 Welcome to Sportsman's Behind the Glass. In this very first episode, we are taking an in-depth look at our hull construction process and it all begins right behind me, right here in our lamination department. So without any further ado, let's step inside and let's take a look at what's behind the glass. The hull is the bottom of the boat. It's what dictates the shear line, the length and so much more. Sportsman has an innovative approach to hull construction where we believe that these materials and processes yield the absolute best results. Like every great boat, the construction process begins with the perfect mold. Our molds go through rigorous maintenance to ensure every new hull meets our quality standards. The team spends countless hours sanding and buffing them to perfection to achieve the highest quality part. To understand our hull construction, we first need to understand that boats are built from the outside in, starting with the outside layer called the gelcoat layer. Gelcoat is a pigmented layer of resin. Unlike traditional automotive paints where gloss and the base color are layered, gelcoat is one single tough layer. This allows it to be sanded and buffed throughout its life to bring back the original finish. Once the gelcoat has been sprayed on the mold to ensure proper thickness and consistency, a quality technician takes measurements using a mill gauge. This is just one of the many steps that we take throughout the build process to ensure consistent build quality. The results are closely recorded using a tablet at each of the quality stations. After proper curing time on that first layer, work begins on the second layer, commonly referred to as the skin coat layer. This is the first line of defense against water penetration. One key advantage that we have here is that we use a vinyl ester resin. Vinyl ester is known for its toughness and its ability to withstand blistering. To finish this layer, the team will use special rollers to make sure that any air that got trapped between the first and second layer gets released, thus avoiding any air voids down the road. Once the skin coat layer has dried, we actually fill all of the strings with a polyester putty. This has some key advantages for us. For one, it actually makes a smooth surface down the hall, which makes it a lot easier to layer fiberglass and avoids any air voids in between layers. Secondly, the putty is very strong and adds even more strength into our hull construction process. The strings are considered a high impact area. The added support given by this putty will give you a smoother ride and a stronger hull. Once the putty is in place, we'll add many different types of composite materials with different purposes, ranging between screw retention all the way to sound dampening. First is the hull sight. They receive a full layer of coring. This material is great for sound dampening and rigidity properties. To finish off the lamination process, we will hand-lay bulk fiberglass to the specified density. This step ensures proper thickness across the entire hull. We've devised a quick demonstration here of what coring does to fiberglass. We have the same amount of fiberglass all throughout this entire piece. The only difference is on this side, we've laminated a piece of coring. So over on this side, over a long span, simple force, you could see how much bend we have. And then over on this side, I cannot get this to bend. It's very, very strong. Now, the thicknesses of this demonstration have no correlation to our hull sides or any other part of our boat. It is simply to demonstrate the strength of cord versus just fiberglass. Next, we focus on the pinning flange, an area that requires high screw retention. Later in the process, we will attach the hull and deck using this flange. Arguably, the most important piece of composite material is at the transom, where engines will apply high levels of stress and test the strength of your boat's transom. In this area, we use a no-rot composite material called Cousinboard, which is made up of high density polyurethane foam and is reinforced with layers of fiberglass, giving you a very strong and reliable transom. These materials significantly strengthen the transom and hull sides while providing better performance and reducing the overall weight. As you may have noticed, each of these materials are precision cut, right here at Sportsman using our state-of-the-art CNC machining. This ensures that every single sportsman boat is built to tight tolerances and very precise specifications. Our first machine is used to cut the bulk fiberglass layers that are laid throughout all of our fiberglass pieces. The second machine precision cuts all of our composite coring materials that are laid throughout each part. These machines, they run from 12 to 16 hours every single day just to keep up with our production line. Later in the process, we will pull the hull out of the mold and scrutinize every single inch to make sure that it meets our high-quality standards. Throughout this process, you've seen highly skilled boat builders hand-crafting masterpieces here at the Sportsman Plants. This craft takes years to master and even with the introduction of new technology, this is still very much a fully hand-crafted process. Over the next several weeks, we will dive into more of our processes here at Sportsman. Thank you for taking the time today to take a look at our hull construction process. This is part of our SportTech Advanced Fabrication process. This proprietary combination of processes and materials yields the best result each step of the way and has been thoroughly tested for durability, longevity and finish. All Sportsman boats feature 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for our next installment of Sportsman's Behind the Glass where we