Feature 4 | MEGA YACHTS Drive behind new design
A new concept ‘Superyacht’ has been envisioned by UK-based design company Drive for potential customers at the very highest end of the luxury market.
T
he 125m 7Cs from UK designer Drive concept is said to challenge the traditional proportions of
a superyacht and “create a vessel that borrowed tried and tested ideas from the automotive industry”. Drive said its designers had experimented with character of line, proportion, and graphical breakup to create a vessel with a “unique stance and balance above the water line”. Drive has designed a number of sea-going vessels, ranging in size from small motor boats to large superyachts of 50m and above. Drive said it believed that the vessel’s
primary use would be as “an overtly luxurious cruiser, with the accommodation space arranged purely to provide the levels of comfort and space that the owner would expect in his homes”. Drive envisages a hull featuring a
reverse bow, which the designer says will minimise slamming, create a smaller wake, and afford a longer range. The ‘wave motif ’ running from the bow down the side to the stern would allow the superstructure to be somewhat higher at the bow, protecting the deck. It would also allow for the break up of the profile of the yacht, lowering the visual line as it runs towards the stern, and an attendant colour break-up would lighten the visual bulk of the yacht, making it look a lot lower in the water than it would actually be. Drive said cruising speed would be
in the region of 20+ knots. The vessel’s range at cruising speed (until the tank’s dimensions have been defined, this cannot be defined precisely) would be about 5500 nautical miles. Among the vessel’s special features
would be a sunken pool in the fore section with a retractable cover to provide shelter for swimming in poorer weather, also maximising deck space when not in use. Drive said it was looking at the possibility that a helicopter could be garaged to maximise deck space when in storage.
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Concept for a new 125m long ‘Superyacht’ from Drive.
Concept for a new 125m long ‘Superyacht’ from Drive. Concept for a new 125m long ‘Superyacht’ from Drive.
Pic: The ‘wave motif’ running from the bow down the side to the stern would allow the superstructure to be somewhat higher at the bow, protecting the deck.
The ‘wave motif’ running from the bow down the side to the stern would allow the superstructure to be somewhat higher at the bow, protecting the deck.
Pic: The ‘wave motif’ running from the bow down the side to the stern would allow the superstructure to be somewhat higher at the bow, protecting the deck.
Te yacht would also feature a rear
‘surrounded’ jacuzzi providing shelter and privacy for the owner. Internally, Drive envisages an atrium space with a double curved staircase. An area envisaged for the stern had been inspired by contemporary glass structures and demonstrated a play on ‘inside/outside’ space. Te superyacht would also offer the usual ‘toys’ that are found on other yachts, but Drive said it also had ideas for side garage doors where smaller craſt could be driven in or out without the use of a winch system. At this stage of the project, Drive said it
had not progressed to looking at specific equipment for the vessel. However, Drive’s designers had a list of specific
features that they wanted to include, and these dictated some of the exterior proportions. Since initially showing the concept at
the Monaco Yacht show 2008, Drive said it had developed the design and, based on feedback received with input from suppliers, was currently finalising the interior accommodation space. Drive said its thinking here had been driven originally by the aspiration for the interior to be as spacious and open as possible. Te interior would have provision for about 12 guests (possibly up to14), with double that for crew. Drive said that, in the future, it
would look to a partnership with a naval architect to take the project to production. NA
The Naval Architect July/August 2009
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