New Reichel/Pugh 52

case study: mouldCAM commissioned for new Reichel/Pugh-designed 52ft powerboat

When an Australian boat builder was invited to tender for construction of a new Reichel/Pugh-designed 52ft powerboat, they immediately knew the best solution to offer the Australian-based owner.

Two years previously they'd used composite moulds for the very first time to build a 49ft boat. It was an entirely new approach for them, and a major shift from their traditional past. But the process and the results were so successful, they knew if they got the chance they'd do it again.

That chance came when the builder won the global tender for the new RP52. Their first phone call went out to Jaime Marina at mouldCAM.

'They'd used another supplier last time for their moulds but had heard about us, and the work we'd been doing, through the marine grapevine,” said Jaime.

mouldCAM were subsequently commissioned to produce the tooling for the hull, which was an integral component of the Reichel/Pugh-designed boat.

The builder’s plan was to construct as much of the boat as possible inside the actual mould to avoid shifting and destabilising the structure. To enable this to happen, mouldCAM built key markers into the mould itself to ensure construction would be highly accurate and as straightforward as possible. Not only does this help protect the integrity of Reichel/Pugh's design, it also means construction can happen in the shortest time frame possible, with everything neatly slotting in where it belongs.

According to the builder, the key advantages of using a composite tooling process over their previously traditional boat building methods have been:

• weight savings. A significant amount of weight in filling and fairing has been saved
• accuracy. Composite moulds will deliver an almost 100% accurate interpretation of the Reichel/Pugh design
• time savings. By contracting out the mould-making process to mouldCAM, the builder has been able to concentrate on other aspects of the build as well as work on separate projects for other clients.

The new Reichel/Pugh 52 will be due for launch in 2009.