Photography by Persico Marine
05 March 2021
The ClubSwan 80 is being built in Nembro, Italy, at Persico Marine’s headquarters. The decision of the two brands to become partners comes from their shared vision: innovation and technology.
“Nautor’s Swan is one of the few brands to have such a wide range of yachts. This variety of projects and models meets specific needs, particularly with respect to execution,” said Enrico Chieffi, Vice President of Nautor Group.
“With the objective of broadening our product line, we have developed the strategy to create partnerships with first-class builders in different parts of the world.
“This is on top of proudly building our core yachts at our home yard in Pietarsaari, Finland.”
The new 80-foot boat is now a reality.
The first phase of construction has started at the Persico yard, where they are in the hull lamination process. This important phase is carried out with the use of very technologically advanced robots to achieve optimal quality and weight.
“Hull construction is a highly specialised and delicate process that requires high precision machinery, cutting-edge technology and impeccable technique, but, surprisingly, it can be quite romantic, as well,” Marcello Persico, president of Persico Marine, stated.
“I see the hull surface as skin touching the water when the boat finally sets sail.”
In this project, performance is a pillar of the building process. The high-tech solutions – CNC machines for machining moulds and components, a tape placement robot for lamination and a plotter for preparing the pre-cut prepreg – help to increase the quality, guarantee the consistency and optimize the construction timing of the one design parts.
The ClubSwan 80 has been conceived to be a very fast, high-performance yacht, completely in line with her sisters of the ClubSwan Yachts division, based on the concept of One-Design yachts.
All the boats are specifically designed for inshore racing and participating in the very traditional events of the Maxi circuit, especially for light to medium winds (VMG sailing).
The new model features a 4.75-metre canting keel, which proves to be a great compromise between a very fast deep keel and one shallow enough to allow the yacht to enter harbours and ports without any limitations. The ClubSwan 80 has twin rudders, as usually adopted for these new shapes designed by Juan Kouyoumdjian, such as the ClubSwan 36.
A rotating canard has been selected to optimize performance for racing in light/medium winds (VMG) and not mainly for racing offshore like the ClubSwan 125.
“The choice was to go for the most versatile option, to realise a boat that could be more competitive in tactically difficult situations. Technology needs to be optimized to what you are looking for, and that is what we try to do every time,” Enrico Chieffi pointed out.
“This boat is going to be a kind of a monster. She has been conceived to be the fastest 80- footer ever built up to now, with no runner-up in sight.”
The very long retractable bowsprit allows for a huge downwind sail that, together with the very light displacement related to the canting keel, makes the yacht a real beast downwind, ensuring great fun while sailing. On top of innovation and technology, the ClubSwan 80 is being built with sustainability in mind.
For the production of the moulds, Persico Marine uses recycled material, in particular carbon fibre coming from previously used moulds. The carbon is separated from the resin, so that the carbon can be used again as many times as possible. Additionally, the prepreg scraps are collected by Persico Marine and sent to a company specialized in medical protheses.
“At Persico, we have the themes of sustainability and the circular economy closely at heart,” Marcello Persico noted.
“We are very proud to be part of this process that not only helps us reduce waste but also gives carbon a new life for a virtuous and meaningful purpose in a completely different field.”
On the events side, the ClubSwan 80 will join the circuit of sustainable regattas, started by Nautor in 2019, involving the organisation of plastic free events and the support an international sustainable organisations.