Reduced

roaming
rates

Steven Davis

Designers push
the envelope to save fuel
on long-range
motor yachts.

00 february 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM

he wise-guy answer to the question, How

do you save fuel on a motor yacht? is: You pull back
the throttle. While that method works without fail,
there are those who believe that through better design
theres room still to reduce the amount of fuel yachts burn. In
this day of ever-increasing fuel costs and limited availability
and suspect quality of fuel supplies in some of the worlds
more remote cruising grounds, saving a gallon here and there
can directly affect the success of any cruising experience.
ShowBoats International asked two respected yacht designers to discuss their efforts to design the hulls, appendages and
other systems of long-range motor yachts to be more efficient

and burn less fuel. Their views may not be the final word on
the subject, but they surely are part of an expanding dialogue.
Patrick Bray has been designing yachts for 32 years, 14
of which he has spent on research and development of a
super fuel-efficient hullform, including developing new
associated technology.
Ron Holland, perhaps best known as a sailing yacht
designer, has introduced techniques related to his racing
yacht success to achieve lower drag with his displacementtype motor yacht designs. With his Marco Polo design just
launched in China, the most important decision related to the
use of a large-diameter, single-propeller configuration.
Some of Patrick Brays
key ideas for improving
fuel efficiency are on
display here below
the waterline.

SHOWBOATS.COM | february 2007

00

fuel-efficient yachts

Patrick BrAy,

Naval architect, Bray Yacht Design and

Research Ltd.
he continually rising cost of
fuel has impacted yachtsmen everywhere. In researching fuel-efficient
hulls over the past 14 years, Ive achieved
significant improvements that apply specifically to long-range motor yachts. Ive
looked at the principles of a good, basic
hull design, and then I evaluated methods
to increase efficiency by utilizing enhanced
appendages such as the bulbous bow and
midships blisters. The reduction in resistance gives greater fuel economy and lower
environmental impact. Improved comfort
is a substantial side benefit.
My intent with these exercises was to
achieve a hullform that was efficient over
a wide range of displacement and semidisplacement speeds; one that was capable
of serious ocean passages with a comfortable motion and had good stability characteristics and very good fuel economy. I
first studied various hullforms and their
relative efficiencies and seaworthiness.
This led me to use a lobster-boat type of

The bulbous bow is

a crucial component in
saving fuel and improving
stability in a seaway.

hull because of its low resistance over a wide speed range.

From that point, I added features to further enhance
performance: a finer bow for low resistance and low bow
wave; high, wide spray knockers at the bow to add significant
volume when pitching into a seaway; low transom immersion
to reduce drag at low speeds; and wide spray chines at the stern
above the waterline to give trim control at higher speeds.
I then included performance-enhancing appendages,
which gave up to 30 percent increase in efficiency. At six
knots there is no noticeable wave train; at 15 knots there
is considerably less wave than most moderate-displacement
trawlers; and at 20 knots, this form is equal to chined,
fully planing forms for resistance and wave profile. Using
contemporary styling disguises the performance potential to
the point that these abilities are often disbelieved even with
reality floating right there at the dock.
In the 1980s, a bulb was developed specifically for use
on fishing boats. Evolving from those studies, our bulb
design is effective from eight to 20 knots and produces a
drop in resistance of more than 12 percent at its maximum
efficiency. Retrofitting bulbs to over 36 vessels, we found
that the attachment of a bulb would produce an immediate
3/4-knot increase in speed, or a minimum of 10 percent
00 february 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM

