Yacht modification - Composite Works by Infusion Technology

Carbon passerelle for sailing yacht

October 11, 2022October 11, 2022 adrienstratosphere

La Ciotat, 2022

On this mythical 45m Camper&Nicholsons sailing yacht from 1910, the client wanted to replace the old passerelle. This passerelle was made of two removable parts and gratings placed on top. The set weighed more than 100Kg and was very difficult for the crew to handle.

The client wanted a composite passerelle, lighter, stronger, with dimensions adapted to the storage space on the doghouse, while respecting the aesthetics of the boat and compatible with the old bronze stanchions. So, Strat-o-sphere designed in 3D a simple passerelle, in one part, 5m40 long and 60cm wide, with its twelve stanchion supports, its pin for fixing to the boat and its wheels on the quay side so that the passerelle follows the natural movements of the boat.

The two beams are made of unidirectional carbon fiber, and the horizontal plane of a PVC foam sandwich. All the pieces were custom made in our workshop in Nice by Infusion Technology, including the stanchion supports and the pin, and then laminated together.

Once the gangway was assembled, many hours were spent in finishing, sanding, painting and gluing the teak on the top. Only details remained to be settled on the day of the installation, such as the positioning of the stanchions and the lines.

This magnificent sailing yacht has now a beautiful new passerelle, strong, weighing only 60Kg and hand-made in the French Riviera !

Carbon swimming ladder

June 20, 2022June 20, 2022 adrienstratosphere

Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, 2022

This bathing ladder has been entirely drawn and made by Strat-o-sphere for a yacht. The owner wanted to bathe from the rear platform and come back up on the boat easily. It was also necessary that the ladder was foldable to be easily stored, and as light as possible. We first designed the different parts in 3D on the computer.

Then, we made the polyester molds, and the different carbon parts by Infusion Technology in the workshop.

It was then necessary to assemble the scale with its carbon hinges and adjust the movements.

The last step was the finishing, sanding and painting.

Then the ladder could be installed on board.

3 gyroscopic stabilizers on 40M yacht

June 15, 2022June 15, 2022 adrienstratosphere

Valencia, 2022

On this 40-meter boat, the roll was very important and uncomfortable for the crew. The owner ordered a gyroscopic stabilizer to Strat-o-sphere to reduce the roll.
After studying the movements of the boat, we determined that it needed three Quick MC²X75 to stabilize it. We decided on the location of the devices in the boat and the modifications needed to create enough space. For this layout, we made some fiberglass pieces in the workshop, and then installed them in the boat. As the boat was made of metal, we had to make a custom metal structure to transmit the efforts of the stabilizers to the boat.

Regarding the cooling of the devices, we have designed and made a closed circuit cooling system to avoid cooling by sea water which would have forced us to drill the hull of the boat.

When everything was ready to welcome the stabilizers, we installed them on our structure.

After making the electrical connections and the tests, the client was able to go on a cruise without fear of the waves !

TV Cabinet

May 30, 2022June 16, 2022 adrienstratosphere

Saint Laurent du Var, 2021

The living room of this 24M Baia was equipped with a cabinet with two functions: television cabinet and air conditioning diffuser.
This cabinet was made of wood, so very heavy and cumbersome when the crew had to move it for maintenance of the air conditioning and electronic devices.
The request was to replace this wooden cabinet with a composite piece integrating the TV, the TV lift and ventilation grilles for the air conditioning. After scanning the living room with the Faro Freestyle 2 to obtain the 3D measurements on TopSolid, Strat-o-sphere made the new cabinet based on Jean-Charles Perret’s design.

The wood assembly mold made it possible to create the cabinet in a single piece of fiberglass and PVC foam, made by Infusion Technology in the workshop.

The rest of the work was to make the opening for the movement of the TV and the holes for the electrical outlets, the sanding and the final paint chosen by the client.

After installation on board, the owner was able to comfortably enjoy his new TV !

Coaming in a 40m MY garage

April 2, 2021April 3, 2021 adrienstratosphere

Nice, 2021

On this 40m motor yacht, the crew noticed a problem in the garage. When the garage door was open, to bring out the jetski or the tender, the waves made water run inside the garage. So, the boat needed a large coaming, invisible from outside, to protect the garage from the waves. But this new coaming had to let the tender and the jetski pass through it by apertures to go in water. We decided to build a main coaming with two apertures, and two easily removable doors.
First, we scanned the garage with our FARO FREESTYLE 2 to visualize in 3D the aperture of the garage door, but also the shape of the jetski and the tender.
Then, we drew our modifications and took the precise measurements of the garage door.

What do yo want to do ?

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At the workshop, we started by building a mold in wood to create the coaming, with its two apertures reproducing the shapes needed. Separately, we also made the doors using the shapes determined thanks to the 3D. All have been built in fiberglass at our workshop by Infusion Technology.

What do you want to do ?

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What do you want to do ?

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The last step was to bring the coaming on the boat to laminate it. The crew can now open the garage without fearing the waves and easily remove each door when necessary.

Riva Duchessa hard top modification

October 5, 2020October 6, 2020 adrienstratosphere

Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, 2020

What do you want to do ?

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On this Riva Duchessa, the owner wasn’t satisfied with the hard top on the fly bridge. It was too small to protect the full area of the flybridge from the sun. So, the goal was to bring more shadow by extending the hard top.

What do you want to do ?

