Owen Clarke Design LLP is recognised as being at the leading edge of high performance sailboat design. We are particularly known as pioneers in the field of canting, lifting, and lifting/canting keels for racing and cruising boats. Our design portfolio spans yachts from the 6.5m Mini Transat class to our range of superyacht cruising and racing designs. It includes over a dozen Class 40's, eight Vendee Globe IMOCA 60's, the latest of which Acciona 100% Eco-Powered was launched in September 2011.
Vendee Globe IMOCA Open 60, Acciona 100% Eco-Powered – lead designer, Merfyn Owen
Merfyn Owen is graduate of the University College London, Fellow of the University of Glamorgan, Fellow of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects and chartered engineer. His responsibilities in the company are concentrated around race boat design and performance development. Merfyn was a former member of the IMOCA 60 technical committee and was an integral part of the group to formulate the class rule for the Volvo 70 because of his extensive experience in swing keel racing yacht design. He is a ‘double’ Cape Horner and former round the world race boat skipper himself on the 96/97 BT Global Challenge, as well as co-skipper in the 2005 transat Jacques Vabres. His input is very much as ‘hands on sailor’, as he continues to race at a high level in a variety of classes,. His influence brings a strong engineering and technological bias to the office.
65 foot Supercruiser, Spirit of Adventure – lead designer, Allen Clarke
As well as overseeing the office and acting as the company's first point of contact in the world of Class 40's, Allen Clarke is charged with the development of the company’s range of cruising boat designs. He trained at Falmouth Boat Building College and Southampton Institute, studying boat building and yacht design respectively. A boat owner and keen cruising sailor for many years, with a number of transatlantic crossings behind him, he has also competed in a number of significant races including two AZAB's. Allen pursued a successful career as an interior designer before returning to yacht design and brings his considerable flair and talent to his work, with a strong feel for aesthetics in any project as well as the practical considerations involved.
Merfyn Owen and Allen Clarke, early days of the Kingfisher project and a rare picture together
Merfyn Owen and Allen Clarke joined forces in 1987 to form Owen Clarke Design, designing and building racing and cruising multihulls. In recent years the design team has expanded into a diverse multi-disciplined group with over 75 years collective experience in designing mainly monohull racing and cruising yachts, including work on superyachts such as Mari Cha 3 and Mari Cha 4.
Temenos Open 60, third in the Barcelona World Race – lead designer, Tim Sadler
Owen Clarke Design became a limited liability partnership, incorporated in the United Kingdom in 2002. In the same year we opened an office in New Zealand run by Tim Sadler, a qualified design engineer with sixteen years engineering design experience. Previously with Marten Yachts, Tim's duties include the day today design work we all do as well as looking after our projects in the southern hemisphere. In 2003 the company employed a team of seven designers and project managers in the two countries, plus a part time project manager in Australia.
Our philosophy is to be the key to success in all projects, offering creative thinking, challenging existing technology, and providing design excellence. We offer a managed, logical and high tech approach to yacht design with all the necessary tools that a project might need, from research and development, to old-fashioned flair and talent for the job
We thrive on being involved in the whole concept, design, construction and delivery of the completed product, be that to the end of builder’s trials for a cruising boat or to the start of a major international regatta. We’re very well versed working as a team feeding from our individual skills both in-house and with other designers and project teams – "whatever the program calls for" is our attitude.  i nfo@owenclarkedesign.comHead Office: PO Box 26, Dartmouth, Devon, TQ6 0YG, United Kingdom Tel: +44 1803 770495 Fax: +44 1803 770517 Registered office: 20-22 Bedford Row, London, WC1R 4JS, United Kingdom Limited Liability Partnership Registered No. OC301507 |
