ShowBoats International's Cover Article "THE LIVING END" continued
Espinosa was commissioned to provide a number of design studies. "We spent about a year on the process," he recalls, "because the client wanted to explore all the possibilities before going to the final design, which grew from 115 feet to the final 147 feet."
The next phase consisted of searching for a naval architect and a builder. The owner displayed as
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much intensity at this stage of the project as in the design phase. In his search for just the right hull, he ultimately ended up hiring three naval architects. "We tank tested three different hulls at B.C Research," he says. "Jay's design was the last. I had asked Ed Hagemann to review it, and he made some suggestions, which Delta incorporated. The boat ran very well in the rough water test." The semi-displacement hull that Delta built also has proven to be highly efficient. At low cruising speeds of 14 to 15 knots, the 2,450-hp Caterpillar 3512B engines burn a combined 60 gallons per hour.
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Gran Finale's superstructure required particularly careful engineering because of the open layout. For example, a number of areas- the main and dining salons, the bridge deck lounge and the owner's stateroom- are free of bulkheads that impede the view or close the space. In addition, the boat has large windows on both the main and bridge decks, which further reduce the number of possible load-bearing elements.
Despite the technical difficulties the yacht's design created for Delta, as far as the owner is concerned, the styling is right on target. "I wanted the boat to be sleek, contemporary and streamlined," the owner explains, "And I don't believe in Dock Express. A boat should be able to go across the oceans on its own bottom, so I wanted a low center of gravity so the boat would be more seakindly."
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Other requirements were that the boat be able to attain over 20 knots and have a relatively shallow draft. To aid in weight control while providing the support needed for the open arrangement, Miner incorporated a substantial amount of carbon fiber into the superstructure after extensive engineering and finite element computer modeling. The hull and many parts of the superstructure use Core-Cell in the laminate, while decks and bulkheads are cored with Air-Lite. To reduce weight alof, the arch is built almost entirely of carbon fiber.
Further complicating the weight study was the owner's requirement that the boat be extremely quiet underway. Willem van Cappellen was commissioned to provide acoustical engineering of space, the master head is separated from the stateroom by a partial bulkhead concealing a 50-inch plasma TV that allows the overhead to continue forward as it slopes, unhindered, toward the front of the superstructure. The sole has been lowered forward of the partition, so that the overhead height is not appreciably reduced.
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