 At the center of every center console is, well, the center console. It's what gives the name to the entire category and one of the defining aspects of every sportsman boat. Today we are diving deep to see how we are revolutionizing our segment in aesthetics, innovation, design, and even ergonomics. So stick around as we go behind the glass. The design and appeal of the interior of a center console boat stems off of the console. It is responsible for many of the functions and features of the boat. Starting at the helm, the console needs to provide a comfortable driving position while keeping the controls at arm's reach. Forward visibility is a big factor in console design. While it is true that a large console provides more space inside, it also hinders visibility for the captain. Finding the perfect middle ground is key. Peaking inside, consoles are designed to accommodate modern amenities like sinks and toilets, but they also need to have great access to electrical components, a key design advantage on our boats. Storage inside of the console is important. Whether you are storing safety equipment or fishing gear, the interior space will get used primarily for storage. We've also designed some innovative features like the vertical rod storage and large side windows. Moving forward from there, the console provides additional seating, coolers, and even live walls. In some of our models, we have designed longer chase lounges for large fish boxes and coolers underneath. Finally, the console provides the mounting location for teatops and fiberglass hardtops. Now that we understand what goes into designing a console, let's see how they are made. It all begins with a layer of gel coat, followed by a skin coat layer. Due to the console's shape, the team must work on only one side of the mold at a time and avoid flipping it too quickly to avoid early release. Coating materials are added to strengthen the laminate, increase screw retention, or where components will be mounted later on, all of which are precision cut in our in-house CNC machine room. Most consoles will have a cooler, fish box, or live wall, and as we saw in earlier episodes, those are made in our small parts department. Just like a deck, those get bonded into place using methyl methacrylate for a permanent chemical bond. One special treatment unique to consoles is that many of them have a glossy gel coated interior. Due to limitations in open molding techniques, the interior would always have a raw fiberglass finish. To achieve this, a complete second inner part is built, which fits inside of the console. This is called a console liner and will ultimately be glued onto the outer exterior we've seen thus far. This gives us a much nicer finished look and helps create the cavities necessary for rigging electrical components. For our larger consoles, there is one more piece, and that is the console pod. This is an additional piece that will get glued onto the front face and will serve as the mounting spot for our ergonomic helms, electrical components, and will also serve as footrest and storage. Once the console, liner, and pod are completed, the assembly is pushed into our cut and grind booth. Next, the team will precision cut not only the raw edges but holes for electronics, cup holders, trim tap switches, and many other components. The completed console is now ready for final quality check where a dedicated team of inspectors will scrutinize every inch to ensure it meets our high quality standards. At this point, the console is ready to accept all of its essential components as well as any build specific optional equipment. We've developed an innovative approach to console rigging that has allowed us to increase our rate and quality at the same time. We've coined the methodology as boat in a box. This proprietary method actually starts outside of the console. Each model has a dedicated board that has been meticulously laid out with every option available on that model. Each component is outlined on the board and gives exact spots for the components. Each integrated system is tested before being installed inside of the console. Next, installation begins for all of the modern electronics standard on our boats. Technicians will use the precision cutouts made earlier to mount and pre-wire all of the components. We wrap up every dash with a black acrylic dash panel, giving the garments a flushed look. The black also helps reduce glare out on the water. For boats that utilize the console pod, a similar assembly is followed. Once complete, the pod will get permanently bonded with the console. Throughout this entire series, we are focused on our sport tech. It's our fabrication process. However, we need to talk about Sport Link. It is sort of the other side of that. Sport Link represents the factory-installed electronics that come on every single sportsman. Now, there are several advantages to this. For one, you do get three years of warranty on every Sport Link system, but additionally to that, you get peace of mind. This is a factory-installed and certified electronics package, meaning that the installation is done here at Sport Link before the boat leaves over to the dealer. It also allows us to do other cool things. Like on this boat we're on today, you see our digital switching system. This is a very advanced and convenient system that allows us to not have any switches on the dash. However, this is the type of integration that comes as part of our Sport Link system. You've seen the console go from a raw fiberglass part all the way to a beautiful helm. So now let's take a look at the final steps it takes to get it installed on the boat. For the highest precision, the team uses custom-built carts designed to locate the console and frame legs. This jig facilitates the installation of the tops on the console and is another testament to the innovation poured throughout our build process. The entire assembly gets lowered into the awaiting boat as a single piece. A key advantage to our design is that we have a rebate on the deck that accepts the console. This design sets the console lower than the visible deck, which allows us to permanently fasten it from the inside, leaving no exposed screws on the deck. The end result is a clean console face all the way around. Matching wiring harnesses have been installed on the deck and are ready to accept all of the console's pre-wiring. A technician will complete the install inside of the console and do a full systems check. Thank you for spending time with us taking a look at what it takes to build one of our consoles. This is part of our SportTech Advanced Fabrication process. This proprietary combination of processes and materials yields the best results each step of the way and has been thoroughly tested for durability, longevity and finish. All sports for boats feature a 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsons Behind the Glass. We're going to be visiting our metal shop where we fabricate all of the aluminum parts that we have on our boats. From Summerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching.