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THE STANDARD FOR PERFORMANCE AND DURABILITY
North Sails 3Di exemplifies outstanding value with industry leading shape holding and a longer service life compared to other sailmaking technologies. Proprietary engineering and construction methods allow 3Di sails to maintain their shape to an unprecedented level. Superyachts now use one set of 3Di sails for racing, cruising, and deliveries. Volvo Ocean Race teams trust one mainsail for 35,000+ miles around the world; they formerly used two or three string laminate sails. Circumnavigators are using 3Di sails for multiple laps. Do the math, and you’ll find that 3Di sails have a lower cost of ownership than any other sails in the world.
UNIQUE TO YOU
North Sails is unique in its position of offering cutting edge sail technology to a wide range of sailors and boats. Born from the America’s Cup, 3Di is now available to Grand Prix Around-The-World Ocean Racers and family cruisers alike.
ONLY THE ESSENTIALS
3Di sails are significantly stronger and lighter than our competitors’ laminate string sails when made of comparable materials. The building blocks of 3Di structures are spread filament tapes. Filaments are the elemental form of fibers. What we think of as yarn used in traditional sailcloth and string sails are in fact a twisted bundle tiny filaments, each less than the diameter of a human hair. Using filaments instead of yarns in sail constructions allows better exploitation of the fiber properties.
COMPOSITE CONSTRUCTION
…is not a laminate! The key difference is composites are materials combined to maximize their strengths and minimize their weaknesses. Composite construction is different than lamination where a substrate (such as mylar) is used to carry adhesives and materials. 3Di sails are composed strictly of spread filaments and thermoset resin. 3Di is stronger, lighter and more resistant to environmental factors than laminate string sails.
CUSTOMIZED SHAPE
North Sails is the only sailmaker in the world to build sails on full-sized 3D molds, inflated to the sails’ precise flying shape. Heat and vacuum pressure are then applied, consolidating the composite structure. The sail’s shape and durability are permanently locked into the rigid airfoil that is customized to the user’s sailing preferences.
COMMITMENT TO QUALITY
All North sails are produced in North-owned facilities. By following strict construction, material and labor standards, our staff achieves worldwide consistency for all of our products. 3Di quality and North’s reputation for consistency has won North Sails exclusive supplier status to the 35th America’s Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18.
3Di APPLIED
Beyond sails, North Thin Ply Technology has been adopted in a variety of high-tech manufacturing applications. Boeing Aircraft has licensed TPT to make the carbon fuselage of the 787 aircraft. TPT flew around the world on the first non-stop solar powered aircraft and is used in premier racing bicycle frames, advanced golf shafts, Southern Spars masts and booms, and F1 motorcars. When using 3Di sails, you are joining an elite group who have chosen the world’s leading composite technology.
