The biggest marine equipment trade show (METS) is about to take place in Amsterdam later this month and they have just announced the 2023 DAME Design Award nominations, for what's new and exciting in leisure sailing hardware. An independent panel of experts consider the expected impact on the marine industry of the entries, their suitability for intended purpose, the level of innovation, cost, ease of use or installation and environmental impact, in a number of different product categories.
In this blog we have pulled out a small selection of the more interesting sailing hardware nominations and we will be reporting in more detail from the show itself later this month.
Sailing Hardware Best Sellers
Spinlock ZXB Jammer
This looks to be a development on their ZR Jammer range aimed at the next step up from Spinlock's popular XTS/XTR Clutches. Re-designed with a fresh aesthetic, improved functionality for modern rope finishes, with a focus on reducing size and weight, with higher performance and value.
Karver KF Furler Bio Koncept
The launch of the Karver V3 furler range earlier this year was one of the biggest developments in continuous line furlers we have seen for many years. Their standard, drum wheel, across the range, is made from carbon/kevlar, but it looks like Karver are introducing some bio resins / materials to improve their environmental credentials. It will be interesting to see if there are any technical, performance compromises compared to carbon?
Profurl Spinex
From the limited information available until the METS show opens (on 16 November), it looks like this is a relaunch / revamp of their existing top down furling system. It appears they have done away with the plastic balls along the cable in favour of a solid, foam gaiter and possibly they have improved the clamps on the cable terminations. We look forward to finding out more detail at the show.
B&G Nemesis Display
This super-bright, multi-coloured, touchscreen display can be mounted on the mast or bulkhead locations to provide outstanding visibility. Available in 9" and 12" panels you can chose from preset templates, set up point-of-sail dashboards, or configure your own displays.
Calypso Instruments Ultrasonic Portable Mini
It might not be a catchy name (!) but this 40mm diameter, mini wind instrument has many potential applications. For just €249 this plug & play device can give you true and apparent wind speed / direction, direct to your smart phone or other wearable devices. Alternatively it can connect into your NMEA network to allow you to track and log your wind data.
ACR Electronics Personal Locator Beacon (PLB)
More interesting electronics developments in sailing hardware. The ResQLink View RLS (another catchy name!) is the only PLB to provide survivors with a clear message to verify when rescue is on its way. This device uses Galileo GNSS Return Link alerting technology and incorporates additional user friendly features and functionality.
Summary on Sailing Hardware
This is just a small selection of the new sailing hardware products which will be on display for the first time at METS. Upffront.com will be at the show and we will bring you more details on these, and other new sailing hardware products / developments we find, in the coming weeks.
If you have any questions about Upffront and our sailing hardware, please feel free to email us at [email protected], or click the link below to see our full range::
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What's New in 2023: Sailing Hardware and Rigging