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Andrew Wolstenholme

This time we are very pleased to introduce our first British designer, Andrew Wolstenholme, to our MultiSurf audience. 

After training in small craft design at Southampton Institute in the early 70s Andrew enjoyed three years of full-time employment in the industry before establishing his own business in 1977. Initially, he offered a consultancy and drafting service to local boatyards, but has now had over eighty designs built ranging from 50ft powerboats down to small traditional rowing and sailing craft. Andrew has designs afloat in many parts of the world.

"I took my first step into CAD in 1990 with AutoYacht, adding MicroStation in 1992. As is often the case, the computer was under-utilized for the first year or so, partly because much of my work was on existing hand drawn designs, but my first complete CAD design was produced in 1993. The limitations of AutoYacht at that time (Gen. 4) meant that anything other than the simplest superstructure still had to be drawn by hand, and so I started to look at alternative software." He found the answer with MultiSurf in early 1996. With only a handful of other users in the UK and no UK based support he thought this a fairly bold step, but now considers it one of his better decisions. He says, "The flexibility of the software gives me the confidence that I can produce any form that I have in mind, and the support from AeroHydro’s enthusiastic European representative Reinhard Siegel has been second to none." Andrew has MultiSurf running twin screen on NT.

Andrew’s first project with MultiSurf was the 45ft steel barge yacht Juno which took advantage of the software’s developable surface capability to produce an easily plated single-chine Thames barge style hull form. This sturdy sailing barge is designed to combine fine sailing performance with optimum live-aboard accommodation. As the picture left shows, the shallow-draught design allows the boat to sit upright when grounded - even on hard, uneven sand. Since Juno Andrew has produced numerous production powerboats, launches, and small sailing craft for GRP and timber construction. Notable amongst these projects is the Broom 42CL whose hull and superstructure plugs were built using self-jigging laser-cut MDF frame kits developed by fellow MultiSurf user Jim Moore. He is about to be working with Jim again on the development of a range of multi-chine rowing craft kits for Working-Boats UK Ltd.

Enthusiastic about Multisurf as Andrew is, he does find some areas of its operation (such as trimmed surfaces) cumbersome and time-consuming and does not usually take his models to display stage, opting, for expediency, to finalize some details in MicroStation. The level to which he takes a model in MultiSurf depends on the information that is required by the client to actually build the boat - after that it becomes a matter of just how enthusiastic he is about working on his computer and how much time is available to him. The 3D CAD rendering of the Broom 42CL was produced by a graphic designer using 3D Studio based on Andrew’s MultiSurf model.

Andrew's current projects include a 42ft semi-displacement production powerboat for Hardy Marine, a GRP hulled 36ft counter (or fantail) stern saloon launch, and 31ft, 25ft, 20ft, and 19ft river launches, together with several updates of his existing designs. Andrew's website offers more information on and pictures of his designs.

All pictures on this page are copyrighted images belonging to Andrew Wolstenholme.

Wolstenholme Yacht Design, The Flint Barn,
Westbourne Road, Coltishall,
Norfolk NR12 7HT, UK
Telephone: +44 (0) 1603 737024
Fax: +44 (0) 1603 738311
email: anw@anwdesign.demon.co.uk