Ericsson Racing Team weighs options for repairs to Ericsson 3

by Victoria Low - Ericsson Racing Team media on 29 Jan 2009
Ericsson 3, the Nordic-crewed entry of Ericsson Racing Team in the Volvo Ocean Race, was hauled from the water today in Keelung, Taiwan, to inspect and begin repairs to the yacht's bow section.

Ericsson 3 arrived in Keelung yesterday after water was discovered in the forward, watertight compartment. The boat was leaking through a crack in the hull. Coupled with the great water pressure from slamming into six-meter waves, the outer and inner carbon-fiber skins of the hull became delaminated.

'The boat was hauled today at a commercial dockyard in Keelung,' said Ericsson Racing Team General Manager Richard Brisius. 'We're not sure of the cause of the damage and don't want to speculate on it at this time.

'But we are sure that it's possible to repair. We are considering having a new panel built off site, which will be fitted to the yacht in either Taiwan or China. We don't know where yet,' Brisius said.

The affected area of damage is on the port, underside of the hull, about 200 millimeters off centerline. There's a delaminated area between three and four meters long, and the affected area is at the most about one and a half meters wide. The shore crew has taken samples from other areas of the bow to inspect for further delamination.

A replacement panel is planned to be crafted in Italy. Team boatbuilder manager Killian Bushe and Martin Klug are organizing for pieces of Nomex foam core to be sent from the team's boatyard in Kista, Sweden, pieces left over from the original build of the Ericsson yachts.

They plan to have the piece ready next week and it would be air-freighted to meet the yacht at a location to be determined.

'Once you have the boat prepared to receive new panel and the new panel is there, scarfing and bonding the panel in place is the easiest part of project,' said Juan Kouyoumdjian, designer of Ericsson Racing Team's two yachts.

Still to be determined is where the repair will take place. Ericsson Racing Team is looking at options of performing the repair in Taiwan, shipping to the boat to Qingdao, China, host port for the Volvo Ocean Race, or making a temporary repair and sailing the boat to Qingdao.

'We still don't have enough information to comment on where the repair will take place,' said Brisius. 'We're starting to understand what we have to accomplish, now we need to determine where and how we will accomplish it best.'

Ericsson 3 was competing on Leg 4 of the race a day and a half ago when water was discovered in the forward watertight compartment. The crew, led by skipper Magnus Olsson, immediately turned downwind and began bailing the boat out.

When the water was removed the crack in the hull was discovered. Had the crew not discovered the water when it did, the boat could've sank.

'I think we sailed very well. I think we managed to find a very good balance between pushing the boat, but not too hard,' said Olsson, who was skipper of the yacht for Leg 4. 'Then suddenly we discovered this big crack in the front port panel. We believed we were very close to sinking. I don't know what would've happened to the boat, we could've closed the watertight bulkhead. But it was close. It was fairly dramatic for awhile.'