New Zealand

Bowmaster

Founded in Auckland in 2008, anchor deployment manufacturer <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/7726" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Bowmaster (Company)">Bowmaster</a> has taken a lead in its sector despite a remote location in New Zealand. The company was originally the deployment system department of anchor manufacturer <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/2634" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Manson Anchors (Company)">Manson Anchors</a> set up by Kiwi offshore sailor Kerry Mair. The decision to create a stand-alone business to design and build modular and bespoke anchoring systems led to the foundation of <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/7726" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Bowmaster (Company)">Bowmaster</a>. Recent projects to carry its systems include <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/29" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Feadship (Company)">Feadship</a>’s 710 <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Yacht/10316" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Obsidian84.2m (276'3&quot;)Feadship2023">Obsidian</a>, <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/44" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Abeking & Rasmussen (Company)">Abeking &amp; Rasmussen</a>’s <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Yacht/7928" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Liva O118.2m (387'10&quot;)Abeking & Rasmussen2023">Liva O</a>, <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/23" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Lürssen Yachts (Company)">Lürssen</a>’s latest <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Yacht/8278" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Kismet122.0m (400'3&quot;)Lürssen Yachts2024">Kismet</a>, and the <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/4342" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Echo Yachts (Company)">Echo Yacht</a>'s catamaran <a data-gid="gid://syiq/Yacht/10088" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Charley 256.0m (183'9&quot;)Echo Yachts2023">Charley 2</a>. We sat down with Ned Wood, Technical Sales Director, to find out more. <img src="https://photo-assets.superyachttimes.com/photo/316296/image/large-e89b4fd9283a6da3c02c2b7be3f97649.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/316296">What is the scope of&nbsp;<a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/7726" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Bowmaster (Company)">Bowmaster</a>’s portfolio?From small tenders to 200 metre-plus vessels, we have a range of approximately 40 different systems for integrating 15 different anchors into a vessel. The systems – chain, anchor and windlass – are customised depending on the size of the vessel and the hull material, and from a material perspective we design and build systems in aluminium, carbon steel, duplex and ordinary stainless, as well as titanium. Today we produce 40-60 systems per year for the luxury marine industry. <img src="https://photo-assets.superyachttimes.com/photo/316299/image/large-42847b1b37aa1ea7873203e08d5d0176.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/316299">How have anchor systems evolved in terms of design and materials used?<a data-gid="gid://syiq/Company/2634" href="#managed-by-system" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="Manson Anchors (Company)">Manson Anchors</a> have launched 10 new Class-approved anchors in the last 10 years. The use of higher strength materials means that the anchor is getting material where it’s structurally needed and ensures greater holding power. This has resulted in the most recent anchors achieving Super High Holding Power certification and a much more robust construction. We continue to use more exotic materials such as titanium to ensure an optimised anchor combined with weight saving.<img src="https://photo-assets.superyachttimes.com/photo/117844/image/large-276626e8444dd4e67e67c23eaaf2407a.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/117844">What are the most critical fail points for anchoring systems?One fail point is potentially where you have competing systems (eg. hydraulic/pneumatic) that fight against the windlass. Anchor systems can also be vulnerable to bumps during deployment, by a boat or pier for example, which can cause them to fail and not retract. In our systems everything is designed and built to fail above chain break load, so in essence the chain will snap before the system fails. A 100-metre yacht, for example, might use a 42mm diameter chain, which has a break-load of 1280kN or 128 tonnes.It’s worth mentioning that anchor systems are required by Class to be able to be deployed immediately by pressing ‘go’ on the winch or releasing a brake, so if you lose power you can still stop the boat in an emergency. We like to keep things as simple as possible, so we generally use gravity to deploy the system, and the windlass to lift the anchor back up and stow it.&nbsp;Tell us about your testing procedures?&nbsp;We test everything on site before installation. It’s much easier to solve potential issues while the system is still in our factory than when aboard the vessel. This saves time in the build and lowers the risk of problems when the vessel is in use. Within the facility we undergo testing that simulates the anchor deployment and the potential loads. We are essentially a mini shipyard and are inspected and tested by the same regulatory bodies, be that Lloyds or ABS, who check and test all welds throughout the build process. When we’re building a new, bespoke system, we often build a steel mock-up of the hull, with the anchor pocket and deployment system to validate the design and make any necessary tweaks.<img src="https://photo-assets.superyachttimes.com/photo/316298/image/large-3086e92c2bad875d8a5872ab544e3b8b.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/316298"> What about your submarine anchors – what advantages or disadvantages do they offer?Space is always finite on a boat, so ensuring that it’s used in the most efficient way is a priority. We can do that by changing around the anchor type and anchoring arrangement. People are sometimes nervous about submarine systems because you can’t see the anchor chain, but you would normally use underwater cameras to look at chain direction in a standard system and use your GPS to drop a pin where you drop the anchor, so you know the chain direction from where the anchor lies and your current recovery position. Moreover, due to the flair in the topsides of a yacht it is very hard to actually see the anchor chain, which is why some yachts have viewing hatches in the hull at deck level. Once captains are familiar with using a submarine system they are usually happy with the performance. And from a crew point of view, polished anchors and anchor pockets are not required and there is no ‘bleed’ from a rusty galvanised anchor that can leave unsightly marks on the hull.<img src="https://photo-assets.superyachttimes.com/photo/316297/image/large-874d4eb4652b162232d4728b10e5806d.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/316297">Are there any challenges associated with manufacturing in New Zealand?We have a very low dollar compared to the US dollar or Euro, but a highly skilled workforce. Freighting to Europe is normally just one percent of the contract value, so it really doesn’t affect us, beyond the perception of being in the Southern Hemisphere, which can sometimes be negative. From a positive perspective, we can design during the night European time, so clients see updates first thing in the morning and we can receive their feedback during our working day. We also try to design anchoring systems that require low ongoing maintenance and we only use quality components that can be sourced globally, so ongoing supply is not an issue.<a href="https://www.superyachttimes.com/magazine" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" title="">This article was published in Issue 4 of the technical publication How to Build It, you can find out more about the magazine, and subscribe to download here.</a>