Nissan Design America Designs, Builds a Catamaran for World Championship Race

SAN DIEGO, Aug. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- If you think the Nissan LEAF is the only zero-emission Nissan "vehicle" garnering attention these days, think again.  There is a new model hitting the road this summer – or, more accurately, setting sail - and this creation doesn't even require batteries.  Truly harnessing the "power of nature," a Nissan-built Catamaran soon will be sailing high in the Danish ocean, the latest non-automotive design and development project by Nissan Design America (NDA), based in San Diego, California.

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Matt Struble, who led the design and modeling team at NDA, will be racing in the 2011 Class A Catamaran ("A-Cat") World Championship from August 13 through 20 in Skodstrup, Denmark.  Originally from Michigan, Matt was the 2009 ice boating world champion.  After moving to San Diego, Struble turned his passion to ocean sailing.  His athletic achievements quickly translated into the new sport, as he holds the current title of A-Cat U.S. Champion.  The Class A Catamaran is controlled by a single sailor and is the smallest in size in all Catamaran race boats.

As a Model Realization Lead, Matt is engaged daily in creating three-dimensional realizations of designers' ideas for future Nissan and Infiniti products.  Earlier this year, Matt was presented with a unique opportunity to design a race boat for the upcoming championship race himself and build it while training his relatively new team of modeling specialists based at NDA's Mexicali, Mexico facility at the same time.

The boat's composite structure was designed and built entirely in-house.  Improving all aspects of aero- and hydro-dynamics, the team looked at every piece, leaving no stone unturned, achieving cleaner, smoother form and surface that are efficient to add competitive edge, according to Matt.

"We weren't trying to create something that already exists, but something groundbreaking," Struble said.  "This has truly been a great experience and great project for us.  This one in particular was quite unique because you have to create it in your mind, but also physically manufacture it and follow through.  It was great for our team to see the project from start to finish."

In creating the boat, the Mexicali modeling team was able to gain valuable experience and knowledge with new materials, spraying techniques and model finish applications  and learned how to achieve more accurate models, as well as new techniques and processes.  NDA's Mexicali facility opened in March 2009 and handles design model milling, surface data processing, painting and shop work.

"This has been a great opportunity and experience for the Mexicali team, whose core business is model building, data development and digitizing.  The goal for the team is to timely achieve accurate models to enhance the overall business of design," said Rich Plavetich, General Manager, Design Business, NDA.  "The knowledge and skills acquired from this experience will be incorporated into the future Nissan and Infiniti vehicle design development process," Plavetich said.

About Nissan Design Americas

Nissan Design America (NDA), a division of Nissan North America, Inc., is based in San Diego, California, designs vehicles with emphasis on the Americas region with sensitivity for the global market, in close collaboration with its counterparts at Global Nissan Design Center in Atsugi, Japan, and Nissan Technical Centers in Japan and North America.  Among NDA's recent designs include Nissan Ellure Concept, all-new 2012 Nissan NV commercial vehicles, 370Z sports coupe, Maxima sports sedan, Rogue compact crossover SUV, Altima coupe, Sentra compact sedan, Titan full-size truck, and Armada full-size SUV. 

NDA occasionally undertakes non-automotive design projects to keep design skills sharp.  Some of the past projects included a 150-foot yacht, preschool furniture, golf clubs, medical devices and a personal light aircraft.

About Nissan Americas

In the Americas, Nissan's operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing.  Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and was recognized as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2010 and 2011. More information on Nissan in North America, the Nissan LEAF and zero emissions can be found at www.nissanusa.com.

SOURCE Nissan North America