fuel savings. In addition, there is nearly 50

percent reduction in pitching motiona
side benefit that adds significant comfort.
Another appendage developed for the
fishing fleets is the bi-foil skeg. The pipeframe net guard (typically called a beaver
tail), fitted under the propeller on fishing seiners, was
optimized using a hydrodynamic foil section. In addition to
reducing drag and increasing propeller thrust, the foil shape
also acts as an automatic trim device. As the stern-down trim
increases, the angle of attack on the foil increases, creating
more lift, which reduces the running trim and dampens
out the pitching motions at the stern as well. At the same
time the prop is more protected from logs and lines. Results
show a 10 percent increase in thrust and great potential for
further development.
A new and exciting advance comes through the use of
significant appendage fairings or midships blisters. By
reducing the midships hollow in the wave train, drag is
reduced and stability under way is increased. A large fairing at
the root of the stabilizer fin creates a midships wave, reducing
the hollow. A maximum reduction of six percent in resistance
has been achieved so far, over a range of speed from eight
to 16 knots, with no resistance penalty all the way up to 20
knots. There is potential for reductions of up to 10 percent
with further development of this feature.
The large reduction in bow wave needs to be matched by
a similar reduction in the stern wave. There has been some
promising work done on stern bulbs. If a successful stern

Bray yacht design

Our tested designs proved to be as much as 30

percent more fuel efficient and can operate over
a wider range of speeds.Bray

fuel-efficient yachts

range of stability even in steep seas and to have

a good roll period in a seaway. The minimum
stability requirements of international authorities
are exceeded, providing confidence and safety for
long-range ocean cruising.
Combined successfully, this hull and appendage
design gives 30 percent reduction in resistance,
resulting in major savings in fuel costs, with the
side benefit of a more comfortable motion. These
gains become most apparent in yachts larger
than 100 feet. Continued research is expected
to reduce resistance 15 to 20 percent beyond
current results. My ultimate goal is to have a
yacht that will slip through the water without
noticeable disturbance to mark its passing: the
ultimate interface vessel.

Ron holland,

Yacht designer, Ron Holland Design

ware of the increasing interest and
growth in the long-range explorer yacht
market, and of the implications of inevitably
increasing fuel costs, the design brief given to Ron
Holland Design by MCC Maritime Concept and
Construction for Marco Polo created the opportunity for me to design this yacht with fuel efficiency
and ocean-voyaging comfort as priorities.
Keeping within an overall displacement design
concept for this modern 45-meter transoceanic explorer yacht,
and keeping in mind the operational advantages of staying
below 500 gross tons, a steel hull and a composite superstructure were my preferred construction materials. The steel hull
offers a cost-effective way to create a strong, large-volume hull,
and choice of composite materials for the superstructure gives
maintenance and weight advantages directly related to costeffective, long-distance operation.
Although the Marco Polo design concept was scale-model
tank-tested in line with conventional naval architectural

bulb appendage could produce results similar to

that of the bow or midships bulbs, then there
would be some phenomenal gains in economy
of propulsion.
When compared to other vessels without
our technology, our tested designs prove to be as much as
30 percent more fuel efficient and can operate over a wider
range of speeds. These results have been ocean-proven on long
offshore passages. Lower fuel consumption means less fuel
to carry to achieve long range. Less fuel means less overall
weight, resulting in a smaller engine size
and less structural weight to carry it. This
even lower weight requires even less power
to move, giving lower fuel consumption,
and so on. The usually vicious cycle of
increased penalties (more fuel for greater
range requiring more power that consumes
the extra fuel) has become a spiral of benefits.
The added appendages (bow bulb, midships blisters and
bi-foil skeg) and slick hullform also give superior seakeeping
characteristics. On all the boats we have retrofitted with
bulbs, the reduction in pitching is noticed the most, allowing
economical operation at a higher speed (up to two knots
faster) with the same degree of comfort. The reduced bowwave height results in less water on deck, which gives owners
a very dry boat overall.
After extensively studying the effect of hullforms on
the range of stability (the degree to which a hull is selfrighting), this hull was designed to have a good, healthy

Hollands strategy is on
display at the launch of
the first of his Marco
Polo series yachts.

