Shaping the things to come…..

Emirates Team New Zealand design engineer Jamie France takes his eyes off 3D models of the AC72 cat long enough to blog about what he’s up to…..

My main responsibility at Emirates Team New Zealand is to design and manage our core 3D model of the boat.

Affectionately known as “Grand Central”, because it is the main meeting point for all the inputs and outputs of the design team, hull shapes, sailor input and engineering go in one end, and the final boat comes out the other in a perfect 3D model, complete to the last nut and bolt.

I sit right in the middle of everything, helping to filter all the different parts of this multi-functional design effort into our best shot at an AC72.

I work with some of the best naval architects and engineers in the world, and balance that with ensuring that the sailing team is going to get the boat they want – one that is ergonomic and functional to enable them to push it to the limit.

Once the design is mature, (and it’s never really finished – we’ll continue tweaking right up until the last day) we move into the building phase, which is where we are right now with our first boat.

This is a stressful time as there are still a lot of design issues to resolve, but we don’t have the luxury of time to finish them all before we start construction. As a result we are always trying to stay just ahead of the builders, locking things down where we must and keeping other options open for as long as we can.

It certainly makes for a complex build but in this game, where it’s a first generation design and every team is looking to hit the optimum corner, you need to push things as hard as you can.

What I love about the Emirates Team New Zealand design team is the fantastic cross-pollination of ideas that come out of such a diverse team, and the sheer motivation of the group to get the design across the line no matter the effort it takes. It’s a rare experience to find a team that gels so well, and one that keeps you motivated when the stress levels get up there.

All in all we know we have a lot of catching up to do to match Oracle. They’ve got a good head start, but under this rule there’s plenty of scope for exploration, and it’s a design challenge that we’re really enjoying.