‘state of the art’ tools and methods has developed a hull with the most perfect pairing of speed and stability. The hull was computer modelled to optimize hull length and stability against wetted surface and drag. The hull was optimised at five different points of the stroke to create near perfect trim and displacement. Computer comparisons against the competition indicate that the E hull is significantly faster. The E hull sets the new standard in racing hull design!

Hull Science Read about it here...

“You can actually achieve a lot more than you believe at first sight, when you face a problem most of the time it looks like you’re not going to be able to get through it and most of the time you can. You have to aim further than the target that you want to reach”.

As far back as he can remember he wanted to be an engineer. Studying at the Polytechnic University in Madrid he is also self-taught as there is no academic tradition of naval design in Spain. Specialising in naval architecture he managed to bring together his love of sailing and design.

Manolo Ruiz de Elvira

In 1990 the year after finishing university he joined the Spanish America’s Cup design team. He has since worked as a designer for various America’s Cup campaigns, in 1992 with España, 1995 with Rioja and 2000 with Bravo España. In 1994 he started a yacht design firm with two partners in Spain.

On his fifth America’s Cup, as a designer for Alinghi he says; “I work on the general naval architecture side, and the performance predictions. At the end of the day when we plan changes we have to consider in advance if it is going to be an improvement or not”.

Passionate about his involvement with the America’s Cup, he says; “this is a dream for every sailor. On top of that I always had a technical interest as to how things work, as an engineer, a naval architect this is another perspective of a dream”.

Learn more about the Alinghi team Click here...