take a look at the spine of our boats, the Stringer system. From Summerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. Welcome to episode two of Sportsman's Behind the Glass. We are back in our lamination department and last episode we focused on hull construction. Now it's time for us to focus on our Stringer system. So let's take a look at what's behind the glass. The Stringer is the spine of the boat. It sits between the deck and the hull providing the necessary support while housing all of the important components built into modern boats. Each Sportsman model has a designated Stringer engineered to be an exact match and provide the necessary support. All of our Stringers are fully structural fiberglass parts that require no foam for rigidity. To start building the Stringers we use a mold same as what we do with our hulls and it all begins with the gel coat layer. This extra added benefit provides a finished interior when you open a hatch or look inside the bilge. Once the gel coat has cured the team starts building the fiberglass layers to a specified thickness. Next composite materials are applied in strategic areas for added strength. We will finish up this part by hand laying bulk fiberglass and trimming any excess. To finish this layer the team uses special rollers to penetrate and release any trapped air for an air void free part. With the introduction of our larger models we've also developed our preparatory full grid Stringer system. A full grid Stringer system has 360 degrees of contact and support to the hull. The increased surface area brings immense hull strength on larger boats with higher horsepower requirements. Let's take a quick pause here and take a look at some of the features that are built into our Stringers. As far as design goes both for our traditional Stringers as well as our new full grid Stringers design very similar. What you'll find are different cavities that are designed for different things. For example this back area here this is the bilge area. Notice how it's completely gel coated over. It makes it really easy to clean and really nice to see whenever you open your bilge. In front of that we do have a cavity here which will end up being the fuel tank cavity and forward of that we have additional storage as well as space for the anchor road. A very important thing that we have built into our Stringers is support for our side entry doors. Notice this additional knee that comes up to make sure that we have the necessary support of that. We also have built-in in-floor boxes. Now the cavities they are foam filled. These are called bulkheads and in the case of the Stringer they serve as additional flotation but in the case of the boxes they actually serve as the installation to make sure that those boxes stay nice and cool. Now in contrast I am standing inside one of our full grid Stringer systems that we use in our larger models. Now as far as design goes you still have a bilge cavity. You still have in-floor boxes, fuel tank cavity and so on and so forth. So very very similar. However the big difference is notice how all throughout the entire haul we have 360 degrees of contact and the contact is much higher up on the hull size. What this allows us to do is take the energy being transferred up the boat and immediately dissipated up the hull size giving you a softer and smoother ride. This new design also features a class-leading designed-in sea-keeper pod. This places the sea-keeper centerline for even weight distribution and down low in the hull for the strongest stabilization effect. Additionally we've designed a total access compartment for easy maintenance. For the ultimate installation platform we laminate solid aluminum blocks into every single sea-keeper ready boat. Once lamination has been completed the stringer will be pulled out of the mold and precision trimmed inside a cut and grind booth. Next is time for us to marry the hull and the stringer. To do this the stringer is lowered into the hull where a technician will trace the entire stringer to show the outline where we will apply the chemical bonding agent. We use an aerospace grade adhesive called methamethacrylate. Using a special application gun the technician applies a thick bead along the traced area. This process chemically etches and permanently bonds both parts. After curing time is complete the unitized hull and stringer is finally pulled out of the mold revealing the beautiful finish on the hull side. With the two parts now permanently attached the empty cavity between the stringer and the hull is filled with a closed cell foam. An added benefit to our strong design is that the foam is not serving any structural support and it's just additional flotation. This foam also serves as an incredible insulator for our in-deck fish boxes which are built into the stringer system. Later in the process the stringer will serve as the grid to install essential components like the fuel tank, pumps, in-floor fish boxes and much more. Thank you for taking the time today to take a look at our stringer construction. 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 sportsmen boats feature 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsman's Behind the Glass where we take an in-depth look at how we build our decks. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. There are three major parts in a modern boat. You've seen the hull, you've seen the stringer. So now for part three of Sportsman's Behind the Glass we are breaking down our deck construction process. So let's take a look at what's behind the glass. It's the topmost piece of a boat and gives it its layout. It accounts for all of the features that will help you decide what boat is best for you. It's a complicated part and it's the final main structural piece of a boat. Just like all of our other parts the deck starts with a mold. One special thing to note about our deck molds not found in the other molds is the integrated non-skid or the textured areas that prevent your feet from slipping when the deck is wet. We use a grip-texted yacht-style non-skid on every deck mold. The fabrication process begins with a layer of gel coat. Once the gel coat dries, fiberglass and resin are simultaneously sprayed to form the first layer fiberglass known as the skin coat layer. Using special rollers the team ensures no air bubbles are trapped in the resin. During this time they roll all over every inch of the deck making sure the fiberglass has adhered to all the radiuses and corners. This process also removes any excess resin. Once the fiberglass is down composite materials are added to give better strength to the deck surfaces which also reduce the weight of the final part. Each piece of material is precision cut using state-of-the-art CNC machining right here at Sportsman. This ensures that every single sportsman boat is built to precise specifications. We have two CNC machines used for cutting coring material. The first machine cuts the dry bulk fiberglass layers used throughout each boat. And the second machine cuts all the composite coring materials used for multiple purposes from strength and rigidity to sound dampening and even insulation for coolers and live wells. The coring materials are pre-sprayed with resin and a wet bed of fiberglass is laid down on the deck before applying each of these materials. Additional fiberglass is applied over the top to encapsulate the composite materials. A key advantage is our strategically located composite materials. As an example aqua steel is placed around the deck where traditionally a backing plate would be used. These areas include cleats, part top legs, leaning post and much more. A growing trend of trolling motors on offshore boats has driven us to design in additional supports at the bow for proper installation. All of these materials work together to provide superior strength all around the deck. Once all of the core materials are placed the process of bulking can begin. This process ensures a consistent thickness and strength for the deck and is done by hand laying the precision cut pieces of fiberglass. Let's take a minute to talk about one of the features on our decks. Now for comparison I have a plastic pipe plate. You'll see these in a lot of boats. When you need to gain access you simply twist it open and you gain access to the important components. Now there are three main disadvantages to this. For one they are made out of plastic so over time the sun will turn them yellow and they will deteriorate. This deterioration also causes them to leak. Not a great thing to have and lastly but probably most importantly even though they're pretty flush you do have a little bit of a raised dome on them and what ends up happening is you always have this dome on your deck instead of a nice flush surface. So to achieve this what we use is we use a fiberglass puck. These are made out in our small parts department. They're made out of fiberglass and gel coat just like the deck and when they are finished we have a completely flush deck with a nice silicone bead that goes all the way around. If you ever need to gain access you simply cut it out and then you can inspect everything that is underneath but this gives us a really nice high quality finished deck that is all one solid level with no differences in materials. All of our decks require additional parts that will eventually become coolers, livewolves and storage boxes. These parts cannot be made inside the deck mold because it wouldn't allow the deck to be pulled off the mold. We will explore this process in depth in our next episode. The boxes get bonded to the deck using methamethaclid, the same aerospace bonding agent we use for bonding the stringers to the hulls. Once all the boxes are in place the deck is pulled from the mold and it's ready to be moved into the cut and grind booth. Special templates called splashes are used to mark the precise location of speakers, rod holders, cup holders and much more. These templates deliver precision placement of all components and is a testament to our closely monitored quality standards. The top of the boxes that were installed earlier get cut open revealing the finished interior of each box. Upon completion the deck gets wheeled forward to meet up with the hull and stringer to await the next step. Thank you for spending time with us today taking a look at our deck construction. This is part of our SportTech Advanced Fabrication process. A preparatory combination of processes and materials that yield the best result each step of the way and has been thoroughly tested for durability, longevity and finish. All sportsman boats feature 100% composite construction with zero weight. Join us in our next episode where we're going to be exploring our small parts which include livewolves, coolers and storage boxes. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. With all of the major components already made it's time for us to shift our attention to a new section of our plant. Welcome to our small parts department, one of our major sub-assemblies. So let's take a look behind the glass at how we make livewolves, coolers, storage boxes and much more. In our previous episode you saw coolers, livewolves and boxes installed onto our decks. In this episode we're going to focus on how we build each of these parts. It all begins with the first layer of gel coat, which in most cases is white. For livewolves we give them a light blue color to differentiate them. Many avid fishermen believe the blue color helps keep bait calm. Once the gel coat has cured, fiberglass and resin are simultaneously sprayed to form the first layer, fiberglass, also known as the skin coat layer. Before the resin dries it's important to make sure there are no air bubbles trapped in the resin. This is done using special rollers and ensures that the fiberglass has adhered to all of the areas and it helps reduce any excess resin. Depending on the intended use each small part will receive the adequate composite materials needed for strength and insulation. Each piece of composite material is pre-cut using our state-of-the-art in-house CNC machines. This maximizes our production time and ensures precise specifications. When placing composite materials team members will collect the exact cuts of materials for the parts they are building. These pre-cut pieces perfectly align to their specific small part. Composite materials are first pre-soaked in resin and a wet bed of fiberglass is sprayed prior to applying each piece. Once the pieces are laid out additional fiberglass is applied to the top to encapsulate the composite materials. Lastly each part will be covered with a combination of dry precision cut fiberglass pieces and chopped fiberglass to form the final layer. Once the part has cured each piece is demolded. The small parts then make their way into our cut and grind booth for final cutting and trimming. This leaves the parts smooth and ready for the next step. Once each part has left the cut and grind booth they will be installed onto the proper deck as you saw in our previous episode. Each part is bonded to the deck using methamethaclet, an aerospace bonding agent which unitizes both parts. With all of the boxes installed the deck is now ready for final trimming. Before wrapping things up it is worth mentioning that these are just some of the small parts that we build in our small parts department. There are many other items such as drainage boxes, gunner caps and even the access pucks that you saw in our last episode. These small parts help make up the intricate details that we design into our boats. Maximizing every inch of space by bringing you larger storage boxes, live walls, coolers and more. Let's take a quick pause here and talk about one of the other parts that we didn't get to see during this episode. It's this part right here and even if you've seen all of our videos you probably don't recognize it. This part gets bonded to the underside of the deck and it's part of our self bailing cockpit system. The way that it works is any water that gets on the deck goes onto this box and then it gets piped overboard without going into the bilge. Now using a collector box allows us to tie in different things, not just the deck. Eventually the part may look something like this once we've tapped into it. One advantage that we have by using a collector box system is that we only need one through hall per box. So we don't need a bunch of through halls on the backside of the boat. The second advantage is that it's at a different level than the deck. So any debris on the cockpit simply goes into the box and it keeps your deck completely clean over the top. All you see is a beautiful stainless steel drain cover. Thank you for spending time with us taking a look at how we build our small parts. This is part of our SportTech Advanced Fabrication process. This preparatory 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 and boats feature 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsman's Behind the Glass where we see all of the structural components come together to form a boat. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. Welcome back. In this episode, we continue our journey through the boat building process. You've seen all the major components take shape independently, so now assembly can begin. And it all starts with hall and deck rigging. So let's take a look at what's behind the glass. The assembly process is a coordinated effort and it requires all of the major components to come together and it's the culmination of many hours of extensive engineering and design. Every component has its design in spot and purpose. Before rigging begins, the deck and hall are test fitted together, a process commonly known as dry capping. Every sportsman boat is designed to have a shoebox like fit. This design ensures optimal strength but requires tight tolerances for a perfect fit. At this stage, we make any necessary adjustments and push the parts to the next cell. At the next station, the team takes advantage of the hall and deck being separated and assembly can begin. So let's start with the hall. Work begins with the fuel tank. Each fuel tank is pressure tested prior to being hoisted into the hall. Throughout the build process, each tank will undergo several pressure tests at different stages and is a testament to our commitment to build quality. The tank gets lowered into the stringer grid and we see how it fits perfectly in the stringer cavity. Most of our fuel tanks are made out of cross-link high-density polyethylene plastic and are built using a rotomolding technique. On our larger models, we use aluminum tanks. These custom tanks take advantage of extra space and allow for more fuel capacity. Next, let's take a look at the wiring and other electrical components. Each sportsman model has a wiring harness designed to accommodate all of the factory components available for that model. The harness has been designed to be routed to each section of the hall. During this step, the team will also install important components such as bilge pumps, transducer, underwater lights, trim tabs and any other build-specific components. Along the way, they will secure every wire and neatly rout it through the stringer. This extra step will ensure years of failure-free use and avoid any unnecessary nuisance sounds. Another major area of assembly is plumbing. Pre-cut hoses are installed on the fuel tank for filling