Cutting edge spars – why not?
When you are used to building AC40 flying machines everything else comes relatively easily.
MC1 Spars has been created as a partnership with McConaghy Boats, the world-class composites builder which has a decades-long heritage of creating extraordinary racing yachts from its operations in both Australia and China.
Hi-tech spar building is not easy. If it were there would be more providers out there and a generally healthy balance between supply, demand, quality and access to effective and affordable solutions. In the last few years this has not been the case. However, that is now due to change with the entry of MC1 Spars into the marketplace.
McConaghy-built boats actively compete and win in all theatres of the sport: offshore and inshore, custom and production, working with the world’s top yacht designers. This success has come from a keen focus on delivering innovation, quality and value for both custom and series-built production clients through a strong embrace of the latest technologies in tooling design, laminate materials and fabrication techniques.
Main image: The fabrication of complex composite parts and structures is McConaghy’s strong suit. Witness the fleet of AC40s they built last year.
McConaghy’s continuing re-investment and expansion of facilities and personnel in recent years is a testament to this commitment of meeting the demand for yachts of exceptional quality for their discerning clients based around the globe.
When absolute perfection was needed for one-design class conformity and functional durability in a hi-tech design, it was McConaghy that was chosen to build the AC 40s.
The complex parts of this unusual design were not a stretch for them: for many years McConaghy has built composite parts of racing sailboats: steering systems including wheels and pedestals, bowsprits, on-deck components such as stanchions, pulpits and toe rails, retractable propulsion systems, keel blades, rudders and more.
Over the past few decades McConaghy harnessed their expertise to use these parts on an enormous number of custom projects as well as several competitive one-designs with high standards. These include the MC38, Farr 40, Elliot 6m and Melges 20. So clever design, cost-effective production techniques, durability, plus part supply access issues are already in McConaghy’s DNA.
McConaghy’s core expertise also extends to foil arms and various types of foils.
And for a wide range of multihulls, where the balance of strength and weight is critical, McConaghy has built the longeron, daggerboards and numerous other important structural components.
With such a strong and proven background in composites design, engineering and fabrication the team at McConaghy has decided to go all-in on this new business dedicated to spar systems which includes masts, booms, and all associated parts. In truth, spar fabrication is not new to McConaghy. The fleet of MC38s they built a decade ago had carbon spars built in-house as well. Now with MC1 they are all in.
‘One reason we started this was to simplify an ongoing problem we were having in communication with other spar builders,’ reports Mark Evans, CEO of McConaghy. ‘Often we had issues with spars and parts sent to us just not meeting our expectations, and frequently we’ve been frustrated with the added time and expense to get it right for our customers. Now being vertically integrated we have more control on quality, cost and production timing for our customers.’
Armed with three existing autoclaves and a new one coming soon, 40m in length, MC1 is geared up for production of spars and other parts of almost any length for all types of boats: racers, cruisers and anything in between.
‘A key asset to MC1’s portfolio that other spar builders do not have,’ explains MC1 sales director Trent Justice, ‘is that with McConaghy’s extensive experience building hi-tech raceboats they know how to build the high-quality tooling needed for these boats, particularly in a series production environment. This experience has been crucial for us to create the accuracy and high quality needed for shaping spars that meet the demands of the spar designers but also have the optimised composite engineering to meet both performance expectations and suitable safety standards.’
MC1 already has three autoclaves and a fourth 40-metre autoclave is coming soon.
Evans echoes this for MC1’s foil business: ‘Our experience with the AC 40 parts has demonstrated that we can match or even exceed the demanding requirements of any foiling arms or blades. And since we were able to produce AC 40s at a rate of one every five weeks, we did this on a timely basis for that customer. We have another even larger offshore foil-based project that we cannot discuss in great detail now, but that will demonstrate our abilities in an even more demanding context.’
As part of their quality assurance process MC1 uses a 120-point product checklist protocol that includes ultrasound analyses to guarantee there are no voids in the laminates, a process they can achieve with laminates up to 10cm thick. A certificate is issued that identifies the parameters used in the process and certifies the part meets or exceeds industry standards. This document can be quite valuable for entities such as insurance companies or agencies that need proof of compliance to relevant standards.
This quality assurance process turns out to be important not just for carbon spars but also for more complex-shaped, high-load carbon parts such as longerons. The static and dynamic loads on these crucial structures for multihulls absolutely have to be reliable and error-free whilst also light in weight to meet the performance elements inherent to the designer’s specifications. For performance multihulls in particular, every kilogram is accounted for and has a direct effect on the expected performance of the boat.
Likewise, the complexities of any new and innovative spar design whether for a monohull or multihull must be evaluated carefully, not only to match the fabrication capabilities of the shop but also to meet the expectations of the spar designer. MC1 already has relationships with top designers and engineers in this field, as well as its own in-house team that can participate in the process with suitable FEA tools to further customise and tailor the part – mast, boom or other piece – to the project needs.
This in-house capability of the MC1 team creates an efficient digital compatibility throughout the process. This serves to minimise the potential for errors or misunderstandings on the pathway from genetic definition of the project through agreed details in design to final fabrication and finishing of the part.
McConaghy’s design office has the FEA tools and expertise to customise and tailor composite parts to fit a project’s needs.
Another cornerstone element of MC1’s business philosophy comes into play here: strong communication skills and a friendly and positive user experience. For the managers of each project they commit to, MC1 endeavours to create an experience where the customer’s expectations are met completely in every aspect: design, fabrication and finish quality, delivery time and price.
‘Our customer experience goals are to provide a personalised design and manufacturing process for a product that truly reflects their performance requirements,’ says Justice. ‘This includes complete transparency on this process with our new customer service portal, a first in this field, that provides weekly updates on the project. It also includes access to all completed quality assurance documents, weekly photos and detailed progress descriptions that keep our customers fully informed every step of the way.’
Another clear advantage at MC1 is their use of high-quality prepreg high-modulus carbon from reputable suppliers, which allows them to guarantee reliably strong laminates that meet or exceed the engineered standards intended for the part. Their suppliers, such as Gurit and Mitsubishi, are recognised leaders in the composites industry with years of proven performance. Even so, MC1 still test each batch they receive to give further assurance of meeting their own quality standards and ensuring compatibility with their fabrication processes.
Last and perhaps most important, MC1 is ready to commit to on-site service to support its projects.
‘This is incredibly important,’ Justice explains. ‘We have a very solid team dedicated to doing the best job possible in the design, engineering and fabrication stages of each project, but often the ultimate satisfaction for our customers is not realised until what we build is installed, tuned and proven to deliver what was expected from the outset of the project.’ This includes not just initial installation to ensure compatibility and fit, but also a commitment to ongoing care and maintenance.
‘Our dedicated team is committed to looking after our customers for the entire lifespan of the product,’ says Justice. ‘That includes effortless ordering of parts, comprehensive scheduled services or refits and continued friendly advice. This is another essential part of our goal to provide an elevated, top-tier experience for MC1 clients.’
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