Sentinel Boats, headquartered in Tasmania, Australia, specialise in crafting high-quality, reliable tactical watercraft and workboats tailored for the defence, maritime security, aquaculture, emergency services, and civil construction sectors.
Sentinel Boats emerged from PFG in 2023, which initially focused on designing and producing aquaculture equipment such as ocean fish pens, Sentinel Boats transitioned to developing robust workboats using engineering polymers. By 1996, they introduced their first high-performance workboats, which expanded their reach into emergency services and eventually into the defence industry, where their primary focus lies today.
To effectively meet the needs of the defence and maritime security sectors, there arose a distinct demand for boats engineered to withstand the harsh conditions of high-energy environments, enduring frequent and intense usage without succumbing to wear and tear. These vessels must exhibit resilience under rigorous operations, capable of sustaining speeds exceeding 35 knots per hour, while necessitating minimal maintenance for their hulls and structures.
Additionally, in the event of hull damage, they should allow for on-site repairs without the need for hot works.
Conventional hull materials, including aluminium, fibreglass, and carbon fibre, pose limitations in terms of impact resistance and abrasion tolerance, thereby affecting their service life. Furthermore, the difficulty in repairing hulls and structures constructed from these materials exacerbates these challenges
Sentinel managed to overcome the limitations of traditional materials and boost their boats' performance by utilising Polystone PG100, a structural-grade HDPE based on PE100. This choice was further bolstered by collaborating with a naval architect to maximise the advantages offered by Polystone PG100's unique properties.
The selection of Polystone PG100 was supported by conducting specific impact tests tailored to the conditions typically faced by this type of boat, such as collisions with rocks and coral.
Polystone PG100 HDPE created the capability to outperform alternative watercraft made from alloy or composite materials via:
Personnel safety: superior impact and vibration absorption reducing personnel fatigue.
The specific impact testing conclusively showed that Polystone PG100 (HDPE) possesses remarkable resilience against impact loading and strikes, outperforming traditional materials such as aluminium, fibreglass, and carbon fibre. In instances where these conventional materials failed, Polystone PG100 remained intact, preventing catastrophic breaches to the boat.
By harnessing Polystone PG100, Sentinel stands as the pioneering and sole designer and manufacturer of high-performance boats, widely used by the military and other demanding marine applications, that leverage such an advanced engineering polymer. Remarkably, their initial boat constructed from this engineering polymer continues to operate, as of March 2024, enduring 28 years of service and surpassing numerous engine replacements.
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