and venting the tank. Later in the process, these hoses will need to be connected to the fill on the deck during the capping process. As part of plumbing, the team will also install all of the necessary through-hulls that will be used for bailing the cockpit and boxes. We take an extra quality assurance step during this process by grinding the backside of the fiberglass flush. This will give the through-hull fitting a perfect mating surface with zero leaks. Other components such as fresh water tanks are also fitted with hoses that will be later attached to the deck. The hull is coming along nicely, so let's shift our attention over to the deck. It will undergo a very similar assembly process. Work begins with plumbing the self-bailing collector boxes on the deck. The other side will get attached to the through-hull fittings during the capping process. At this stage, parts will get installed in precise spots that match the reinforced areas we saw during lamination. The perfect example of this are pull-up cleats. The Aqua Steel will give the cleats the required support and load distribution. Many different components will be installed during this step, including the boarding ladder, cockpit tow rails, and even courtesy lights. Same as the hull, every wire will be neatly routed and secured. The moment we've all been waiting for has finally arrived. It's time to cap the boat. The capping process begins with removing all the debris from the hull and deck. Paying close attention that all mating surfaces are clean and ready for a strong bond. The technician will apply a 2-3 inch bead of bonding putty very similar to the putty we saw in the hull lamination episode. Let's take a quick second here and take a look at our bonding putty in isolation. We do want to show you a couple of cool things about it, as well contrast it to our methamethacrylate. So this stuff is what we're going to use to adhere the deck to the stringer for a couple of reasons. For one, you see it's super strong, it doesn't have a ton of flex, and it's going to provide tons of support wherever it is applied. And the second thing is that it can actually be built up to different heights depending on the application. To contrast this, let's take a look at methamethacrylate. This is the stuff that we use to bond our stringers to the hulls, as well as the boxes to the decks. This stuff, it almost feels like rubber and it is flexible. It is able to absorb energy, that's one of its cool properties. So just to compare, we'll use this in places where we need to have a little bit more height, as well as have tons of support. And then we'll use the methamethacrylate wherever we need a super strong bond, but we also want a little bit of energy absorption, such as through the hull onto the string. They carefully trace every mating surface and work their way towards the transom. The team must work swiftly and accurately, as many different tasks will need to be performed simultaneously during the final pinning process. The deck is lowered almost all the way, leaving just enough room to complete any necessary connections of the hoses we saw earlier. Then work begins pinning the deck and hull, starting at the bow and working towards the stern. If you recall, extra composite materials were applied in this area during the lamination to ensure screw retention at the pinning flange. For the boats with side entry doors, special clamps are used to guarantee adhesion all the way around. They will be removed once it has cured. With the capping complete, we are one step closer to the finish line and some much needed on water time. Thank you for spending some time with us taking a look at our capping and rigging. 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 sportsmen boats feature 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsmen's Behind the Glass, where you'll take a look at how we build the beautiful upholstery that we have in each of our models. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. In today's episode, we are getting comfy in our upholstery department. You'll get to see the talented team of seamstresses making every cushion that we use here at Sportsmen. Upholstery is one of the very first things you'll notice about a boat and for many, the deciding factor. So sit back, relax and let's see what's behind the glass. Modern boats require modern techniques, materials and processes. Here at Sportsmen, we carry that all throughout our boat building process. Stepping into our upholstery shop, you immediately get a sense of craftsmanship and technology working together. But it all starts at the design phase. During the designing and prototyping phase of a new boat, all of the upholstery is designed in to meet the needs of modern boaters. The designs go through rigorous phases until we have a final approved design. Many factors will dictate the final design from the overall aesthetics to ease of installation and longevity. Depending on a cushion's intended use, it will receive a mesh bottom, drain holes to drain any water out or a hard bottom. Hard bottom cushions are used for any cushions that will need structural rigidity. A key advantage to our construction is the silicone-based marine textiles that we use. This advanced material is engineered to outlast traditional vinyl and has incredible modern properties while providing a soft touch and plush feel. Once the design has been finalized, we move on to the production phase. Modern technology in our upholstery department has facilitated a 200% increase in productivity while taking our quality to new heights. Work begins with cutting and trimming all of the materials down to size. Our state-of-the-art in-house CNC machines make quick work of all the precise cuts required for each cushion. The first machine cuts the substrate we will use across many