FARRIER MARINE lMore than 3,000 production and plan-built Farrier Marine multihulls sailing around the world l 45 years of constant research, development and innovative thinking l Light to medium-displacement fast multihulls that are quick, strong, roomy and safe l Leading-edge composite technology from the start l Unsinkable sailboats with take-it- anywhere trailability l Performance and reliability demonstrated beyond doubt l All designs easily shipped in 40ft containers – the ‘Boat in a Box’


intense period of testing followed. Many new features, such as a boomless mainsail that can be roller furled for storage, were introduced and perfected in this time. This boat no1 was then shipped to Brisbane in mid-2014 for race testing where it proved immediately successful, collecting plenty of silver at both regional and national level.


Aerospace-quality construction All F-22 production parts are fully resin- infused under high vacuum, drawing the resin through all of the various reinforcing fabrics and perforated foam cores consis- tently and simultaneously to deliver an aerospace-quality finished laminate. The system we use was perfected over time and now every component is vacuum bagged and resin infused in the same way, with a hardwearing gelcoat finish. As on previous F-boats, beams and foils are all carbon reinforced and again resin infused. A unique, diligently (some would say


tediously) prepared F-22 edition of the ‘FarrierBuild’ production management system guides the process from start to finish. This takes the form of an extensive 200-page step-by-step guide for the full manufacturing process in checklist form, with 3D drawings at every step and in-situ example images. With a very international market for our boats, this quality manage- ment system was devised so that any well- qualified composite facility can follow the steps required to deliver as near-perfect a product as possible – one that will be impossible to distinguish from another boat built using the same processes on the other side of the world. A lot of this again comes down to protecting the hard-earned reputation of our boats. This build control system was first devel-


oped for the F-27 when setting up Corsair Marine and was instrumental in our ability to deliver two near-perfect F-27s every week. It only needs every step to be fol- lowed religiously and signed off to build a well-finished, problem-free product.


International manufacture The response to the production F-22 has obviously been strong, with 15 boats built and 50 more deposits held at the time of writing. Even with all the preparations described, such strong demand from owners hungry to get sailing has inevitably put pressure on the development programme; but the integrity of the project has at no point been compromised with shortcuts. Our philosophy remains intact – every


boat must be built well from the begin- ning rather than rush ‘something that will do’ out of the door. We know we regu- larly test the patience of good customers but in the long term this annoying attitude is a big reason for them wanting these boats in the first place. That said… with the technical challenges resolved the focus is now on improving production efficiency and satisfying demand in as timely a fash- ion as we can – but without compromise. Of course we want to reduce the order backlog (currently there is a more than two-year wait to get an F-22) but we will do it carefully. All F-22s are built in New Zealand but


this is not a cost-effective solution if we are to step up in output; to develop much higher volume production is impossible without looking further afield. Thus even- tually only New Zealand and Australian orders will be built in Christ church, along with the more technical items, mainly beams, folding system and foils, all of which are relatively cheap to ship. The build options we are evaluating are


mainly existing overseas facilities that may be under-used or dormant, or alternatively securing local finance to build a dedicated facility in regions of high demand. The NZ factory will eventually become


the development centre for future designs including an all-carbon F-22F foiler that is currently in process. This will be a limited edition (five boats only) foiler for the real world, with curved foils that retract fully in light air (so no need for an oversized rig)


ACHIEVEMENTS l 2016 – F-27 named as one of the four most influential yacht designs of the past 50 years by Sailing Magazine l 2004 – F-27 is inducted into the American Sailboat Hall of Fame l 1998 – F-28 judged Performance Multihull Sailboat of the Year by Sailing World magazine l 1996 – F-24 is Sailing World Boat of the Year in the performance multihull category l 1995 – Sail Magazine (USA) recognises the F-27 as ‘having a significant and positive impact on sailing over the past 25 years’ l 1992 – F-31 is awarded Australian Sailboat of the Year l 1981 – Australian Boat of the Year is the Farrier Tramp trimaran


plus the foils remain in situ when folded including for trailing; to be strong enough such foils have to be quite heavy, to the point of being awkward to handle – having to remove them for folding or trai- lering would be a big drawback for a boat of this type. The F-22 foils will be simple and user-friendly as well as practical for use in strong winds and large waves… all without having to be overly long (the ‘easy fix’ in terms of performance). Curved lifting foils were first used on


the F-27 in 1985, but were discarded as being too expensive for our market. They were also almost certainly too big a tech - nical – and performance – leap at that time. The regular F-27 was already differ- ent enough for most sailing folk and some- thing as radical as lifting foils could have started to frighten some people away… However excited we get within our


bubble, our multihull community should at least try to stay mindful that nearly 150 years after Nathanael Herreshoff and his catamaran Amaryllis wiped the floor with their monohull rivals at the New York Yacht Club Centennial Regatta (and were promptly banned for their trouble) we still operate on the edge of the mainstream. As they say, a good reputation is hard


won and easily lost! Ian Farrier, San Francisco


q SEAHORSE 61


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