Australian Premiere at Sydney Festival of Boating - Australian MarineBusinessWorld.com newsletter
by Peter Rendle 24 Jun 2021 15:00 PDT
Arvor 675 Weekender © Virginie Pelagalli
With the Sydney Festival of Boating taking place in four weeks from now, exhibitors are sending us details of their new products being displayed. From Arvor we learn that the event will be the Australian Premiere for the Arvor 675.
The Arvor 675 Weekender is the newest and most compact model in the Weekender range. Easy to handle on the water and transportable on a trailer, you can take eight people for a cruise and two can spend the night. The 675 comes fully equipped galley with sink, stove and refrigerator, and in the lower deck section of the cabin, you'll find a spacious front berth for two and an enclosed sea toilet with sink. The optional enclosure and sun awning have you prepared for any kind of weather.
Tickets for the Sydney Festival of Boating, which runs from the 29th of July through the 1st of August are only available online and numbers are limited. You can purchase yours at sydneyfestivalofboating.com.au
With the industry showing a positive buoyancy currently, a new initiative by the Marina Industry Association (MIA) is a welcome addition. The MIA - in partnership with the Boating Industry Association (BIA) and Superyacht Australia - has launched Marine Jobs. Marine Jobs is an online 'career centre' designed to make it easier for employers to advertise vacancies and for people to find the right job for them in the marine industry. This new industry jobs platform provides a range of career resources, including information on apprenticeships and industry training, writing a resume and preparing for an interview.
"Until now there hasn't been a single recruitment website that the marine industry could go to and find every job available in the marine sector. Using generic platforms is completely unsatisfactory, and often results in literally hundreds of unqualified applications to sift through," said Suzanne Davies, MIA CEO upon the launch of the website, adding that, "Marine Jobs offers a place where like-minded employers and job seekers can connect."
Details of a course that has recently been announced will be of interest to all boatyard operators. The Marina Training Institute is introducing a new Boatyard Best Practices Course. Numerous hazards exist at boatyards, which may include toxic fumes, hazardous chemicals, flammable liquids, falling objects, wet and uneven surfaces, and many more. Staff must be made aware of and trained in how to best manage to ensure tasks can be carried out safely by taking precautions to prevent injury and negative impacts.
Delivered as a half-day, face-to-face course, the Boatyard Best Practice course will assist boatyard operators in their obligation to ensure their staff are made aware of workplace risks and ways to mitigate the risk of injury and incident. While it does not take the place of a site-specific induction it will cover the main tasks common across boatyard operations. Topics covered include personal safety, environmental practices, chemical handling routine, inspections and working at heights.
New boats this week: McConaghy are delighted to confirm that hull #1 of their MC75 model is now in build. Designed to offer contemporary on-water living with an apartment-like style, the MC75 is lightweight, eco-friendly and - as with all models in the McConaghy Multihull range - fully customisable. The progressive exterior lines follow those of other models in the Multihull series, with an appealing flybridge that can be ranged forward in a more aggressive styling or extended aft for a sweeping, sleeker look. Performing with an effortless grace even in light airs, the MC75 provides smooth sailing prowess with stability and enviable speed. In 20kts of wind at 110 true wind angle, the MC75 is predicted to reach 21kts of boat speed with a code zero sail.
We continue to post the latest global news on the future of propulsion. South Korea's first commercialised hydrogen electric boat has been unveiled at the 2021 Busan International Boat Show, winning the event's Best Boat of the Year award. Developed by Vinssen, the Hydrogenia vessel is powered by a Danfoss Editron electric drivetrain and sub-system. In late 2020, the South Korean government announced a USD870 million initiative to encourage the development of eco-friendly shipping to reduce pollution caused by the country's marine sector.
The 2030 Green Ship-K Promotion Strategy, a central part of South Korea's plans to achieve carbon-neutrality by 2050, specifically targets the advancement and wider use of low-carbon ship technology, including hydrogen fuel cells and propulsion systems. The initiative has set a goal of reducing the country's shipping greenhouse gas emissions by 40% in the next 25 years and 70% by 2050.
And a new product for the fishos amongst us: Lowrance®, a world-leader in fishing electronics since 1957, rolled-out updated software this month for its line of HDS Live, HDS Carbon and Elite FS fishfinders. The updates include a series of radar interface improvements and new features focused on safety, like Dangerous Target Alert updates, as well as a key integration with SiriusXM® Marine Fish Mapping™ service covering North America.
The new radar improvements make it easier to view, track and monitor vessels, and identify vessels that may be a risk to the user's course. New icons for the Automatic Identification System (AIS) and symbols for radar tracked targets allow greater clarity of risks and can be combined into one unified view. In addition, several new updates enhance connectivity, comfort and control including integrations with the ITC Lighting Control Bar, Honda ECO Mode and IP Cam-1 marine video camera (HDS Live only).
More electronic news from New Zealand: Vesper Marine, a leading manufacturer of innovative marine electronics, announced the release of remote MMSI programming capability and improved 'Stealth Mode' for Cortex Hubs when upgraded to software version 1.6. Remote MMSI Programming is the latest in a series of updates that improve functionality of existing and new Cortex Hubs. Software version 1.6 uses a patented technology for remotely validating and setting vessel data, such as the MMSI. Installers and re-sellers can now enter the relevant vessel details via a secure login to the Support Portal. Vesper Marine will validate that the information is entered correctly and send it over the air to the Hub, either immediately or when it next connects to the Vesper Cloud.
Followers of the Laser sailing class will be interested in the following announcement. Only two of the three former Laser / ILCA builders remain. Of the five new builders, in the opinion of many, Elements 6 Evolution (E6E) near Bangkok, Thailand, stands out for high-end manufacturing experience. Set up in 2016, the three E6E principals are Pom Green, John Higham and Pramote Indranoi, had already worked together at Composite Marine International (CMI) before deciding to set up a new purpose-built facility for one-design performance craft. E6E certainly brings a lot of experience to ILCA dinghy manufacturing. As Pom Green says, "It is a matter of applying the collective skill set in all areas of setup, design production and control to do the best job possible which is always our aim."
During the colder months, the Technical Advisers at West System and ATL Composites are frequently asked, "What's the lowest temperature West System Epoxy can be applied?" Fortunately, it's one they're well equipped to answer. Gougeon Brothers got its start in the world of DN Iceboat racing. Both Meade and Jan Gougeon have won multiple DN cup races worldwide. It's not unusual for an iceboat to need repairs mid-regatta, so part of the discipline of iceboat racing is getting epoxy to cure despite cold working environments.
The trick is using strategies that bring epoxy temperatures up to adequate cure levels in cold working environments. Since the 1970s, West System has been using these techniques to assure dependable epoxy bonds throughout frigid Michigan winters. With a little advanced planning, and observing the precautions listed above, you can get West System Epoxy to cure reliably in cold working conditions.
Stay safe,
Peter Rendle - peter.rendle@marinebusinessworld.com