cushions. This machine will also cut precise mounting locations for every cushion, making installation down the line a breeze. We use a combination of two materials for the rigid cushions. The first material is a white PVC plastic used for hard bottoms. The second is a black substrate that is semi-rigid, making it perfect for cushions that require some bending, like the ball bolsters. Our second CNC station pre-cuts all of the fabric out of a long roll of material. It does quick work of what has traditionally been a very labor-intensive job. This allows us to have very precise cuts and minimizes waste by nesting parts closely together. The final CNC station adds the diamond stitching you see on many of our cushions. This machine takes a large piece of material and creates a patterned sheet. This sheet will later be cut down for size for the appropriate cushion. Now that we have all of the prep work completed, it's time to start assembly. And it all starts with sewing. Each seamstress receives a kit containing every piece of side leather, mesh and diamond pattern used for a specific boat. Assisted by small tabs pre-cut into the material by the CNC machine, they will sew the pieces together to form the outer layer of each cushion. It takes years to master this craft. The combination of modern technology and craftsmanship work together harmoniously to craft the finished product. The pieces now move on to the next station where a team of coverers will complete the cushion assembly. Before we go any further, let's take a quick break and talk about the advantages of side leather. We are often asked what the advantages are of this material and we break it down into three different things. The first thing is weather resistance. This material is silicone-based as opposed to traditional vinyl and it has a great ability to withstand weathering. The second advantage we'd like to talk about is stain resistance. Often you hear about things like sunscreen being damaging for the upholstery. But again, this is silicone-based and it doesn't have those issues. And the last thing we'd like to talk about probably the most important one is comfort. Just touching this material right off the bat, you get a really soft and nice luxurious feel to it. And that is a great advantage to this material. So now that we've talked about those advantages, let's head back into the assembly process where we are about to start covering our cushions. The PVC and plastic substrate pieces we saw being cut earlier are covered with the internal layers of foam. The foam will give the cushion the shape and sculpting you see across our boats. This assembly is then covered with the material sewed together by the seamstresses and secured to the back of the plastic bottoms using staples. For cushions that will have an exposed bottom, they will use a binding material for concealing the staples called Hydom. This gives the bottom of the cushion a clean look. The team repeats these steps to create all of the cushions for each sportsman model. The pieces are then collected and delivered to the assembly floor. Installation of each piece takes advantage of the precision mounting holes cut earlier in the process. The assembly team uses templates to install corresponding mounting brackets on the boat and securely fasten down the upholstered pieces. To wrap up assembly, they install any snaps or additional hardware. Thank you for spending time with us exploring our upholstered department. 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 sportsman boats feature 100% composite construction with zero weight. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsman's Behind the Glass where we are going to be taking a look at how we manufacture our ergonomic consoles. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. 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. Peeking 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're 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 methamethacrylate 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. The technicians will use the precision cutouts made earlier to mount and prewire 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 SportLink. It is sort of the other side of that. SportLink 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 SportLink 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 SportLink 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 SportLink 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 sportsman boats feature a 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsman's 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 Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. Welcome back. Today we are visiting one of the more unique departments here at Sportsman Boats. We are visiting our metal shops and our product coating departments. In this building we fabricate all of the aluminum parts that will eventually become hard top frames, rod holders and even handrails. So stick around as we go behind the glass. When it comes to metal parts, aluminum is the preferred choice. There are two main reasons for that. The first is aluminum's superior corrosion resistance. Unlike other metal choices, aluminum is naturally resistant to corrosion. Modern marine alloys take these natural properties to the next level. The second is aluminum's weight. It's considerably lighter than other metals allowing the frames to be strong but light weight. The aluminum gets delivered to the floor in long pieces. These pieces come in in various sizes and shapes. Once the aluminum has been delivered, work can begin on the final parts. Let's take a close look at the manufacturing process of a hard top frame. The team member starts by bending the pieces using our state-of-the-art CNC bender. This ensures accurate bends on every piece