kayak design
Zusammen mit unserem langjährigen Partner Lettmann sind wir stolz auf das Ergebnis des 2018 auf der Messe Boot vorgestellten Mantas.
The new creeker from the traditional Moerser brand is doubly convincing. Because both performance and kayak design impress.
- Projekt: Kajak-Optimierung
- Kunde: Lettmann GmbH
- Leistungen: CAD-Optimierung, Visualisierung
- Webseite: lettmann.de
- Jahr: 2018
Competence through many years of experience
In this project we were involved in the design of the upper ship, the CAD implementation and the tool construction.
kayak design
There is little room for maneuver on the underside of whitewater kayaks due to hydrodynamic requirements.
On the other hand, we were able to provide the upstream side with the unmistakable, modern interpretation of the Lettmann look.
Im Vergleich zur Granate wirkt der Manta schärfer gezeichnet. Die typischen Schwünge, Ecken und Kanten sind präzise herausgearbeitet und lassen keinen Zweifel an der Schnelligkeit und Zuverlässigkeit des Paddelbootes. Stufen und Hindernisse im Wasser sind somit kein Problem.
The wide stern guarantees a quick and safe ascent. Rear spoilers ensure excellent acceleration.
Rapid development - exact CAD implementation
Compared to other boats, we were able to significantly speed up product development using CAD implementation. While the boats used to be sanded manually from foam blocks over weeks, today it is faster and, above all, more precise to create the data on the computer. Errors that are only detected while the process is running can also be quickly rectified in this way.
This saves nerves, time and money.
Support from AZ
We also supported the Lettman company with our in-depth knowledge and the delivery of 3D milling data during the subsequent tool design.
The boats are made of polyethylene using a rotational sintering process. A PE powder is filled into the molds. These two-part or multi-part molds are evenly heated in large furnaces and rotate around themselves on two axes. The melting material forms a uniform wall around the tool molds. After cooling, the boats can be demolded and finished.
Thanks to the pressure-free process, the products are virtually stress-free and therefore extremely tolerant of shock and pressure. This makes the boats safe and durable.
Compared to laminated tool molds, which are only made for small quantities or first prototypes, aluminum molds are more expensive to produce, but their durability is many times longer. In addition, they significantly improve the quality of the boats. The molds cool down more evenly and thus guarantee a controlled cooling process of the plastic. The result is lower deformation rates and increased product quality.
Two types of mold creation had to be weighed against each other: CNC milling or casting.
Cast molds have poorer surface qualities during production. However, the surface has a major influence on the handling and the appearance of the boats - a strong argument for CNC-milled shapes. In addition, although a manually generated model of the boat was available, an additional model based on the digital data would have had to be generated for the sake of accuracy. Thanks to the CAD construction, this step could be skipped because the data for the negative molds could easily be generated digitally.
The tool halves were milled from solid aluminum blocks by an Italian partner. An enormous amount of material and costs, which, however, pays off in later production. Thanks to the precise shapes, the Manta can be mass-produced in large numbers in Lettmann's in-house production facility.
