When Sunseeker burst onto the scene back in 1969 with its small open-cockpit speedboat, the Hostess 17, it was clear that a new standard of yacht building had been set. Since then, Sunseeker has grown into an inventor of some of the most distinctive yachts on the market. And what’s special about these is that they carry remarkable innovations that have been exclusively designed and created by the brand’s skilled in-house engineers and architects.
Following Sunseeker’s win at this year's BOAT International Design & Innovation Awards, we shine the spotlight on some of Sunseeker’s most pioneering innovations
X-TEND™
When designing the yachts in Sunseeker’s 80ft (24m) plus segment – the 88 Yacht, the 90 Ocean and 100 Yacht – Sunseeker’s design and engineering teams thought very carefully about how clients were using their existing Beach Club spaces and the evolving trend to be even closer to the water. The team wanted to expand the available social areas on board, and so invented X-TEND™ as an innovative approach to enhancing the aft and cockpit deck areas with a transforming sunbed arrangement.
At the push of a button, an owner can transform the 90 Ocean’s stern door into beach club seating, toy stowage and extend the main deck. The hydraulically-operated convertible seating can become a large sun pad on the bathing platform, eliminating the need to carry and stow chaises. When the sunbed is not in use, it is cleverly concealed into the stern, allowing owners and guests to easily access and launch a tender. In its fully raised position, the X-TEND™ modifies the aft cockpit, adding over 1-metre of additional lounging space.
The award-winning X-TEND™ system is Sunseeker’s latest innovation that shows how the in-house design team are continuously looking for ways to improve the user experience by providing novel and exciting solutions to client requirements.
The Beach Club
The Sunseeker 90 Ocean was born from an ambitious design brief. One of the primary requirements was to provide a large, full-beam aft deck area that could be used for both tender and Jetski stowage and as a Beach Club. The result broke new boundaries in yacht design, not just in size, but in how the traditional Sunseeker design has evolved. The many new features within the 90 Ocean gave birth to a new standalone Sunseeker range, the Ocean range, which is considered a departure from the brand’s Performance, Predator, Sport Yacht, Manhattan, Yacht and Superyacht ranges.
With a 7.16m beam, the exterior decks on board the 90 Ocean are 25 per cent more spacious than a comparable yacht. The Beach Club measures over 6m x 4m and features a large built-in barbeque with a countertop, and a Sea Stair for effortless access to the water. Plus, the hydraulically operated bathing platform allows owners and guests to easily launch and recover the tender. The 90 Ocean’s Beach Club is one of the main entertainment and socialising areas on board that is both spacious and functional.
Seamless flybridge
In the Sunseeker Yacht range, the launch of the 100 Yacht model earmarked a new era in flybridge design and functionality for the British yard. The yacht was designed with new entertainment features and a sweeping flybridge dubbed “the terrace on the sea”. Once on the flybridge, guests can walk all the way from the yacht’s bow to the stern, as the vast space is designed with seamless entertainment in mind. The foredeck has two separate seating arrangements with cinema screen capability, while the central flybridge has L-shaped seating, a fully-equipped wet bar and space aft for free-standing furniture or a spa bath. Forward of the master stateroom, glass atrium doors lead to an owner’s private bow terrace which is also accessible from the main flybridge, keeping all outdoor spaces on board well connected.
SkyHelm™
Sunseeker’s 65 Sport Yacht features the brand’s multi-award-winning SkyHelm™. This almost invisible helm station is inspired by some of the latest designs in the automotive world. The specially designed SkyHelm™ features twin bolstered seats set low on either side of a carbon fibre central console built with a state-of-the-art glass bridge plotter, retro chrome dials and LED displays. The fully-carbon steering arm can be used in its lowered position during dynamic helming at speed, akin to driving a high-performance convertible supercar. Then, whilst manoeuvring in the marina, it can be raised to provide the skipper with exceptional visibility and control via the Volvo Penta IPS joystick, available with a Dynamic Positioning System.
To find out more about Sunseeker’s burgeoning model range and the technology within them, contact the yard directly here.
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