Cranchi - Carbon fibers: Lamination (act 3)

The quality Cranchi has achieved today in lamination, after researching, testing, and collaborating with long-time partners, is the result of the commitment to research and experimentation by all the parties involved.?

We have come a long way together: let's have a look at the many innovations we have introduced to achieve the highest quality standards.

A long record of quality

Today, just like yesterday, Cranchi's production employs raw materials of the highest quality. Each system undergoes continuous and thorough updating, where the innovations that pass the testing phase get implemented to achieve the best possible results. Our focus today is on carbon fiber, an advanced hybrid composite material that, together with aramid fiber, is part of a set of innovative materials that we have studied and tested for a long time before applying them in Cranchi manufacturing.

Advanced hybrid composite materials

We first introduced aramid fiber and then carbon fiber. Each needed a specific resin, which we researched and developed with our trusted partners.

Therefore we introduced advanced hybrid composite materials, including glass fibers - biaxial and triaxial - in different weights: our goal was to reduce weight while increasing the item's strength.

Are you wondering if we made it??

Indeed, we did!

How is Cranchi's laminate made?

Underneath the layer of gel coat and the sleek finish that you see when you look at a Cranchi's boat there is a layer of "skin coat" (a thin and uniform layer) made of glass and resin. This thin, precise layer is applied by a robot: this operation happens in the machine molding department in each production plant, where an innovative robotic system operates jointly with our crew.

The subsequent coatings are made of several layers of aramid fiber and carbon fiber, which are applied in the hand molding department. These layers are applied to the hull without a gap and the carbon fiber is also used to protect the longitudinal and transversal reinforcements.

Such painstaking stratification is made up of laying, impregnation, and rolling of different layers of fibers which follow one another until the quantities indicated in the processing sheets of each item are reached.

This phase holds great importance and must be meticulously performed to avoid the formation of micro air bubbles between the various layers.

The layering changes as we go up toward the topside and the deck.

After the application of the skin coat, the topside is layered with carbon fiber and high-density expanded PCV, which hardens when impregnated with resin, increasing resistance but not weight. The sandwich that we apply in this section is used for floors, ceilings, Hard Tops, and T-TOPs.

This high-density expanded PVC is the result of cutting-edge research and has allowed us to significantly reduce specific weight, compared to traditional lamination.

Lamination: our goal and our results

• More resistance
• Less weight
• Greater spaces

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