ULTIM to-ings and fro-ings at the Keroman Technologies yard
by CDK Technologies 12 Jan 2018 14:30 GMT
Antoine Gautier, Head of the MerConcept design office © CDK Technologies
With Armel Le Cléac'h's Maxi Banque Populaire IX exiting the Keroman Technologies yard early this week, it was over to the singlehanded round the world record holder, the Trimaran MACIF, to make her entrance!
Indeed, on Wednesday 10 January, she went back to her beginnings at the very heart of the yard, which first created her in 2015, where she will benefit from a makeover. Objective: to be fighting fit to face the competition at this year's next big event, the Route du Rhum, which will set sail from Saint Malo on 4 November 2018.
A makeover for the Trimaran MACIF within the Keroman Technologies yard
The low-down from Antoine GAUTIER, Head of the MerConcept design office: "It's a coming home for the Trimaran MACIF, which is returning to her nest.More substantial than a winter refit, the bulk of the work will involve a series of optimisations following on from the observations made during the round the world circuit and, more broadly, 2017.
The boat will remain at the Keroman Technologies yard for around five months where she will undergo a significant upgrade. If we want to win races against our newly launched rivals, these major developments are crucial. At CDK Technologies in Port-La-Forêt, north-west Brittany, we have a new set of latest generation foils in build, which will introduce substantial gains, together with a boom to increase the boat's power and save weight. In Lorient, we're going to modify the platform and the floats. I can't say any more than that; you'll just have to see what's gone on when she's relaunched this June."
Yann DOLLO, Deputy Managing Director of CDK Technologies: "As has been the case since the trimaran MACIF first began to take shape here, our teams at CDK and Keroman Technologies will provide François Gabart's team with the best possible support. Among those involved in this major optimisation, we're hooking back up with the people who worked on the construction of version 1 of the trimaran, namely Stéphane DIGARD, the project manager, and Matthieu KLOEK, the design office engineer, as well as the majority of the team on the ground who originally built the platform. In our view, continuity is fundamental from both a technical and a human viewpoint. Playing a significant role in the project, these people know the Trimaran MACIF inside out and work in complete cohesion with François' team.
Beyond the pride at having the Trimaran MACIF back amongst us, we're very happy to be able to bring our know-how to bear and to contribute to the constant evolution of these incredibly high performance boats. For nearly 33 years, the teams at CDK and Keroman Technologies have constantly strived for excellence so that the boats built in our yards are as competitive as possible."
2018 is shaping up to be a great year for the boatyard created back in 1984, with developments to the latest generation ULTIMs (the Maxi Trimaran Banque Populaire IX, the Trimaran MACIF), together with a series of other build projects, including the forward beam on the ULTIM trimaran SODEBO 5 and CHARAL from the IMOCA category.