IBEX 2013, put on by our friends at Professional Boatbuilder Magazine, is the largest trade show specifically for boat builders in the USA and is a good place to check in on some of the latest systems and gear available to the trade. Last week, the FPB Yachts troupe decided it was time to catch up with many of the vendors and manufacturers we work with on a regular basis, as well as investigate potential new ones, as we finalize some of the details on the new FPB 78. So off we flew to Louisville, Kentucky!
Three days on our feet meeting with manufacturers, vendors, engineers, and sales guys – to ensure we are on the right path with the systems going into the FPB 78. We are all systems guys, so while spending a few hours in a booth discussing options of a single product may sound torturous to some, it is somewhat akin to a trip to Disneyland for us.
Items like the cut-away of the Tides Marine shaft seal shown above were certain to catch our eye, as we were digging far deeper than glossy brochures and fancy marketing literature with their “quick-calc” guides. Armed with computers chock full of 3D models, spreadsheets of historical data, real-world results and experience, we questioned everything and left nothing to chance.
Steve enjoyed tossing around innovative ideas as he hashed over the details of what could be possible with engineers such as Bert Browning at Centek above. We came away feeling the time and expense was well spent, as we were able to learn and see a few new things, as well as reinforce some of the paths we were heading down. A special shout of thanks to Ed Todd of Dometic and Steve Moyer of Soundown, for their willingness to spend copious amounts of time going through details and discussing them to a degree that I am quite confident they have never gone to before.
We also managed to find time to catch up with and enjoy a meal or two with friends. I took the photo above after a dinner with (L to R) Nigel Calder, Steve Dashew, Ben Ellison, Mark Fritzer, and Michael Voorhees. With all that these guys bring to the table, you can only imagine the stories and conversation – it was the highlight of the week for me.