VPLP Design wish you a
Happy New year 2022
VPLP Design wish you a
Happy New year 2022
A very instructive
Transat Jacques Vabre
In every class of the Transat Jacques Vabre 2021 the Ultims, Ocean Fiftys, IMOCAs and Class40s designed by VPLP demonstrated their reliability and logged impressive performances. Even the latest models which went into the water shortly before the starting gun did the design firm proud. Architects Quentin Lucet, Xavier Guilbaud and Antoine Lauriot-Prévost give us their assessment of the race and tell us what to expect for 2022, including season highlight the Route du Rhum.
The VPLP Design method :
a holistic approach based on dialogue and interdisciplinarity
When Alex Thomson announced publicly that he wouldn’t be taking part in the 2024 Vendée Globe, he highlighted the quality of his relationship with VPLP Design during his previous two campaigns. His remarks are a fine example of the general philosophy the firm applies to its projects in offshore racing, and in the leisure and maritime sectors too.
Piloting an electric hydrofoil catamaran
On the occasion of the METS (boat show) in Amsterdam, three companies in the forefront of ocean racing invite you to test an electric foil boat simulator.
This interactive terminal is the result of a close collaboration between the design offices of MerConcept, a company founded by François Gabart, the architectural firm VPLP Design, and the R&D team of the electronics company Madintec.
MerConcept joins
Fast Foiling Ferry Project “F3”
The public-benefit company founded by François Gabart joins forces with VPLP Design and Alwena Shipping to develop a fast and economic passenger vessel. The F3 is aimed at addressing urban mobility. Unveiled in early 2020 by VPLP Design in partnership with Alwena Shipping, the Fast Foiling Ferry (F3, pronounced “F cubed”) is a 30 m foiling catamaran capable of carrying 200 passengers at an average speed of 40 knots, burning 40% less fuel than a similarly sized displacement vessel. It’s an innovative ship concept which lays the groundwork for achieving energy transition in the sea transportation sector.
SEAFFINITY, the latest concept boat from VPLP Design
It’s now a firmly established tradition at the Monaco Yacht Show, the international superyacht show, for VPLP Design to present a new concept. At this year’s show, which has just finished, we unveiled Seaffinity, a streamlined concept trimaran which embodies our vision for the superyacht of the future. Silent, partially automated and powered by the wind, Seaffinity features two Oceanwings, those automated and reefable soft wingsails designed by VPLP and currently developed by the company Ayro.
A new website showcasing VPLP’s diversity: vplp.fr
VPLP Design’s new website, available in French and English, went live on 22 September. This completely revised version, produced in collaboration with Tip & Shaft, the copywriting studio which also puts together VPLP’s quarterly newsletter, was absolutely necessary. “Today, VPLP Design comprises three distinct business divisions,” says Simon Watin, the firm’s chairman. “Until recently, racing and cruising were developing together. We then decided to enter a new market, the maritime industry, and it appeared to us that the website should reflect these different divisions.”
New tools for structural design analysis at VPLP Design
PW50, the latest Ocean Fifty renamed today as Ciela Village, afforded VPLP Design the opportunity to test its new structural design tools using the finite element method. This is a key investment, enabling the firm to be more imaginative and incisive in the preliminary design stage. Nicolas Baral, head of structures, and engineering coordinator Xavier Guisnel talk us through the benefits.
Maxi Banque Populaire XI :
Comprehensive revision of the structural design
Launched on 27 April after a two-year build at CDK Technologies, the Maxi Banque Populaire XI impresses with carefully crafted aerodynamics and significantly larger foils. Based on Banque Populaire IX, Armel Le Cléac’h’s latest Ultim rises more easily but is also heavier… Xavier Guilbaud, naval architect in charge of the project at VPLP Design, walks us through this paradox.
Simon Watin: “Working on projects which are worthwhile and meaningful”
Simon Watin, 35, is one of the four engineers and architects who will assume the collegial management of VPLP Design when the co-founders Marc Van Peteghem and Vincent Lauriot Prévost decide to step back from full-time duties. He will take on the role of chairman at the end of the handover process, which will continue for a few more months yet.
