PROJECTS
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PROJECTS 〰️
Grand origins
It was a grey old day in February 2023 when our team picked up a mound of black carbon fibre from an unassuming container in the Midlands. These were the very sails that competed in the 36th Americas Cup, the oldest international sporting trophy in the world.
“One careful owner” they said when we agreed to work on a sail repurposing project with INEOS, little did we know the challenges that lay ahead...
Research & Development
INEOS Britannia's sails are made out of carbon fibre “3Di Raw” and made by North Sails. It is extremely tough stuff and doesn't particularly like being anything other than the most efficient sail knowN to man. We found that choosing to make things we wanted with it didn't work, instead we had to adopt an attitude that better started with... these are the qualities it has, what products suits that?
LIFE SAVER
Then we found Pablo THE SAILMAKER who very kindly offered to collaborate with the support from Oarsome Chance's Canvas Works initiative. Pablo's been making sails for over 20 years and like many other sail makers can take their hand at making other things too.
Pablo is super passionate about this project and has come up with some great designs that work with this notoriously difficult material.
He's a star!
SERIES NUMBERING
When making this unique product range we had to come up with a system that not only stated the sail that it came from but also number them in a series.
When unrolling these sails we noticed they had all been labeled with a model number, M 2.1 Port , J1.4 , M3.2 STB and so on. The M stands for Main and then you have the Port or Starboard side, (the main sails are made up from 2 sails to give them greater control and shape. The J stands for Jib and they would have different sizes for these based on the weather conditions.
We Then label them ourselves with a series number that starts at 001 and continues up. It's great to look at the bag and work out which part of the sail it is from.
These products are truly one of a kind.
GOD SPEED
In the 37th America's Cup in Barcelona, Spain, INEOS Britannia will race in their bold, new, second generation AC75 boat, a foiling 75-foot monohull unlike anything the sport of sailing has ever seen before.
We wish TEAM INEOS BRITANNIA fair winds and following seas. and can we have your old sails please.
OCEAN REPUBLIC X AUTHUR SLEEP
OCEAN REPUBLIC X AUTHUR SLEEP
OCEAN Republic x aRthur sleep
We were quite surprised when the Team at Arthur Sleep suggested they could make shoes out of our old sails so we had to pop up to London to find out exactly how.
We arrived all salty and delivered amongst other things an end of life Yankee that once belonged to a three masted schooner named Adix. A stunning vessel and what an unexpected turn of events.
THE BOAT
THE SHOE
OCEAN REPUBLIC X WATERHAUL
OCEAN REPUBLIC X WATERHAUL
Ocean Republic x Waterhaul
Sails are made from incredibly strong and durable plastics, but are replaced over time to ensure reliability. No facilities exist for recycling, with an estimated 97% ending up in landfill.
Partnering with Waterhaul, we are upcycling this high quality plastic by transforming end-of-life sails from a waste material, into a valuable resource.
UPCYCLING NEOPRENE
UPCYCLING NEOPRENE
the unknown problem
Wetsuits made from Neoprene on average last about 1 - 2years which means that aproximately 8000 tones end up in a land fill somewhere. That’s even worse when you learn that they take 1000 years to degrade.
Our efforts are currently focused on intercepting the suits before they get thrown out. It’s amazing what you can do with old Neoprene and we are developing some cool things out of them which you can see here.
A Breakthrough in Upcycling Neoprene
It’s hard stuff to work with but we have found that by making laminates from sail cloth and layering the neoprene like a sandwich in the middle we can make extremely durable structures with a cushioning effect to protect anything you want.
OCEAN REPUBLIC X AQUATILIS
OCEAN REPUBLIC X AQUATILIS
Aquatilis Expedition
Ocean Republic have joined forces with Aquatilis Expedition. These exceptional human beings are a team of scientists from Russia that explore, research, document and help protect the worlds oceans.
We spare everything we can to support this great endeavour and the stunning imagery they produce.
Check them out on the GRAM.
