Why choose an aluminum hull for your RIB?
We have a great experience in polyester with the brand of semi-rigid Caribe. Recognized all over the world, the shipyards appreciate the good passage at sea of the boats, the quality of construction and the floats. The only criticism that the builders - Fountaine Pajot, Lagoon, Privilège Marine etc. - is the weight of the boat. Polyester is heavy. It is often projected, the weights often do not correspond to the documentations, it is necessary to add 20 %.
So we had the idea of creating an aluminum range, Highfield. Today, we build 4,800 boats per year. We are present in more than 40 countries.
We made this choice for questions of weight, resistance, but also of recycling. Aluminum is much less polluting than polyester. Today, we have to be more ecological and economical.
Aluminum RIBs are lighter and much better built. There is no need for molds. As the miles go by, you acquire a perfect knowledge of what to do. Since they are lighter, the boats need less powerful engines and are much more efficient than polyester hulls.
Today, aluminum is the future. There is no need for molds, we don't build on plans. This represents a substantial saving in terms of pollution and molds. It also saves time.
It is thanks to the experience acquired with Caribe that we were able to build Highfield with experienced people. Me for my knowledge of polyester RIBs through the Caribe brand, Julien Carussi, formerly of Pennel and Flipo and now production manager of the factory and development and Scott Wilson, who had already launched a brand of aluminum RIBs in Australia, Swift Marine.
Finally, Caribe and Swift gave birth to the Highfield brand.
Does aluminum make more noise than polyester when sailing?
We who build both polyester and aluminum are in a good position to talk about it. I don't see why it would make more noise. Our boats are built with a varangage, reinforcements, a real skeleton, strakes and offer an outstanding sea passage. The bladder also acts as a shock absorber.
Our boats have no sound box and are much quieter than any polyester brand. With a sort of giant fender around the boat, quite the opposite.
Aluminum construction allows for lighter boats that drain less water, and boats that are more fluid and glide over the water. This is the advantage of aluminum. We work with many partners: Route du Rhum, Vendée Globe for which we were several years official suppliers. Thomas Coville and the Sodebo team use 3 Highfield RIBs, Romain Attanasio, Samantha Davies, Mike Horn... We have many partners around the world. These ambassadors have never spoken to us about noise.
We also work with Fiish, the biggest lure maker, who use our boats for fishing. We have a big demand from fishermen.
The boats badly built in aluminum, mold and beak there it is a sounding board, no skeleton, no reinforcements.
How to equip an aluminum hull? Are there any specificities, especially in terms of electricity to avoid electrolysis?
It is a boat like any other. We have polyester parts, the console and the bolster. All the hardware - steering wheel, throttle, GPS... - is installed on the console.
After construction, our boats are put in phosphate and acid baths. We apply a powder paint and then we put them in the oven.
There is no electrolysis on our boats. Afterwards, if you screw an aluminum element onto stainless steel, you have to apply top gel, an insulator, each time you install a probe.
For the Vendée Globe 2020, our boats have been in the water for 6 months and have not encountered any problems.
