HYDRO TEC’S WINNING STREAK CONTINUES

In the last 3 years the company has collected several awards and prizes in the hottest sector of the nautical industry, the segment of explorer yachts of between 35 and 45 meters and under 500 GT.

The Motor Yacht Explorer Acala triumphs at the World Superyacht Awards 2023 in the category best displacement 499GT and below, from 40m to 44.9m.

This success is the third in a row for Hydro Tec which, in 2021 and 2022 triumphed always in the class below 499 GT, respectively with the first Flexplorer launched by Cantiere delle Marche, M/Y Aurelia, and with the first 38-meter Rosetti, M/Y Emocean. These awards testify to the strong impact of the company in the most coveted and trendy sector of yachting, where for more than a decade, Hydro Tec has earned ample space, thanks to the high standard of professionalism and experience achieved.

The success of Acala is the result of teamwork that has consolidated over the years and is the outcome of Hydro Tec’s integrated approach. The company is able, both when it deals only with the naval architecture of a project or while dealing with the whole project in a holistic way, taking care of both, the design and engineering, to maximize the result, designing yachts easy to build, efficient, safe and with recognizable and timeless exterior lines.

Acala was commissioned by a repeat client who previously owned a Darwin 102,

an experienced yachtsman who was cruising in the Med but also sailing the expanses of the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic and reaching the wild beauty of remote destinations and the best diving spots in the world.

This is not something new for Hydro Tec, which is used to dealing with returning customers, who usually, after having experimented the reliability and comfort of the company’s projects, are choosing the same team to satisfy their needs and thirst for adventure.

Acala boasts full displacement naval architecture by Hydro Tec, offering a large volume (499GT) and the smoothest of travel even in rough seas ensuring excellent comfort and total safety. The engineering was developed by the yard’s technical department in collaboration with Hydro Tec. Like all explorer yachts built by Cantiere delle Marche, it features a thick and robust steel hull and a light aluminum superstructure.

The hull is a development of Hydro Tec’s typical displacement hull with optimal bow section and flat, relatively dry stern. This type enables the yacht to achieve exceptionally high efficiency values and excellent sea holding performance. All the forward sections, including the bulbous bow, were designed to improve penetration to reduce forward wave formation. The volumes of the hull were distributed according to the longitudinal weight distribution.

Combining these two aspects required lot of work on the CFD side.

It was an iterative process where the results from the hydrodynamic analysis were continuously matched with the results of the trim and stability analysis, with the propulsion system design to keep the correct propeller diameter and shaft inclination and with the fin stabilizer arrangement to allow the four fin stabilizers to stay within the maximum width and draught of the hull.

The hull resulting from the design process was a round bilge hull with concave sections aft to allow the proper clearance to the propeller and, then, keep noise and vibration very low, provided with single skeg, V-brackets and twin suspended rudders.

The central section is quite “full” but with generous deadrise to keep the fuel capacity but still suitably streamlined in order to ensure a soft riding and a good directional stability.

The flared bow was designed combining aesthetical and functional aspects to meet the owner’s wishes for a classic feel and to help keep the deck dry in rough seas.

The result was a yacht with a gross tonnage of 499GT, a total length of 43.10 meters, a beam of 8.60m, with 62,400 liters of fuel capacity, having an extremely frugal consumption of her twin Caterpillar C32 Acert engines of 746kW each, allowing a range of above 5,000 nm at 10 knots and a top speed of 14 knots.

The yacht’s engine room, as all engine rooms designed by Hydro Tec, is clean and functional.

Acala is a thoroughbred explorer therefore she needs a high level of independence. The engine room is one of the sources of that independence as its redundant equipment allows one to sail far and wide and to reach remote areas of the globe where it is impossible to access any sort of assistance. An expansive lazarette provides a very large storage area needed for many cruising necessities, water toys, diving equipment, etc. The main tender is stored on the upper deck forward.

Crew quarters and service areas are functional and well-appointed, as requested by the owner. Five cabins are on the lower deck alongside a roomy crew mess opposite a professional galley and the captain has his own cabin on the upper deck next to the wheelhouse.