Elandra Yachts achieves a major milestone

Luxury motoryacht builder Elandra Yachts has achieved an important milestone with the roll-over of its first hull “plug”.

The company opened its doors at a yard in Arundel on Queensland’s Gold Coast in March and achieved the milestone three months later. 

“This is a critical moment for us all,” explained Elandra Yachts Grant Senior, naval architect and General Manager at the yard. “We have spent many hundreds of man-hours on development to this stage. It was vital that we have this plug shaped and faired to our exacting standards.”

The plug is the model upon which the company will create the mould for its first line of luxury semi-custom sports yachts, a 53-footer known as an Elandra 5.

The plug was built upside down and has been turned right-way up so that the team can complete a plug and then mould for the deck and cabin top. When those moulds are taken, the hull plug will again be turned and a mould taken.

Senior said the team had labored hard on fairing to achieve a super-smooth finish over the entire hull surface.

“A super-smooth running surface is an efficient surface,” he explained. “We also expect that our hulls will be painted before delivery to our clients and any blemish on the finish is magnified by painting. Our view is to get it right now so every hull will be delivered with the finest finish.”

The hull of this first model includes a range of unique features for a boat of its size and style.

The company plans to employ an exotic composite of high-tech Kevlar and quadraxial E-Glass in the lower half of the hull – the vital section that is the running surface.

Elandra Yachts Managing Director Luke Durman said: “Both the Kevlar and the quadraxial E-Glass help provide an ideal balance of strength, stiffness, and lightweight properties. The hand-laid Elandra hulls reinforced with Kevlar will be lighter yet tougher and more damage-tolerant, and will run more efficiently and ultimately have better durability with less fatigue over the life of the boat.”

The bow of the new Elandra has an elegant flare to help disperse waves and spray and, according to Senior, “with a fine entry she’ll effortlessly cruise through the most undesirable sea conditions”. 

“This is going to be a very soft and dry riding boat,” declared Grant Senior.

The full beam of 5.35 metres (17 feet, five inches) is carried from well forward of the centerline all the way to the transom – no tapering. 

“This provides two significant benefits,” said Senior. “First, it helps with stability and second it provides a massive cockpit entertaining area as well as large volume below the deck for our tender garage as well as cavernous lazarettes for stowing gear.” 

The double chines running the full length of the hull are slightly reverse angle – higher on the inside than outside – to better lift the boat out of the hole under acceleration and to deflect spray at speed.

Elandra will also use the secondary chines to conceal the skin fittings of the boat. 

“The various water outlets – air conditioning, kitchen waste and so on – will be gathered to one sump on either side on the aft quarter of the boat and then pumped out through one skin fitting that is hidden under the upper chine,” said Senior. “An Elandra will have no unsightly skin fittings peppered over its hull.”

The variable deadrise running surface of the hull spreads from a sharp entry point, back past a narrow and shallow keel – principally to aid stability and tracking – to the unique wide convex curve at the transom similar in shape to modern racing yachts. 

“This shape adds buoyancy in the aft end,” explained Senior. “It is a tried and tested design.” 

With the plug carefully turned right way up, the team has begun work shaping the topsides.

Elandra Yachts web site is www.elandrayachts.com.