TECHNOLOGY

LAMINATING
Green Marine have always been at the forefront of marine composite technology starting with wet lay up vacuum consolidated epoxy laminates moving on to early wet prepregs and then to full prepregs requiring full temperature controlled ovens to post cure the laminates at over 80 degrees C. Now we are moving to the fourth generation system using resin film infusion improving quality control i.e. reducing void content, ease of handling and health and safety. All these systems are still in use depending on which works best for the given application.

We normally build timber male moulds for all one off work; laminating the inner skin first, then the core and finally the outside skin. The surface is then filled and faired by hand and finally sprayed with polyurethane topcoats. The timber mould must be built to withstand the long cook at 80 degrees C and remain vacuum proof.

With production work female epoxy / glass moulds are produced which remove the need for external fairing work. Again care has to be taken building these moulds which may have to withstand temperatures well over 100 degrees C during the cooking process.

OVENS
We work predominately in pre-preg materials with Carbon, Aramid and E-Glass fibres over Nomex or foam cores, vacuum consolidated and oven cured. We have large fixed temperature controlled ovens in all our workshops and have developed our own modular oven system to process prepreg work of any size or shape: the largest to date being 40 metres long. All ovens are computer controlled and monitored.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
Over the years we have worked closely with SP Systems and their engineering department SP Technologies in developing new materials and build processes. Today we have our own R& D department run by Dave Wright, who first joined the company in 1982, and is responsible for all material and process testing together with developing new ideas and production methods for the future. All laminating processes and materials are thoroughly tested before being used on the shop floor.

DESIGN
We have expanded our design office recently with 4 full CAD stations capable of generating 3D CAD models, linked to all our workshops, providing us with the facility of receiving email drawings and quickly processing them into workshop construction drawings. We have also recently added to this the facility for design information to be fed direct into a 3 axis CNC router cutter machine. This allows us to work with extreme accuracy from intricate steering wheels through to hulls and decks.

We have extended our capabilities over the past few years so that we can now offer to develop a project right from the concept stage through structural engineering and detailed design to productionisation of the structural arrangement and specification of materials and build processes.

CNC MACHINES
In 2002 Green Marine started experimenting with a ‘hobbyist’ CNC 3 axis router cutting machine which instantly became a key part of the build system for custom yachts cutting frames and templates. We rapidly developed a system of pre-cut foams for lifeboat bulkheads, decks and flat panels, which significantly reduced foam preparation time.

We have since purchased a dedicated flat panel machine, a MultiCAM MG 204 with a 10’ x 5’ bed with an integrated vacuum bed speeding loading of the panels and an eight head automatic tool changer giving greater flexibility within programmed sequences. We also now have a 4 axis CNC milling machine to undertake trimming and machining work on smaller components.

We have now progressed to 3D work machining rudder blades and stocks, and complex shapes for production moulds etc. Also we have experimented with cutting prepreg laminates using a custom knife head built to our requirements which has now taken over the laborious job of cutting hundreds of individual pre-preg laminate strips for a defence project. Once again the machine proved itself quicker and more accurate than manual cutting.

ENGINEERING
We have recently added an engineering/fabrication department to our business which is run by Trevor Green who was employed at Sparcraft – Lymington and then a director of Formula Spars. This gives us the facility to manufacture specialised one off fittings and equipment for refits and new build work and also to develop new production equipment.

QUALITY CONTROL
On receiving our first RNLI contract we were forced to introduce a quality control system to cover all our production work and soon gained full ISO 9002-1994 certification. We now run a full quality management system covering all aspects of the company and have recently completed our first audit to the new standard ISO9001-2000. All projects whether production or ‘One Off ‘ are managed using our own Work Instruction Sheets to ensure that all information and job details are documented and supplied to the shop floor in a clear and detailed format.

HEALTH AND SAFETY
Due to the materials used and the size of some of our projects we have had to take the issue of Health and Safety very seriously. As a company we are committed to an ongoing improvement program to ensure that accidents are kept to the bare minimum and the good health of all our employees is maintained. We employ an outside consultant to advise and assist with our training program and also carry out regular audits in order to maintain the standards and promote further improvements.