Articles about Design and Construction

CATAMARAN VERSUS MONOHULL – WHICH IS BEST FOR YOU? I’ve long been fond of quoting the 16th century Scottish philosopher David Hume who wrote that “all advantages are attended with disadvantages.” For Hume the good life had nothing to do with the quest for perfection, but the effort to discover the wise compromise that might inch us closer to fulfillment. Every person who contacts The Mulithull Company is striving to follow Hume’s advice (whether they know it or not!). They hope to make the wise compromise when choosing their yacht. As such, they seek honest answers to three.....

DAGGERBOARDS VS. KEELS – WHICH IS BEST FOR ME? Many people are confused about the pros and cons of daggerboards versus keels. As with everything, there are advantages and disadvantages. Here are my thoughts on the pros and cons of dagger-boards: PROS A daggerboarded cat will sail consistently higher into the wind than a cat with keels. Typically between 5 to 7 degrees higher. This added speed and pointing ability represents a significant safety feature when cruising because it enables you to claw off a lee shore or to arrive at an upwind destination with far greater alacrity. Someti.....

In my 15 plus years in the catamaran industry, I've seen many things change for the better, and many things that have stayed exactly the same in boat designs. There are always familiar discussion topics that come up: daggerboards versus keels, bridge-deck clearance, luxury versus performance, helm placement, safety, etc. Over the last 10 years, and especially recently, the idea of "going green" in sailing voyages keeps coming up. And while some very smart engineers have dedicated great time and effort to developing reliable, redundant electric driven propulsion systems, one thing continues to.....

Catana, the world's leading innovator of luxury performance catamarans, is proud to announce several construction innovations that have dramatically reduced the weight of their catamaran line, making their yachts faster than ever before. In all, these modifications have reduced the overall weight of the Catana 50 by 8,602 pounds. The Catana 42, 47, 58 and 65 have also seen dramatic weight reductions. The modifications to the Catana 50 that have lead to this dramatic decrease in weight are as follows:1. Catana 50 Catamarans are now built with resin infusion, including hulls, deck, biminis, bul.....

We know that the future of boating is linked to the development of electric engines, and in this field, the multihull has a lead of several lengths. Here is the Solar Magister project, whose ambition is nothing other than beating the record for crossing the Atlantic. Concept The project, initiated by Pierre Marie Lemer, is simple: to beat the record for crossing the Atlantic, with zero CO2 emissions...and not on a sailing boat, thus creating an electric ‘Blue Riband’. Several teams are working all over the world on prototypes of zero CO2 emission boats. Today, the record.....