King Marine Newsletter March 2007

King Marine Valencia: Innovation in TP 52 construction

Construction has begun on the first of two new TP 52s at King Marine in Valencia. Designed by Judel/Vrolijk (Rolf Vrolijk is Alinghi's principle designer), both are built in carbon fibre and Nomex honeycomb, but, unusually, both hulls will be built in a special female mold.

Given the uncompromising integrity required by these boats, a carbon fibre female mold was constructed to ensure a perfect hull finish and to restrict the amount of resin used, saving weight.

The interior structure is being built at the same time and final assembly will begin when the hulls are finished. We’re hoping to deliver the first boat at the end of April, and the second on 18/20 May.


GP 42 Class just keeps growing



After a break-through year in 2006, the popularity of the exciting new GP 42 Class looks set to spread even further. The Class already has strong footholds in Spain and Italy, and now orders reflect growing interest in Holland, Norway, Portugal and Croatia.

Right now, the European GP 42 fleet is almost 20-strong, including first generation boats and those designs currently in build. An incredible five of those are under construction in King Marine’s Buenos Aires shipyard.

Each of the boats, all based on a single Botin&Carkeek design, are semi-customised by a team including representatives from Grand Soleil, Botin&Carkeek’s design team, King Marine and several European boatbuilders.

The team met up recently in Buenos Aires to see the boats take shape. Here’s what they thought:

Jan Santana:
(ESP) - Team Zurich boatbuilder

- Why is the GP 42 Class so attractive?

There are several reasons, but the main one is real-time racing. Sponsors want visible results, they want to know who’s won straight away. That’s why they like the GP 42 Class: the boat that crosses the line first is the winner. It’s that simple. Because it’s so simple, sponsors can release the news, interviews, footage and photography to the media straight away. That maximizes event coverage so sponsors get more for their money. The second reason is that the GP 42 Class outlaws any changes to the box rule for several years. That means owners get better value too. They build top quality boats, build good crews, train hard, build experience and stay competitive for years without worrying about rule changes. Personally, as a boatbuilder, it doesn’t feel good to build a boat that’s obsolete a year later.

-Does the Class have a future?

It’s very likely to keep growing. Box rules are solid and well liked. That’s the secret. A box rule means strong competition, which attracts designers, constructors, equipment manufacturers. This, in turn, helps the Class evolve. Obviously they’re great fun to sail too – fast, responsive and very similar in many respects. A good design, well built and sailed by an excellent crew has every chance of winning.

- Can it work alongside IMS?

IMS is still an effective way of comparing boats with different characteristics. So no, I don’t think GP 42 replaces it. They’re different things. GP 42 has a really promising future, but there’s space for other rules.

- What are your hopes for the new boat?

That’s easy: to win everything!

- And your main priority for this year?

To continue working with Botin&Carkeek’s design team, Grand Soleil and King Marine. We’ve got a great boat in the making here. I want to see it through to completion, build and train the best crew, get them on board the boat and squeeze it dry!

- Has it made a difference, working with King Marine in Argentina?

I’d heard some very good reports about King Marine, from Agustín Zuleta at Desafio Espanol for one. I’ve seen the excellent standard of their work in both the Spanish boats. Here in Argentina, they’re using every lesson they’ve ever learned and I’m very satisfied with the quality of construction. With the professionalism and facilities I’ve seen here, this company has a great future.

Shaun Carkeek:
(RSA) – Naval Architect, Botin&Carkeek

- What’s the biggest challenge when designing a high performance GP 42?

There’s no single thing. The challenge is the whole boat, attention to every detail, the optimization of every aspect. That’s how you produce a race boat that achieves its full potential.

- Quality of construction plays a big part in high performance, are you happy with what you’ve seen at King Marine?

Very satisfied. There’s a really good attitude, good communications and they tend to anticipate and solve problems. Data is shared and controlled well. There’s attention to every detail and, as I’ve said before, that’s what winning’s all about. We’ve got some world class work here, especially considering the enormous pressure there is to limit time spent in build. From the moment we released the plans to the first regatta, it’s not long at all. Despite this, they deal with problems and keep working conscientiously. It’s a big challenge to build five semi-custom GP 42s at the same time when each owner has their own requirements, but each receives the same attention to detail. And every boat is going to benefit from that.

- What are the major differences in the construction of the first Botin&Carkeek GP 42 in Croatia and these here in Argentina?

Expectations were always high, in that sense both projects are comparable. In Croatia, it was the first GP 42, for us and for Murtic Yachts, so everything was a challenge, but I believe good work was done and much was learned. King Marine has that experience so they’re the ideal choice to build the second generation of GPs.

- How do you see the future of the Class?

It has all the potential it needs. We’re waiting for the number of boats to grow and the Class to expand into other countries, and the influence of the Class authorities will be very important. So far I think everything’s going in the right direction.

Gianguido Girotti:
(ITA) - Product Manager of ISB, holding company for Grand Soleil and Dufour

- Does the future of the European marine market lie in racing, or cruising?

In general terms, the trend shows a growth in demand of about 7% every year. New players in the market, like Norway and Turkey, can be added to the traditional boatbuilding countries, like UK, Italy, Spain and France, in both markets. At Grand Soleil, we’re backing this growth strongly and moving forward with many cruising projects, as well as race boats. We’re enthusiastic about this GP 42 project, and we’re looking forward to seeing the results in the next few months.

- Why did you choose Argentina for the project?

When we were deciding location, we looked for quality, experience, attitude and good communication. Price was just one of the things we considered. A good quote means nothing if there’s no guarantee of high standards and a good working relationship, but we found what we were looking for in Argentina.

- Are you satisfied with King Marine?

We’re very pleased. The fact is, this is a very delicate project, demanding tight schedules and the highest quality. These boats need to last for several years, which makes construction quality our major priority. In truth, there are few shipyards anywhere in the world that could meet our needs, so choosing King Marine as our constructor wasn’t difficult.

Delivery schedule of GP42 boats:

1º- Team Movistar (Pedro Campos - ESP) - 15 March
2º- Team Zurich (Jan Santana - ESP) - 15 March
3º- AL CAP ONE (Peer Moberg - NOR) - 15 April
4º- Team Quebramar (POR) - 15 May
5º- Team QUUM (ESP) - 15 June