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Inflatable Boat Construction
Posted by Michael Strahan on Feb 26 2005
DADDY, WHERE DO BOATS COME FROM?
A Discussion of Inflatable Boat Construction
Daniel,
Ahhh… boat fabrics. Mike sips his warm milk, rolls over and goes back to sleep….
SLEEPING AT THE SWITCH
You've discovered a very important piece of information, and the "dirty little secret" some raft manufacturers don't want you to know.
Before I get into this I should say that most raft companies are saying less and less about their materials these days, and you have to dig pretty deep sometimes just to find out the most basic details. I think they’ve passed the phase where everyone was talking about denier and the qualities of their materials. I blame consumers for that. Most folks don’t want that level of detail; they just want to know which boat is the best one. Unfortunately it’s not that simple, and the customers have come out on the short end of the stick because they’ve become bored with this level of input from the raft companies. The result? Today’s consumer is LESS educated about this than they were even ten years ago. I don’t blame the manufacturers; it’s our own laziness that’s gotten us here. Though our interest in this information has waned, the importance of it hasn’t. I’m sure some companies welcome this lack of scrutiny, because it allows them to continue producing inferior boats while the watch-dogs snore.
HOW BOATS ARE BUILT
Though a few raft companies manufacture their own fabric, most do not. In fact, some companies don’t even build their own boats. Instead, they hire someone (usually overseas, because of cheap labor costs) to select the material and build the boats for them. Companies differ a lot on their level of involvement in materials selection and oversight of the construction phase.
If a company wants to build a quality product, they have to invest in very good materials and closely oversee the quality control aspects of the material selection and construction process. Some do a great job in this area and some don’t. Many companies have failed in this area and ended up with any of several problems, including delamination, poor air retention, leaky seams, sloppy glue jobs, crooked floors and seams, separated I-beams, separated baffles, poor component alignment, inferior fabric, etc. Because some of these companies drop-ship boats directly to customers, these problems are not discovered until you unpack the boat at home. By then, they already have your money and you’re at the beginning of the season with a defective boat. That’s when you unpack your warranty and realize that you’re up a creek without a paddle OR a boat.
Companies that do the actual construction often do so as a sideline to other business activities, fitting boats in where they can. This is because inflatable boat construction is a relatively small part of their market, and involves a lot of hand labor. As a result, the boats are built in one or two batches per year. This means that the raft company must order enough boats to cover anticipated sales well in advance of the season. If their estimate is incorrect, they either don’t have enough boats in stock to satisfy orders and warranty claims, or they have overstock (which costs them money). Because these boats are built in batches, any problems with them can affect the entire batch. This means that they may not have a boat to give you if things go wrong. Some of these companies require a deposit up-front when you place your order. This is especially true of small companies with a limited operating budget; they use the deposits for construction costs and deliver the boat weeks or months later. So, if there’s a problem with the boat, they already have your money, and you may not get your boat until the next batch comes through. In Alaska this can be a huge problem because our season is very short. Who wants to take delivery in July or August, when they should have been on the river in May?
WHERE THE FABRIC COMES FROM
Most boat fabrics are not constructed with inflatable boats in mind. These materials are primarily designed for industrial applications such as pit liners, medical products, waste containment, conveyor belts and the like. Raft companies are forced to select from these fabrics for the materials for their boats; not always an easy task, considering that the needs of boaters are far different from the needs of industrial users of these materials. Boaters are concerned with air retention, abrasion resistance, u/v degradation (does it break down in sunlight), delamination and a host of other factors.
WHAT TO DO?
So, what protections do customers like you and I have? Start by dealing with a reputable company that offers a solid warranty. Make a list of companies that offer boats you like, and list the pros and cons of their warranty. Ask past customers how they were treated if they had a warranty claim. You don’t want to find yourself out of luck in six or seven years with a floor that no longer holds air, or fabric that has delaminated and can’t even hold a patch. Ask them if the boat was delivered on-schedule and without defect. Find out who makes the material and how long the raft company has been using that particular fabric. If the company won’t provide that information, you’ll have to figure out why or shop elsewhere; they may be hiding something. Go with a company that either builds their own boats, or carries enough inventory that they can swap your bad boat for a good one on the spot; if it’s a build-to-order situation and you get a bad one, you’re out of luck. Don’t take delivery until the boat has been unpacked, fully inflated and inspected by someone who knows what they’re looking at. If you’re inexperienced with this, bring someone who knows their stuff. Even good companies make mistakes sometimes. Remember that the country where the boat is built isn’t always an indicator of its quality. Some US-made boats don’t hold air, and some foreign-made boats are among the best; the opposite is also true.
IN CONCLUSION
I know this isn’t the most exciting subject discussed here, but I hope we can awaken the watch-dogs again, and continue to hold manufacturers accountable for the quality of their work. The industry will usually sink, or rise, to the level of our expectations; therefore it’s up to us.
Best Regards,
-Mike
Previous: Inflatable Boat Fabrics; Who Cares? Michael Strahan Feb 22 2005
Next: inflatables Daniel S Feb 26 2005
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