The Italian startup took the stage at this year's European Yacht of the Year during boot Dusseldorf. They were awarded with a special mention for sustainability for their Ecoracer 25 prototype.
The competitive sportboat is fully recyclable, composed of flax fibres and thermoplastic resins designed by Matteo Polli, with Andrea Paduano responsible for the composite technology. Together with Alessandro Pera and Mattia Sconocchia, responsible for structural calculations and Roberto Baraccani and Alessandro Stagni for construction, they have introduced a viable solution to the end-of-life issue in the boating world.
“We are extremely happy for the recognition of our work during the European Yacht of the Year at the boot. The future is looking bright for us, and we will keep pushing new projects with these innovative, recyclable materials, and soon we will release some exciting news.” - Matteo Polli, Yacht Designer
Additional sustainable features include the boat's electric engine and a solar panel to power bilge pumps. For the sails, Samuele Nicolettis developed the recyclable sail produced with a low-carbon-footprint manufacturing process from OneSail.
The nlcomp team are sailors who have raced in regattas for over a decade, complemented by their experience in composites, enabling them to build not only boats for performance but also for the environment in mind. The future looks exciting for them as they are building the Ecoracer 30 One design, which won the Genoa Blue District Call for Innovation and will be launched this July at The Ocean Race Grand Finale in Genoa. Following this will be the development of the Ecoracer Sailing Series, the world's first completely sustainable regatta boats, in 2024.
“It was truly exciting to take the stage at the European Yacht of The Year in front of the most important shipyards, designers and journalists in Europe. I want to thank all the team of engineers and designers who worked for more than a year to build this unique boat, the investors who believed in our project and the partners who helped us get this far. To celebrate this recognition, we have decided to make public the official renderings of the new thirty-footer, which is under construction and will be launched in Genoa next July in the coming days." - Fabio Bignolini, CEO nlcomp
The Ecoracer provides the opportunity to race a boat with innovative technologies and lessen the environmental impact without comprising racing performance. These pioneering solutions from nlcomp support a new circular economy within yachting, revolutionising how boats are manufactured and giving hope to an industry where sustainable boating is now a reality.
For more information on nlcomp, visit the website here.