Italian marine equipment manufacturer Quick Group has expanded its QSY electric thruster range, and the result is a compelling leap forward in how yachts handle close-quarters manoeuvring.
The development forms part of the company's ongoing mission to push the boundaries of innovation across its entire product ecosystem, from stabilisation and lighting to windlasses and control systems. But it's the QSY thruster range that's now taking centre stage, armed with advanced synchronous brushless motor technology and a level of control precision that's raising eyebrows across the industry.
Understanding brushless motor technology
To appreciate what Quick Group has achieved here, it helps to understand what's happening under the hood - or rather, inside the thruster tunnel.
Traditional DC thrusters rely on brushed motors, a tried-and-tested design that uses physical brushes to transfer electrical current to the motor's rotating components. It works, but it's not without compromise. Friction generates heat, brushes wear down over time, maintenance intervals creep up on you and the whole setup tends to be noisier and less efficient than modern alternatives.
Brushless motors, on the other hand, eliminate the need for physical brushes entirely by using electronic controllers to manage current flow. The result is less mechanical wear, better energy efficiency and far more sophisticated control over motor speed and torque. In the context of marine thrusters, that translates to smoother, more responsive thrust modulation and longer periods between service appointments.
The technology employed in the QSY range takes this a step further. Alongside high-efficiency synchronous brushless motors, the range incorporates integrated inverters, native proportional control - meaning thrust output can be finely modulated rather than simply switched on or off - immediate torque response, reduced power consumption compared to conventional DC motors, lower maintenance requirements thanks to the absence of brushes and notably quieter operation. The cumulative effect is more precise manoeuvring, particularly when threading the needle in tight marina berths or executing delicate docking manoeuvres in challenging conditions.
While Quick Group has been working with brushless technology for some time, the real news here is scale and scope. QSY technology now spans a comprehensive range of boat size segments, with thrust outputs running from 50 kilogram-force (kgf) in the BT QSY 140-50 model all the way up to 350kgf in the BT QSY 300-350. Tunnel diameters range from 140 millimetres to 300 millimetres, with power supply options covering 12V, 24V and 48V configurations.
Perhaps most significantly, the company has introduced a new 215-millimetre thruster tunnel to bridge what was previously an awkward gap between the 185-millimetre and 250-millimetre models. This addresses a highly popular, and previously underserved, segment of the market, ensuring that shipyards and owners have access to a thruster that's genuinely optimised for their vessel's size and weight.
The broadened range now covers everything from seven-metre centre console dayboats to luxury 30-metre superyachts, with dual power supply options (12V/24V and 24V/48V, depending on the model) offering shipyards and end users the flexibility to match thruster specifications to their electrical architecture without compromise.
"We listened to the market, then developed each model to achieve the exact amount of thrust we wanted, including dedicated tuning to ensure specific outputs while allowing for multiple power supply options," says Lorenzo Mongiardo, chief technical officer at Quick Group.
A new generation of user experience
Quick Group has also been busy developing a new control interface and system architecture that will underpin not just the QSY range but extend across other products in the Quick Group catalogue.
Pacific is a new generation of thruster controls conceived to deliver a more intuitive, integrated and genuinely digital user experience. Designed to work across all the thruster ranges Quick Group offers, the Pacific controller has been specifically optimised for the QSY series and will be available in three model variants: T1, T1XL and T2XL, each tailored to different thruster installations and yacht sizes.
The Pacific series is designed to fully exploit the QSY range's capabilities in terms of proportional control, manoeuvring precision, diagnostics and digital integration. But what's particularly clever is the attention to practical installation details.
"In developing the new controls, we focused on straightforward implementation," says Mongiardo. "It's really a perfect match between the QSY thrusters and the thruster controls. Moreover, the installation is very easy and compact, and the T1XL and T2XL units occupy the same footprint on the helm console so if, for example, a customer decides to upgrade by adding a stern thruster - which means an extra control stick - it doesn't require cutting a different hole in the console."
The Pacific series also plays nicely with others. Integration with third-party manoeuvring and control systems - including established OEM platforms such as Volvo Penta, Mercury Marine and Xenta - is supported through dedicated gateways and NMEA 2000-compatible communication connections, ensuring the system fits seamlessly within modern onboard electronic architectures.
Building an integrated technology ecosystem
At the heart of Quick Group's evolving strategy is QCentric, the technology platform on which the company's products operate and will continue to evolve. QCentric represents a shared technological framework designed to enable future integration between products, functions and technologies across the different divisions of the Group, meaning seamless integration with third-party joysticks, assisted manoeuvring systems and a growing roster of Quick Group products.
Crucially, this means shipyards can work across everything from the smallest boats to larger yachts without changing the underlying architecture and infrastructure. It's a scalable, future-proofed approach that reduces complexity and opens the door to more sophisticated onboard integration as technology continues to advance.
"QCentric, at its core, is a CAN bus protocol, but for us it's more than that - it's an open and scalable ecosystem designed to connect products, functions and technologies through a common architecture," Mongiardo explains. "The Pacific thruster control is the first system to use it, but QCentric was born with the intention to integrate Quick Group products such as our thrusters, stabiliser fins, windlasses and other solutions, and also to be open to other systems from our partners and other companies."
Mongiardo continues: "Quick Group is no longer just introducing individual products to the market - what we are doing is building an integrated technology ecosystem where the real innovation comes from connecting everything together. QSY provides the next generation of brushless-motor thrusters, Pacific provides a modern, intuitive, flexible control experience, but QCentric provides the digital architecture. It means easier integration, reduced complexity, and a platform that can be expanded in the future - delivering a more modern, intuitive and consistent onboard experience for shipyards, designers and owners."
The complete QSY thruster range, the Pacific control interface and the QCentric ecosystem were first unveiled at the major European autumn boat shows and, more recently, at the IBEX trade show in Tampa, Florida. The next stop on the calendar is the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, taking place from 28 October to 1 November, where visitors can discover these innovations at Quick USA's Booth 826.
For more information on the QSY range, Pacific Series controllers and QCentric platform, visit Quick Group's website. To arrange a meeting with the team during FLIBS, contact info@quickgroup.com or marketing@quickgroup.com.
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