Who we are
We put into practice the notions learned at university by building Svelta: the boat that flies.
We are constantly researching innovative techniques and materials, to compete at the highest levels with universities from all over the world at the SuMoth Challenge, an international showcase for our sponsors. We achieve high performance with minimal environmental impact, recovering waste products from Italian companies.
What makes us unique is the free collaboration between UniPV’s humanities and scientific faculties: the future passes through training, and training passes through UniPV Sailing Team!
Our Vision
“Imparare. Formare. Volare.”
— Our Motto
Our Sections
The promoters of the project are the members of the Unipv Sailing Team. This is directed by a Team Leader and a Project Manager, that are a student and a professor from the University of Pavia.
Currently, Unipv Sailing Team has more than 15 members, coming from the faculties of Engineering, IT, Economics, Marketing and Motor sciences, divided into 4 sections:
- Performance – It studies the behavior of the structural parts of the boat in virtual wind tunnels, using advanced software such as OpenFOAM. Furthermore, it models the vessel’s response to winds and currents and studies better aerodynamic shapes and optimized load distributions in close contact with the Structure section, to improve the boat’s performance without resorting to unnecessary crank mechanisms and electronic parts. Often it is inspired by natural aerodynamic shapes, and deals with industrial companies that provide technical consultancy as a means of sponsorship;
- Structure – It creates the CAD (Computer Aided Design) models which will subsequently be built by the Materials section, using software such as Autodesk Inventor. Based on advanced naval static calculations and comparison with past technical solutions and innovative production processes, it elaborates the models used by the Performance subteam in its fluid dynamic analyzes and studies the possibility of implementing new technologies and features to be added; in the future, this section will also develop the electronics necessary in the pre-competition testing phase.
- Materials – It studies the properties of different materials and choose the most suitable ones for various needs. For example, he experimented with the application of aesthetic linen fibre, currently present in Svelta (the blue outer layer). It deals in particular with the final steps, producing the finished piece. The team leader and the members then act as site managers and carpenters for the production of all the pieces of the boat. It uses spreadsheets to calculate the weights and the proportions of resins and reagents, data necessary during cost estimation and production. With a preliminary analysis of the necessary quantities, the section sizes the lots and interfaces with the companies, proposing sponsorships based on the supply of material.
- Marketing & Administration – The Team’s promotional activity covers the entire academic year: in addition to the design and construction of Svelta, the business requires the management of the social pages (Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram) and the website, the organization of internal Universitary events (conferences and exhibitions) and participation in external events.
The team is therefore made up of personalities with skills and qualifications considered fundamental for the development of the project. In addition, it will be possible to include other students who can bring added value to the management andì new sponsors capable of guaranteeing more resources.
UniPV Sailing Team 