Carbon spars for all

With extensive NDT checks and autoclave curing at 5.5bar and 120°C, void-free laminate quality is assured

With hi-tech construction processes, efficient production, expanding reach, extended product ranges and increasing economy of scale, MC1 Spars is making it feasible for a broader church of boats to have carbon masts and booms

MC1 Spars has made a considerable impact in a few key directions since its recent launch as a reliable source of cost-effective, high-tech, high quality composite spars. The company has been increasing its sales of new and retro-fit spars for a wide range of performance and performance-cruising monohulls and multihulls. Meanwhile, MC1 Spars has committed to expanding its product line into other sail and spar-related components that complement its core products.

Another new programme could be quite useful for cruising sailors who are interested in exploring the relatively untouched regions of Asia that until now have been out of reach for spar service and support logistics. Some gorgeous coastal areas of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, for example, may now be more viable and attractive for visits from superyachts and performance multihulls. If problems arise, they can now be assured that help is available not too far away.

In a collaborative effort with rigging specialists BSI and both new and established boatyards located in Phuket, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan, MC1 Spars offers full service support in commissioning new spars, repair services and installation of new systems in locations that were, until now, simply out of reach.

‘Ten years ago there were maybe one or two yards we could work with in this southeastern and eastern region of Asia,’ says MC1 Spars sales manager Trent Justice. ‘Now there are 10 to 15 in the region that we think will have the facilities and technical staff we need to properly take care of our clients with this type of support relationship.’

Among the interesting projects in the order book at MC1 Spars is the spar package for the MC 68, a new 70ft catamaran project built at McConaghy Boats. This project features soft rigging, a single-diamond shroud geometry and a furling boom, a complex feature to design and fabricate for full functionality but absolutely essential for serious sailing where reliability and safety are of paramount importance.

In this context it is worth describing the process that MC1 Spars uses to achieve its impressive results, from design to fabrication… and now extended to include rig installation as well.

Above: MC1’s spar laminates are built on female carbon tooling.

First, the design team uses the same load analysis programs (such as Sail-Pack) that sail designers use to model sail loads, making for a seamless collaboration on finding solutions that optimise the composite structure in the spar. MC1 Spars’ structure and laminate engineers analyse these sail loads and determine the best section to provide the project’s required carbon thickness and stiffness.

The company works with Auckland BAIC Finite Element Analysis (FEA), whose massive computing power enables them to conduct multiple FEA studies throughout a project timeline. They start by examining the overall structure and then focus on the localised high-load areas to create the laminate from either standard, high or ultra-high modulus carbon, depending on the project. This cooperation between the sailmaker and laminate engineer with a shared understanding of the load analyses is crucial in achieving not only an optimal laminate that meets the spar’s specifications, but ultimately plays an important role in the overall project’s goals of reaching that critical balance between performance and safety.

Spar laminates at MC1 Spars are built from female carbon tooling - which is more expensive but ultimately more stable and compatible with carbon laminates, and requires less fairing material for finishing compared with mandrelbased fabrication. They also have modern robotic tools for fast and accurate CNC milling of the moulds, which are efficiently designed and created for aerodynamically and structurally optimal sizes and shapes, not just inherited legacy shapes created out of tooling from previous projects.

An example of this is in a 52ft catamaran project for an Australian client that is currently under build at McConaghy. Justice explains how the MC1 Spars team has found a solution that not only meets the performance-safety balance for the spar package but also comes at areasonable cost.

‘High-modulus carbon is about 20 per cent lighter than standard modulus carbon but is about two and a half times more expensive,’ he says. ‘So to keep the costs down but still achieve our structural goals we devised a laminate schedule that features high-modulus carbon in the important 0° axis but standard modulus in the 45° and 90° axis. It almost gets the full weight-saving benefit of a full, high-modulus rig while keeping the robustness of standard modulus in the off-axis.’

Laminate integrity relies not only on clever design but also on using the best materials in carefully controlled fabrication processes. MC1 Spars sources its pre-preg carbon from reliable suppliers, such as Delta and Gurit, where there is strict control and consistency of the carbon-resin content, with curing done in one of three autoclaves which, at lengths of six, 13 and 40 metres, can reach 120°C at 5.5 bars of pressure to achieve perfect, void-free laminates.

This process creates a high degree of control and stability in part sizing and dimensions that also has benefits where it can really count: when spars are fabricated in sections so they can be shipped and assembled on site at commissioning locations, such as those in new venues in Asia. This delicate and critical process will be assisted by MC1 Spars’ new service and support network.

The same high level of attention to quality laminates will soon be applied to furling booms and sail control components, where it’s just as important as it is for masts and conventional booms.

Partnering with KZ Marine, MC1 Spars is now able to offer a wide range of booms with in-boom furling, a safe and effective sailhandling solution that is popular with cruisers and performance-cruisers alike.

Above: SolidWorks 3D modelling delivers an impeccable fit between rig design and yacht design, ensuring optimal performance and precision

‘Unlike the conventional heavy alloy spars often seen in this genre, our version is a game-changer in terms of reliability, light weight and performance,’ Justice says. ‘It’s the only one in the industry constructed from pre-preg carbon and Nomex core materials that are autoclavecured at 5.5 bars.’

This new product line will include hydraulic and electric options which can be configured for boats ranging from 40ft to 115ft in length, and thus attractive to a potentially wide market ranging from coastal cruisers to superyachts.

‘We’re excited about this particular expansion in our product line,’ says Justice, ‘not only because of its wide appeal but because with our efficient design and production process we can carefully control the timelines and costs so that there is a realistic and affordable base price list available based on standard sizing. This makes it easier for production boatbuilders to sell as an upgrade option in their product lines, as well as those wishing to retro-fit and improve their existing yachts. Our team can custom-build these booms for even larger yachts, but the pricing will be commensurate to the size and complexity.’

MC1 Spars is taking an even further step into the cruising world by devising a brochure that outlines a base price structure for cruising spars of 40, 50 or 60ft with the mast, rigging and box boom priced individually.

‘This idea is to make a broader appeal to a new base of customers who have just assumed carbon spars are all customised and out of reach in price,’ says Justice. ‘We are confident of our production efficiencies, quality controls and ability to deliver to a world-wide market that will respond well to these offers.’

Lastly, MC1 plans to expand on its ongoing supply of high-quality carbon component parts for raceboats such as rudders and foils, steering wheels, pedestals and retractable propulsion units – to now include sail-related components. These will include items such as carbon headboards, carbon clew boards and batten technologies where there is a benefit not just in light weight but in durability and strength as well.

‘We’re getting feedback that a trend in deteriorating quality of stainless steel is resulting in not just rusting of headboard and clew boards, but it can accelerate galvanic corrosion due to the carbon content in sails,’ says Justice. ‘Titanium is a viable alternative but expensive to machine, so we thought high-quality carbon laminates would be perfect to help solve this problem.’

With their proven expertise in bespoke structural laminates and high efficiencies in production, Justice sees battens as also being another fertile ground for MC1Spars’ expansion into providing high-quality and cost-effective products to performance sailing and cruising.

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