I wanted to maximize the propeller

diameter within a practical approach to
draft and optimized hull lines.Holland

00 february 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM

procedures for verifying hull design performance, I also took

advantage of this research program to look in detail at the
effects of bulbous bow shape variations and accurate location of bilge keels and stabilizer fins. Optimizing hullform
efficiently is influenced not only by the overall proportions
of a design concept, but also by attention to detail. This I
learned in the world of racing sailboat design where, for a
relatively fixed amount of power derived from the sail plan,
a designs success is primarily dependent on reducing drag.
I took this experience into refining the hull lines for Marco
Polo. A primary example of this attention to detail is shown
in how the bulb shape is seamlessly faired into the bow lines

fuel-efficient yachts

Hollands Marco Polo

series features a single
engine with a largediameter prop.

of the hull. This is not an add-on appendage, but

is smoothly integrated into the hulls fine-bow,
low-resistance lines. The results of our tank-test
program and the refined hull lines development
that followed have created for this yacht a low-resistance,
seakindly hull shape.
The most significant efficiency gain however is due
to the decision to use a single-engine configuration and
large-diameter controllable-pitch propeller. Although this is at present not the
conventional approach for large private
yachts, it has become the undisputed normal approach for the worlds commercial
vessels, from small fishing boats to the
largest high-speed container ships.
I wanted Marco Polo to take advantage of these commercial-world competitive features. Consequently, we have fuel
efficiency advantages of 34 liters (8.9 U.S. gallons) per hour
compared to the more conventional twin-propeller installation for comparable speeds. This translates into a range of
3,270 nautical miles at 13 knots and 5,360 nautical miles
at 10 knots, compared to 2,730 nautical miles at 13 knots
and 4,180 nautical miles at 10 knots using conventional
twin-screw arrangements.
My response to the understandable market concerns of
designing such a yacht with one engine and propeller was
first to consider the implications of any potential unreliability
experienced in the commercial shipping world.
If the choice of a single engine created an inherent problem, commercial naval architecture would not have adopted
it to the extent it has. Marine engines and related systems

are very reliable. However, understanding there

would be market resistance to the single engine/
propeller installation, I decided to expand the
bow thrusters performance to include get home
capabilities. Not only does Marco Polos Schottel
Pump-Jet (SPJ) thruster system enable a five-knot
forward motion, but it also places the secondary
engine systems within a separate engine room,
gaining greater redundancy capability than twin
engines in one engine-room space.
The advantage of this unique design feature will
be enhanced further with the second Marco Polo
by relocating the third generator in the forward
engine room, thereby gaining full duplication of
the yachts powering and onboard systems should
there ever be a fire in the main engine room.
To explain further my goal to pursue this efficiency-oriented approach, I wanted to maximize
the propeller diameter within a practical approach
to draft and optimized hull lines. The propeller
arc swings through a hydrodynamically optimized
recess in the hull bottom and comfortably clears
the twin-rudder/skeg draft of 2.6 meters. The
relationship of the propeller tip to the hull recess
and twin skegs gives a helpful end-plate interface
effect, although the primary motivation for this
design approach is related to achieving maximum propeller
protection in keeping with the requirements of voyaging in
the worlds most remote geographic locations.
Understanding the overall gains achieved for maximizing
fuel efficiency with this project, it should be noted I made
a decision to dilute the maximum potential speed and range
advantages by incorporating large twin rudders protected by
full-length structural skegs. The small additional drag these

If the choice of a single engine created an

inherent problem, commercial naval architecture would not have adopted it.Holland

00 february 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM

oversized appendages cause was an acceptable tradeoff for the

overall design mission of Marco Polo. This yacht will retain
directional control in the most extreme weather conditions
a capability not reliable with conventional motor yachtsize
ruddersand also allows for the extreme possibility of the
vessel going aground where the rudders and propeller are
substantially protected.
As an overview, the design evolution for Marco Polo integrates the experience of commercial-shippingfuel-efficient
operation with safety and reliabilitywithin a modern, longdistance explorer-type yacht design concept; a marriage of
two marine worlds joined for the benefit of the yacht owner
who wants to operate in the most fuel-efficient manner without restriction as to his destination goals. All involved with
this new project look forward to verifying the performance of
Marco Polo during sea trials early this year.