SEA Yachting Magazine has published an article on Rapido Catamarans entering the power cat market (and our sister companies, Rapido Trimarans and Triac Composites) in its November / December 2019 issue.
An abridged version of the original article appears below.
To view the original and unedited article, click here and turn to pages 54-56.
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Rapido enters the power cat market
Rapido Trimarans has now diversified into power catamarans
Without a hint of irony, Koch explains that sailing in a straight line from trimarans to power cats is not crazy at all.
“For 30 years, I have been building lightweight, performance sailing boats from composites. While trimarans are niche, the power cat market is growing strongly – but with big, heavy boats that require equally big, thirsty engines.
“With Rapido’s expertise and capability, and design by Dr Albert Nazarov of Albatross Marine Design (AMD), we can easily make power catamarans that deliver superior performance and fuel economy.”
Rapido’s range of catamarans presently comes in two sizes: 12m (Commercial) and 17m. The 17m version comes in both a Commercial and Owner’s configuration.
Rapido Catamarans' RC12
The RC12 has been designed for both the tourism industry (including resorts) and as a fun party boat. It can also be used as a water taxi commuter vessel. AMD won the European Product Design Gold Award for their 10m variation of this water taxi.
Dr Nazarov says that the priority has been to design an affordable, light, airy and spacious boat that is safe, comfortable, practical and easy to maintain. The RC12 is highly efficient and offers environmentally friendly options of hybrid or electric propulsion with solar energy. The design also takes into consideration low wave and low noise to minimize negative impacts in operating areas.
Dr Nazarov also notes that catamarans feature 30-50 per cent lower vertical accelerations and shocks compared to monohull craft of similar size. The RC12 design further ensures passengers enjoy a very comfortable stable motion at speeds of up to 15-20kts (depending on the propulsion system selected).
The RC12 is at home operating in the choppy conditions of estuaries, harbors and major rivers where there is a lot of traffic. In addition, the vessel is highly maneuverable in tight areas due to wide separation of the propulsion units.
The design shows a care about people with disabilities, so boarding of passengers has also been designed for wheelchair users. There are designated wheelchair zones, with adjacent seats for accompanying persons.
Safety is paramount and the boat complies to ISO Small Craft Standards for Category C and can be built to specific National regulations as required.
The structure is composite sandwich with carbon reinforcements.
Rapido Catamarans' RC17 (Commercial)
The RC17 (Commercial) was designed with the highest degree of versatility in mind with modular plug in/out seating. In summary, this vessel was designed for commercial operators wishing to maximise their return on investment.
Possible market segments include: commuter, day charter, sunset cruises, up market lunches and dinners (eg for five-star resorts with aft deck having tables, sofas etc), party / disco boat, corporate events (incl. team building), dive boat, fishing trips etc.
The RC17’s ability to effortlessly beach with reinforced bottoms and protected props as well as bow retractable steps is sure to win it a lot of friends.
Rapido Catamarans' RC17 (Owner's)
The RC17 (Owner’s) version is ideal and very comfortable for 20 guests.
It offers robust elegance with a very competitive price tag.
Dr Nazarov has designed the boat for energy efficiency and sea comfort with bright, open, airy spaces for living including top deck, main deck with bow seating, saloon and aft deck and either three or four cabin layout and an optional second helm in the saloon.
The boat is perfect for the tropics yet it can be enclosed for year-round, all-weather, comfort.
Propulsion can be the base twin 300hp diesels with options up to twin 700hp diesels or hybrids or all electric.
Read the original and unabridged article
The original article includes more on our builder, Triac Composites and our sister company, Rapido Trimarans. You can view by:
Reading the original article on line; or
By downloading the article in pdf format by clicking here.