New Experimental Sailing Yacht Test Service

In addition to its renowned calm water and seakeeping yacht testing services, the Wolfson Unit is offering a new unique experimental service to the Yacht Design industry.

Over the past couple of years the Wolfson Unit has seen a greater impetus from yacht designers and their clients to quantify and compare the seakeeping qualities of their sailing yacht design choices. Therefore, the Unit developed an experimental model testing approach that would be an improvement over existing methods, simulating the 6 degree of freedom motions and accelerations.

The un-restrained sailing test approach uses a mast mounted air screw device to simulate the aerodynamic propulsion from the sails allowing the scaled model of the yacht to be tested at a range of conditions and sea states. These tests can be used as a comparative tool to assess controllability and seakeeping characteristics of multiple configurations (hull shape, appendages, inertias, etc.) by quantifying induced motions and providing an estimate of added resistance in waves. 

For a video of un-restrained sailing tests of a yacht in head seas visit our You Tube channel.

For further information on our yacht testing services visit our Sailing Yacht Model Basin Testing page.

Free Sailing Yacht Tests