Laouen 550, a French student’s low-budget idea
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The idea for this boat comes from a student at the end of his course in ENSTA Bretagne, a French university specializing in engineering faculties. The designer/student’s name is Meven Flao, and he dreams of participating in the Mini Transat 2027, and the boat is named Laouen 550.
Laouen 550 – What a boat it is
We were intrigued by the idea behind this project: a low-budget boat, built from a composite of plywood and epoxy resin, only 5.50 m long, with a hull with a reduced wetted surface area that will make it fast under sail and, when there is no wind, easy to row as well.
The displacement will be only 200 kg, with a sail area of 18 sq. m. upwind and about twice that at upwind gaits; the centreboard will be bayonet to be able to reach even as far as the beach with the blade pulled up. The bow, and the angular hull, almost seem to recall the shapes of the old Firewall, albeit with an entirely different hull width also to ensure a minimum of interior volume. There is in fact a small mini-cabin, allowing for shelter or a few hours’ rest if necessary.
A decidedly out-of-the-box idea compared to current trends in boating, the brainchild of a student who has already worked at the JPK shipyard. it is only a project at the moment, but it would be nice to see it actually sail in the future.
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