Lloyds Certified Pre Preg Mast repairs
During the winter of 2023 / 24 i3 were the chosen supplier to perform major structural repairs on the mast of a Large 37m sailing yacht rig.
It was initially being debated if the damage was too substantial to repair or if there would need to be a new section of mast manufactured and installed.
Eventually it was decided that the mast was salvageable but the repair spec was much larger than what was initially expected.
The repairs were to be certified and monitored by LLoyds of London which means that every detail of the project was closely under inspection and every single process and variable from temperatures / humidity / batch numbers was to be monitored and recorded.
The project was split into two parts: the scarf repair and the external wraps which had been determined were required by Lloyds.
There were a total of x6 cure cycles that had to be performed due to the amount of layers of carbon involved in the repair sequence meant that we had to be sure that there would not be any risk of an exothermic reaction.
We have performed lots of major rig modifications and repairs since i3 was formed in 2013 but this one was definitely one of the more serious repairs that we have done and we were super pleased and proud of the quality of the workmanship that we produced on the project.
Mast modifications and repairs are always some of the most crucial and technical projects that we are asked to perform. We generally will always work in conjunction with the Rig manufacturers who produce engineering / repair specs that we need to follow to ensure that the masts are repaired back to their original structural integrity.
