Multiplast

Multiplast
Name	Multiplast
Type	Private
Industry	Shipbuilding
Founded	1960s
Founder	Bernard Le Grelle
Headquarters	Vannes, France
Key people	Jean-Michel Berthon
Products	Composite hulls, superyacht components, racing yachts

Multiplast

Multiplast is a French shipyard and composite manufacturing firm specializing in high-performance yachts, superyacht structures, and advanced composite components. Founded in the 1960s on the coast of Brittany, the company became known for pioneering carbon-fiber construction, collaborating with leading naval architects, racing teams, and maritime institutions. Multiplast has contributed to record-setting ocean racing campaigns, collaborated with design houses and yards across Europe, and supplied components for leisure, competition, and research vessels.

History

Multiplast originated in the 1960s near Vannes on the Morbihan coast, founded by engineers and entrepreneurs inspired by developments in composite materials. During the 1970s and 1980s the yard partnered with prominent naval architects such as Marc Lombard, Philippe Briand, and Olivier de Kersauson to build racing trimarans and monohulls for events like the Whitbread Round the World Race and the Transat Jacques Vabre. In the 1990s Multiplast expanded its facilities and workforce, adopting tooling and molding techniques influenced by aerospace firms like Aérospatiale and collaborating with research centers such as Ifremer and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission. The 2000s saw Multiplast involved in campaigns for offshore skippers like Ellen MacArthur and Armel Le Cléac'h, and supplying components to shipbuilders including Beneteau and Royal Huisman. Into the 2010s and 2020s the yard continued to evolve amid consolidation in European shipbuilding, supply-chain shifts involving suppliers such as Hexcel and Solvay, and regulatory changes driven by the International Maritime Organization and the European Union.

Products and Services

Multiplast’s product range covers full composite hulls, deck structures, bulkheads, and bespoke components for racing yachts, superyachts, and special-purpose vessels. Key offerings include carbon-fiber monohulls for offshore racing campaigns, multihull platforms for oceanic record attempts, and prefabricated modules for shipyards like CNB Yachts and OCEA. The yard provides design-for-manufacture services in partnership with firms such as VPLP Design, GSea Design, and Farr Yacht Design, as well as repair and refit services used by skippers competing in the Vendée Globe and the Route du Rhum. Multiplast also delivers composite tooling, vacuum-bagging, and resin-infusion kits for projects commissioned by maritime institutions including Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer and private entities such as BCN Group.

Manufacturing and Technology

Multiplast’s facilities integrate autoclave curing, out-of-autoclave (OOA) processes, prepreg layup, resin infusion, and controlled-environment lamination. The yard sources raw materials from suppliers like Toray Industries, Mitsubishi Chemical, Dassault Systèmes for CAD/CAM integration, and industrial partners such as Siemens for production control systems. Multiplast employs CNC machining centers for molds and core materials, uses finite-element analysis validated against tow-tank data from facilities akin to Société des Ateliers de Constructions Mécaniques test centers, and applies non-destructive testing methods developed with institutes such as Bureau Veritas and Lloyd’s Register. Its adoption of advanced composites draws on research conducted at universities such as École Centrale de Nantes and Institut Polytechnique de Paris.

Applications and Industries

Multiplast’s portfolios serve competitive offshore racing, luxury yachting, research vessels, and industrial marine platforms. Racing clients participate in regattas and rounds such as the America’s Cup, the Transpacific Yacht Race, and the Fastnet Race, relying on Multiplast-built components for lightweight performance. Superyacht builders integrate Multiplast modules into bespoke projects by yards like Feadship and Lürssen to achieve complex deck geometry and structural optimization. Scientific institutions commission hulls and instrument enclosures for oceanographic campaigns with organizations like CNRS and Ifremer, while private developers use composite modules in fast-patrol craft for companies comparable to OCEA.

Environmental and Safety Considerations

Multiplast operates within an evolving regulatory environment addressing emissions, waste, and workplace safety set by bodies such as the European Chemicals Agency and the International Labour Organization. The yard has adopted practices to reduce volatile organic compound emissions through low-VOC resins, closed-mold infusion techniques promoted by suppliers like Hexion, and solvent recovery systems influenced by standards from ADEME. Health and safety procedures follow guidance from classification societies including RINA and Dekra, and fire-retardant composite specifications aligned with IMO regulations for certain vessel classes. Multiplast has engaged in recycling initiatives and pilot programs with composite recyclers and research programs at institutions like INSA Lyon to explore end-of-life solutions for carbon and glass fibers.

Notable Projects and Clients

Notable projects include construction and repair work for ocean-racing campaigns helmed by skippers from teams linked to Banque Populaire and Groupama, collaborations with designers such as Juan Kouyoumdjian and Nigel Irens, and component deliveries to builders like Perini Navi and Azimut. Multiplast contributed to record-attempt vessels associated with sponsors such as Hamilton and Rolex, supplied parts for refits of historic yachts restored by shipyards including Chantiers de l'Atlantique, and supported scientific platforms used by Ifremer and the Observatoire Océanologique de Banyuls-sur-Mer. Its client list spans racing syndicates, bespoke superyacht owners, and institutional research programs connected to multiple European maritime networks.

Category:Shipyards of France Category:Composite material manufacturers