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After several discussions with the captain, we chose the idea of extending the roof aftward on both sides with two fixed elements, and stretching a canvas between its two elements by an electrical system.
Besides, we replaced the central part of the roof by a new one that we built in fiberglass, with 3 spaces in the middle to receive plexiglass in it.

We made every part of this modification in fiberglass by Infusion Technology at the workshop.

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Then, we laminated each piece to the original roof.

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Here’s the job done !

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Chines Modifications on 30M MY

June 1, 2020October 5, 2020 adrienstratosphere

Golf Juan, 2020

On this 30m yacht, the owner complained about the noise made by the waves on the hull of the boat.
The Argentinian architect Enrique Mitch offered us a drawing of a modification so that the waves no longer hit under the hull of the boat right next to the owner’s cabin. In practice, it was necessary to add elements to create this new shape. The modification concerned approximately 9 meters from the bow. As the boat was made of aluminum, it was impossible to laminate the new elements directly on the hull. So it was first necessary to make two pieces of fiberglass molded on the hull as base for our modifications. These parts have been bonded with a flexible elastomer bond from Kent Marine, allowing a good grip between the laminate and the aluminum of the hull.

We have divided our modification into 4 different pieces per side (8 in total) to facilitate the installation. These pieces were made of fiberglass in the workshop thanks to the Infusion Technology, then laminated one by one to our base.

A serious calculation of the necessary scantling allowed us to keep our peace of mind when the slings came to grab this 102 ton boat !

What do you want to do ?

New mail

What do you want to do ?

New mail

New coaming for MY sunbed

March 4, 2020March 4, 2020 adrienstratosphere

Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, 2020

On this 23 M Sunseeker motor yacht, the captain always had a problem when he washed his boat at the sunbed area located at the front. Indeed, as the mattresses are in a space lower than the deck, there was permanently water running in this part of the boat, and the mattresses were never perfectly dry during the summer season.

The project was to design and build a coaming all around the sunbed to prevent water from entering. This new element obviously had to perfectly respect the rounded shape of the sunbed, to give the impression of having been originally designed.

Strat-o-sphere has modeled the sunbathing in 3D to be able to test different aesthetics according to the client’s wishes (height, thickness, etc.). When the project was approved, we made this 2m by 2.2m piece in a single piece of fiberglass using the Infusion Technology, and then laminated it to the boat.

After the Gel Coat finish and a good polish, our piece seems to have always been there !

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Passerelle/Stairs on a 37M MY

August 11, 2018March 4, 2020 adrienstratosphere

This 37 meter motor yacht build in 1967 by Clelands Shipbuilding Company needed a passerelle for her charter seasons.

The passerelle should fit in an inside volume of only 2M10 in the lazaret, and should also be used as a ladder to access to the bathing platform.

No existing passerelle in the yacht market would be adapted to the situation.

A careful study unabled us to find the right design and our answer has been a passerelle made of two parts:

One part being located into the lazaret when at rest
One part remaining outside and being used as a scale to reach the platform from the main deck

All the elements were made in carbon and glass fiber, and the movement has been made possible thanks to a strait collaboration with GZ Nautica for the rams and electronic.

This boat being used intensely, we followed her in Lavagna and Napoli for the first study of dimensions, constructed all the elements in our workshop, but installed them during the annual shipyard session in Olbia Sardinia.

Length when fully extended : 4 M 70 from transom
Working capacity : 350 Kg

Settee on the fly bridge

August 11, 2018March 4, 2020 adrienstratosphere

Monaco/Viareggio 2012

This new 92 foot motor yacht was unable to get his shipyard made settee delivered in time.

The new settee should of course look like if it where original.

A careful study of the existing furniture design, allowed us to find a shape matching the style of the boat.

Fly Bridge Hard Top

July 29, 2018March 4, 2020 adrienstratosphere

Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat 2013,

On this 23 M motor yacht, the old bimini made of stainless steel tubes and canvas suffered each year from the sun and rain.

It was too weak to be left out with big winds and was not giving much protection from the summer heat. It was thus decided to replace it with a hart-top situated in front of the existing roll bar.

This permanent part needed to be strong enough to sustain all bad weather conditions the boat might encounter while remaining light enough to avoid needing extra reinforcement and weight in the upper area.

The careful design of the new shape and its air flow simulation enabled us to keep the windage low even when facing an eighty Knots apparent wind.

A light composite construction allowed us to keep the weight to a minimum. The addition of three apertures equipped with smart glasses made it possible to look at the stars at night while enjoying the shade during the hot sunny days.

Unique piece for international shows

October 7, 2019March 4, 2020 adrienstratosphere

In July 2019, we met the French composer Michel Redolfi (michelredolfi.info), specialized in underwater music. For his next show, scheduled for August 24th in Deauville, he needed a special piece allowing him to “sit on the water”. Having found no satisfying products on the market, he asked Strat-o-sphere to design this new custom-made item.

redolfi sans soucoupe jobe2 — Design imagined by Strat-o-sphere

This element had to be at the same time stable, light, resistant, wide, floating but staying at the limit of the water, and needed a certain style to be integrated in international shows.

Strat-o-sphere designed and manufactured this custom made fiberglass piece in a few days by Infusion Technology

After consultation with Michel Redolfi, we chose a white gel coat finish and bamboo plating in the center, on the seat part.

This unique piece was delivered in time for the show in Deauville, where we saw the French-American director and actor Jean-Marc Barr lend his voice to the underwater concert “In the dream of whales” …