and makes quick work of intricate compound bends. They will batch process all of the necessary pieces for multiple tops at once. The pre-bent pieces then get final trimmed to the appropriate size. Using templates and jigs, the team member starts assembling the required pieces together. This is a crucial step to have a high-quality finished part. Once satisfied with the fitment, they start tack welding the parts together. This will secure the pieces together and ensure that it keeps the shape. Next, full penetration welds are completed on all of the seams. This is where the art form of welding comes in. It takes years to master and it's very visible in the finished product. It should look like stacked coins on every weld. The hard top frame is coming along nicely. You've seen it go from a stack of parts all the way to a completed hard top frame. This procedure is very similar for all of our metal parts. Now let's take a look at adding the durable powder coating finish. Here at Sportsman, our powder coating is done in-house. We utilize a multi-step process proven to be tough and durable. The completed parts are delivered to the powder coating room, where a quality technician inspects the parts. The inspector is looking for defects in the welds and other signs of minor quality issues. Proper pretreatment of every part before powder coating is the most important step in getting great performance and longevity out of every powder coated part. The prep process begins with an alkaline cleaner that removes any dirt, cutting fluid, grease, rust, oil, and any other contaminants. This is followed by a high pressure wash to remove the chemicals. Our next prep step is what really sets our process apart from others, is how we have elevated the durability and quality on all of our powder coated parts. Using a low pressure sprayer, the technician applies a cerconium acid pretreatment that chemically reacts and converts the surface into a thin film of cerconium oxide. This chemical change dramatically increases adhesion of the powder coating. This step has been proven to increase durability, corrosion resistance, and salt spray performance. At this stage, all of the prep work has been completed and it is now time to apply the powder coating. The part gets rolled into the spray booth along with other parts to be simultaneously sprayed. As the name suggests, powder coating is a pigmented powder that takes advantage of the physical traction of opposing electrical charges. A charge is applied to the part being sprayed and the powder is negatively charged as it exits the gun. A 2-4 mil thick layer of powder effortlessly clings on the part and is ready for the next step. At this stage, the powder is on the part but it is not permanent just yet. That final step is done inside of an oven. Before we go on any further, we wanted to show you what a part actually looks like before it gets baked. So this part here, the powder has been sprayed on the part but it is not permanent. Let me show you. You can actually take this and take it right off. So you see the aluminum is right behind it and that's what it looks like right before it gets baked. In my hand here, I have a part that has been baked and the finish on it is what you expect out of powder coating. It is completely cured on and it is now permanently attached to this piece of aluminum. So with that, let's go ahead and jump back in and take a look at the steps required to actually bake an aluminum part. We now see the technician wheel the parts into a large oven. This oven can bake multiple large parts and small parts at the same time. The oven will heat up to over 400 degrees Fahrenheit and permanently bake the coating on the part. This process of pretreatment and baking is what gives powder coating its durability. The parts will spend roughly 30 minutes in this oven. The parts are now ready for final quality checks before they are delivered to the floor. These checks are broken down into three steps. The first step is a visual inspection. The quality technician is looking for any visible imperfections on the finish. This can include areas where the coating is thin or has any contaminants. The second quality check is a cure test. This makes certain that the powder coating has been fully baked and cured on the part. The final check is a coating thickness test. Similar to the mill gauge test we saw during our gel coat steps, the technicians use a digital mill gauge to measure the thickness of the coating at various spots. This step ensures the coating is within specification and ready to be installed on the boat. Thank you for spending time with us taking a look at our metal fabrication and powder coating departments. 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 with durability, longevity and finish. All sportsmen boats feature 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for another installment of Sportsmen's Behind the Glass. We will be talking all about quality, issue tracking and our test tanks. