Doyle Sails New Zealand’s Auckland sail loft is the biggest in the southern hemisphere and is well-known for its innovation having created Stratis, Stratis ICE and a range of other products.
Now the company seeks not only to offer sails which perform unlike anything else on the water, but look unlike anything else on the water.
They have launched a new product called Stratis Sail Art, which allows photo quality printing on sails for the first time ever.
The industry-leading New Zealand production facility has pioneered custom printing on Stratis membranes before the sails are laminated, resulting in the most-detailed sail art to date.
Comar Yachts’ Shadow is the first yacht to have been fitted with Stratis Sail Art sails. The 100’ yacht, launched in 2011, was fitted with membranes made by Doyle Stratis in New Zealand, complete with photo-quality octopus, and finished by the Doyle Sails loft Palma team.
Moving away from the traditional technique of painting directly onto sail, the sailmakers printed onto the sail surfaces to create two octopi stretching down each sail on each side. That printing process meant detail, form and subtle nuances were transferred to the sail with unerring accuracy, making for the most detailed sail art to date.
The mosaic-like print has layers of colour, shapes and overlaid details which bring the two octopi to life as the sail fills. Despite the layers of detail, the end result is noticeably lighter than the sail would be if the image was created using the traditional approach of layering paint by hand; something which can add 10-15kgs to a sail.
The unique process doesn’t compromise the sails’ integrity, compared with the traditional paint process which results in brittle sail membranes. Full photo images can be translated to the sails – drastically increasing the appeal of sails as a billboard to sponsors – with a high definition finish that’s as effective close up as it is from a distance.