produced the Air Winches, V-Blocks, Fly Blocks and more. ‘Almost everything new from Harken goes through the Lab,’ Wiss says. Creating and running HarkenLab,
and upgrading it to keep pace with new sailing technology is a massive cost overhead – well over five per cent of turnover, Merello says – but it’s crucial for Harken’s business and a fundamental part of its nature. ‘We are custodians of this brand built by Peter and Olaf Harken over 60 years,’ says Harken CEO Bill Goggins. ‘We always first make sure the product is right and secondarily look at return on investment. Customers always get the best care and service, which you may not see on the balance sheet but might be the most important ROI.’ HarkenLab serves a dual purpose.
As Merello explains, it is primarily used for Harken’s own R&D which encompasses everything from blocks and hardware for dinghies to captive winches for the world’s largest superyachts – and comprehensive ranges of hardware for every sort of sailing vessel in between. ‘We have 12 design engineers in the winch factory alone and ten of them are focused on pure R&D,’ Merello says. However, the Lab and its highly skilled staff are also made available to Harken’s customers to conduct their own equipment testing and data gathering, and to work collaboratively on custom projects. ‘During the 35th AC in 2017,
the Hydraulic Lab developed the high-speed up/down cylinder that moves the foil,’ Wiss says. ‘The team provided target speeds and a prototype cylinder was built and tested to prove the concept.’ ‘For the 36th AC in 2021, the
HarkenLab in Italy set a test to enable team grinders to validate the new True Clutch before it ever went near a boat. The setup included two pedestals linked to a winch and a hydraulic pump, using the True Clutch to divert grinder energy between winching sheets and pumping oil while never stopping grinding or adjusting their cadence.’ For the next AC – the 37th, in
2024 – Harken’s Hydraulic Lab has redesigned its rotary pump test bench to allow either a bicycle or pedestal to be used for evaluating the latest design. ‘Teams are invited to travel to Pewaukee to jump aboard and collect data,’ Wiss says. This data allows the team to better design their systems in advance of launching the boat, saving time and resources.’ An Ultime crew also used the
Winch Lab facility recently. ‘They wanted to validate our nine-ton Air Winch for the new boat they were
Above: the HarkenLab hardware test bench was recently used to develop a new type of mainsheet traveller called Flight Control that is specifically designed for 50ft-100ft foiling yachts. Right: the HarkenLab in Italy is where many of the top grand prix sailing teams come to validate new winches and pedestals so they can go into sea trials with complete confidence in their sail trimming systems
building,’ Wiss says. ‘They brought their trimmers and the ropes they were going to use. We simulated the manoeuvres: ease, pull, release. Then we sent them a full digital report with video, data on loads and efficiencies, all sorts of information that would allow them to feel confident that what they were buying was exactly what they wanted to have on the boat.’ What happens when cutting-edge
equipment isn’t bench tested before it goes on the boat? In the run-up to the Deed of Gift AC match in 2010, BMW Oracle Racing learned the hard way. ‘They had winches from one of our competitors that were nicely designed but had only been put through their paces on screen with FEA and theoretical testing,’ Goggins explains. ‘In sea trials when tested under higher load the mainsheet winch was pulling final pinions and clearly not up to the grunt.’ ‘The trimmers were quite scared
about getting injured,' Wiss says. ‘We’re talking big loads, 10-12 tons you’re holding in your hand and all of a sudden it’s backing up on you.’ Harken had already designed its
own equivalent winch in a parallel R&D project, built a prototype and tested it. ‘We were able to invite the teamto Italy, they brought their mainsheet and we duplicated the
sailing environment in HarkenLab,’ Goggins says. ‘We helped them determine with confidence, with actual data, what worked and what didn’t.We showed exactly where we would expect something to fail on the bench so they could have confidence to push the gas pedal to that level and no further. At the same time we also established a high level of confidence that the winch we would put on the boat and ultimately win the AC with was the right solution. It wasn’t just theoretical, it was proven.’ That Oracle winch project neatly
illustrates the value of HarkenLab and also more generally highlights Harken’s determination to always be at the front of new sailing technology. ‘Being deeply involved with every defender and every challenger of record for the AC and all these leading offshore projects, the fun thing is when they come with a blank sheet of paper and say they’ve got a new idea,’ Goggins says. ‘We are always ready for that and it’s what enables us to stay relevant and dynamic when it comes to getting solutions and working in partnership with these teams.’ Watch HarkenLab video
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