DUESSELDORF – At Boat Duesseldorf, the world’s biggest indoor boating and water sports event – the Dutch entry Superlauwersmeer won first place with its SLX 540. At just over 17m (54ft), it is the yard’s largest yacht in more than 50 years of its existence.
The jury, made up of boating magazine journalists from across Europe, said that “with the SLX 54, the Dutch Superlauwersmeer shipyard is breaking new ground in steel boat construction. The yacht is equipped with a Hull Vane, an underwater wing at the transom, that raises the stern at high speed making the boat fast and economical. The SLX 54 also impresses with many innovations, a generous space concept and a design language previously unknown in steel boat construction.”
The SLX 54 comes standard with a Hull Vane which raises efficiency and comfort in its class. With her steel hull, the SLX 54 achieves a top speed of 16 knots with only 2 x 330 kW main engines. Due to her hull form and the Hull Vane, she sails silently and efficiently at any speed, with very low wash. Clients can now have the comfort, space, range, robustness and seakeeping of a steel displacement yacht, but with a comfortable “escape-the-weather” top speed of 16 knots (30 km/u).
The SLX 540 sports a unique hull for a yacht of only 17 meters. Its underwater hull – a cross between a displacement vessel and a fast-sailing ship – puts an end to choosing between a yacht with an open cockpit or an aft cabin. It merges the two in a surprising design.
The yard says its yachts are customized to a great degree “by listening carefully to our customers and building dream yachts with them.”
With architect Arnold de Ruyter, yard owner Louis Jousma and his brother Bastiaan have been at the yard’s helm for two decades. “’With Project 54, we listened carefully to our customers and looked at recent developments in yacht building and beyond,” says Louis. “People are becoming accustomed to more luxury and comfort at home, but also on holiday. We are now translating that into a new top model.”
The yard says the model has a brand-new underwater hull developed in collaboration with Van Oossanen Naval Architects. The concept is between a displacement yacht and a planing yacht and is built of steel. Thanks to this unique underwater hull, ‘Project 54’ can sail faster but also more economically, without the need for huge engines.
“It is truly a revolution in yacht building,” says Louis. “With Project 54, it is possible to overtake a cargo ship without pulling a huge stern wave.”
www.superlauwersmeer.nl/en/news/slx54-named-powerboat-of-the-year-2023
