Panamax is a 60 meter carbon composite sailing yacht being developed by SP. It features a hull claimed to be the largest ‘one-piece’ prepreg molding. Despite exhibiting a large size, the vessel is believed to be able to cross the Panama canal, which led to it being named Panamax.
Rod Fogg, principal engineer at SP, said that Panamax is the biggest project undertaken by the company featuring ground-breaking systems and engineering.
The yacht features a two-stage lifting keel that can operate in three positions. It raises two stages with the aid of internal and external rams to 3.7 meters above the deck for the harbor draught.
The yacht can bear a grounding load of approximately 3,000 tons. It also features a light-ship displacement of just 210 tons. Its drive-train and power-generating systems, and 40 ton water ballasting system, make it a high functioning vessel.
Undergoing construction at the Finnish yard of Baltic Yachts, it is expected to be complete in 2011. The vessel is being built with a combination of SP prepregs, Nomex honeycomb, and Corecell foam cores.
Gerard Dijkstra & Partners from the Netherlands, and Reichel Pugh Yacht Design Inc., in the US, are two other naval architectural firms involved in its designing.
