Design
Game-changing green power generation
From fast charging systems and photovoltaic glass to the next generation of hydrogen fuel cell technology, McConaghy Boats is pushing the boundaries of sustainable marine power solutions
O
n the face of it, sailboats provide a head start when it comes to going green. And yet despite the number of ways in which hydro and
wind generated power has already been achieved across both racing and cruising craft of all sizes for many years, stepping things up to the next stage of emission free systems is proving to be more taxing than many had originally anticipated. McConaghy Boats are further down the line in this area than many. They see the road to success as involving a number of stages that are based around combining a range of techniques rather than holding out for a single solution. The company also has several clear
advantages both in the type of boats that they are famous for and their
acknowledged experience with high- performance composites. In particular, McConaghy’s range of luxury performance cruising cats has not only grown considerably over the years, but has drawn a great deal of attention thanks to their looks and performance. So, when it comes to generating green
power, cats of the type that McConaghy build start with two key strengths, performance is the first. Speed is clearly
important when considering hydro-generation and the McConaghy range is well known for its impressive performance. Building lightweight boats is key and here McConaghy’s long-held expertise in building advanced carbon structures
places them well ahead. ‘Building light is the starting point
‘90% of boats are fully covered with solar panels’
because when it comes to propulsion systems it means you need less horsepower to start with, which in turn means less wastage and of course more performance,’ says McConaghy Boats’ CEO Mark Evans. The second significant advantage of a cat is size. By their very nature, cats have plenty of surface area for installing solar panels when compared with an equivalent length
monohull. So it’s little surprise that across theMcConaghy range of seven sailing cats fromtheMC55 to theMC115 solar power generation has proved popular. ‘We buy the best solar solutions that are available and basically we cover the
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