The SW96 is turning into an extremely successful mini-series for Southern Wind. The South African shipyard designed the 29.24 metre long construction without bowsprit by Farr Yacht Design together with Nauta Design in 2017. With "Liberty", the client, for whom this is the second Southern Wind, is aiming for family cruising and fast racing. Unlike the fourth SW96 "Nyumba GT" it dispenses with the hybrid drive with hydrogenerator function.
Female project manager
The construction of "Liberty" was led by Niki Jennings, who has been with the company for 14 years and is the first female project manager in Southern Wind's history. Commenting on the launch, Jennings said: "This is the type of project Southern Wind likes to build. The brief was very much in line with our principle of building elegant, practical and seaworthy performance cruisers. These principles were taken into account at every stage of the decision-making process. That's not to say that aesthetics and the occasional madness didn't play a role. They very much did. And 'Liberty' wouldn't be a true Southern Wind if she didn't have that characteristic Italian style."
Nauta Design created "Liberty" with a raised saloon, which is flooded with light from the panoramic windows of the superstructure. There is a double cabin in front of and behind it, as well as the owner's area in the foredeck. The aft crew area comprises a large captain's cabin on the port side and a crew cabin on the starboard side. The stern of the fifth SW96 is the first in the series to be fitted with Southern Wind's latest "Twin Fold" transom, which unfolds in two stages to form a long bathing platform.
Southern Winds utilises refined vacuum infusion process
The hull and deck were built using a sandwich construction with Corecell as the base and two outer and one inner layer of carbon fibre. The South Africans have been using the vacuum infusion process since 2005 and three-part negative moulds for the hull for over 15 years. The advantages: better distribution and impregnation with epoxy resin. The South African yacht builders are regularly recognised by experts and classification societies for their high level of manufacturing precision. Independent testers from France examine the laminate using ultrasound. The result is a displacement of 62 tonnes. Hall Spars supplied a mast made of high-modulus carbon fibre, which the crew trims using carbon shrouds (EC6+) and backstays that are preconfigured for both the standard mainsail and the square top version. The lift keel allows draughts of between 3.40 and 5.50 metres.
"Liberty": aon its own keel to the Mediterranean
"Liberty" will now undertake extensive trial runs on Table Bay before setting off for her first summer season in the Mediterranean. So far, almost all of the 60 Southern Wind yachts delivered have travelled the 7,500 nautical miles on their own keel. Only two owners had their yachts transported: one to Australia, another was in a hurry. Since the three-week sea journey has to be added to the mast-laying and setting, the five weeks it has taken for all of them so far is quickly approached, as CEO Marco Alberti said during a visit to the shipyard a year ago. On the Mediterranean route, there has only ever been a deviation of 48 hours, no matter how much the new build was trimmed for racing or how motivated the crews were.
