Welcome to the special “20th Anniversary” section of Top Yacht Design. Here we present to you, day by day, the best stories, yachts, characters we have covered in these 20 years of Top Yacht Design, from 2006 to the present day.
Taken from Top Yacht Design no. 29/2022, pp. 90-97.
Volvo Penta: Facing the Future
Always several steps ahead in terms of technology and innovation, Volvo Penta is one of the main drivers of a better future for leisure yachting.
Dates make history. In every environment and every sector. Clearly, the nautical industry is no exception. In this latter case, one such date is 2005. A year that changed everything forever. The star of this huge change is, of course, the Inboard Performance System, better known simply as IPS. Unveiled at the London Boat Show in January that year, it arrived bang in the middle of historic period that saw technology progress in leaps and bounds. The largest passenger aircraft ever built, the Airbus A380, made its maiden flight in 2005 too, for example. 2005 also left an indelible stamp on the environmental protections scene as this was the year when the Kyoto Protocol, signed by 14i countries, came into force. Progress and sustainability, unsurprisingly, both lie at the core of Volvo Penta’s vision and culture. The IPS was just a step on the journey begun at the end of the 20th century whose roots lay all the way back in 1g35 when AB Pentaverken, as it was then known, was acquired by car manufacturer. The rest, as they say, is history. The industrial aspect along with R&D played a central role in what followed. Sometimes it is best to start in the past to understand the future. In this particular time for the nautical industry, companies have a choice as to whether or not to jump in and become part of the change sweeping the world and guide it towards a more human and environmentally friendly future. Volvo Penta has made the choice and to becoming a leading light for the leisure craft sector.
This article is just the first in a series of four about the company that will appear in coming issues of Top Yacht Design. Our aim here is to look at the reasons behind the Swedish company’s involvement in this transition and its role. In just under 20 years, the IPS has left a unique mark on the leisure craft industry. It brought with it a whole string of advantages – more than enough to convince even the most sceptical. But oddly enough, the principle it works on is both simple and ingenious. Unlike conventional inboard shafts, the Volvo Penta IPS uses twin counter-rotating propellers which, in a moment of genius, Volvo Penta designers made forward-facing. This ticks many positive boxes, first and foremost of which is that the screws work in “clean” water i.e. water with none of the usual turbulence generated by shafts, appendages, and all the usual immersed components involved in conventional propulsion systems. The system’s efficiency is clear from the fact that it cuts fuel consumption by up to 30%, guarantees a longer range and top speeds 20% higher than an inboard shaft system. Then there are knock-on effects as a result of prop cavitation which see noise and vibration significantly reduced, all to the benefit of the quality of the onboard experience.
But that’s not all. Space is another factor. The IPS can be mounted further aft and is more compact than a traditional inboard shaft. What this means, of course, is that more of the interior volume can be devoted to living areas for owners and their guests.The right choice at the right time is another phrase that springs to mind. Why? Because once again the propulsion system Volvo Penta perfected also very much fits in with the new way of using and living boats that is currently becoming so popular. This has put contact with the marine environment at the centre of the design philosophy of almost all yards and designers. The constraints normally imposed by technical areas, not least engine rooms, become much more manageable if using IPS and allow the architecture itself to be redesigned to the benefit once again of onboard living space. One particularly good example is the large space aft that nowadays dedicated to creating a sense of deep and abiding contact with the sea.
But confining ourselves to talking just about the IPS is to do the company an injustice. The added value as Andrea Piccione, Head of Sales Volvo Penta Italy, likes to say at every opportunity is integration. From joysticks to levers and props, only the Swedish company can provide owners with a genuinely integrated system. This translates into many different positives for the end users and not just in terms of operating and managing the boat but also maintenance and servicing as one company does it all. This is one of the fundamentals of Volvo Penta’s development and its strategy which is focusing increasingly on larger yachts of over 24 metres. Sanlorenzo, Wally, Overmarine, Gruppo Permare and Azimut are just some of the illustrious names that have come within Volvo Penta’s range of action which, as we know, is as boundless as the ocean itself.
by Matteo Zaccagnino