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. Welcome back. Today we're getting an in-depth look at all of the combined efforts throughout the entire planet surrounding quality. So stick around as we go Behind the Glass. It may come as a surprise but quality considerations begin during the design phase of a new model. The design team takes great care of accounting for many different variables and tolerances associated with molded fiberglass parts. The goal is to make sure that the production team can manufacture high quality parts repeatedly. One example of this in action can be seen in one of our completed CAD models. Not only is the hall, stringer and deck modeled in but so are all of the small components. These include rod holders, routing of plumbing hoses, speakers, lids and much more. The ability to foresee quality concerns before going to production with a model gives us the built in quality by design. By the end of this process we have the confidence that the boat will perform as designed and that every part will work together seamlessly. You've seen quality by design in the computer but this is carried further inside the R&D and prototyping stations. Following precise drawings, the team will validate every component for fitment and performance. They will create the splashes and instructional build books that will be used by the production team during the manufacturing process. The work done here is to ensure that when the new model hits the production line, every process has been worked out to incredible detail. This allows production to ramp up on a new model from day one. The steps that you have just seen are just a glimpse of all of the efforts that are done for a new model. But beyond this there are many isolation tests that are performed during the design phase and even beyond. Let's shift our attention now to our day to day quality control. Throughout this entire series you've witnessed the artisans here at Sportsman crafting every part and while assisted by technology you've seen that it's all still very much a handcrafted product. For recording and logging every detail as it relates to quality we have a dedicated quality team that specializes in scrutinizing every detail. This team is spread out throughout the entire build process giving us many quality control stations. Every part will be closely inspected and the results are recorded in our quality software using tablets. Some of the checkpoints even require photos of the inspection point. As an example of details that are recorded when a boat is sprayed we record things like gel code batch number, ambient temperature, gun operator, mold number, job number and much more. This will become very important later in this episode. You've seen many of our technicians inspecting parts but all of these efforts culminate in our test tanks. The final quality control checkpoint for every boat here at Sportsman is one of these test tanks. Each boat is hoisted up and into the water. The boat will float while the team performs a battery of tests designed to test every system on board. The team starts with leak tests for every through-hole fitting, pump and hose. We've seen them pressure testing the fuel components separately but at this station the final pressure test is performed on the complete fuel system. A passing test here means every single component is operating properly. The levels are also filled and checked for leaks. This sport link system also gets its final setup at this station and they will calibrate the fuel system and perform any build-specific setup required. Other inspection points include navigation lights, sound system, upholstery, rod holder angles and much more. At this point the boat is finished and is ready to be delivered to one of our dealers and ultimately to you. But before we wrap up this episode there is one more thing that we want to talk about. It's important for us to mention that quality doesn't end in the design face. It doesn't even end when the boat leaves the plant. Quality is a continuous effort that operates in a loop. Internally we coined the term as listen, lead, create. And it stands for we listen to the customer, lead the pack in innovation and create the absolute best boat we can today. Feedback from our dealers and customers are closely monitored in our structure continuous improvement workflow. The goal is to use the tools available to us and data collected by the quality team to get to the root cause of any issue. This leads to higher quality every single day here at Sports & Boats and that is what the quality team thrives on. Thank you for spending time with us today taking a look at our quality control. This is part of our SportTech advanced fabrication process. This preparatory 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 Sportsman boats feature a 100% composite construction with zero wood. Join us in our next episode for the final installment of Sportsman's Behind the Glass Season 1. We're going to get a chance to talk to some of the brains behind the incredible operations here at Sportsman Boats. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching. Welcome back. Today we have a very special episode for you. We're going to get to meet the team behind Sportsman. We'll be talking about the driving factors and the thought process behind the brand. So stick around as we go Behind the Glass. We kind of started our company with a 23 center console in 2012 when we introduced that model. Companies that we competed with still had dated older tooling and designs and we came out with what we felt was a fresh, more current, modern looking design. And then we just continued to build upon that as we go. Now our latest design language, we've done a lot of things just to improve upon that. Integrated detubing for our consoles, integrated windshields on all of our boats, aquarium live wells, the list goes on and on. I've been in this industry for 37, 38 years and I don't think there's ever been a time when the buyer's expectations were higher than they are now. Which we thrive upon that. We think it makes us better. Customers want quality, best in class, they want all those things and we strive extremely hard to provide that for the customer. The vision for building the team here at Sportsman that goes back to the vision for the company is world class. You know, that's, again, I don't want to be cliche and it'll catch phrase world class, but, you know, you've got to surround yourself with good people. The quality of your boats is only as good as the quality of the people you have. So people are everything in our business. That is the most important aspect we have. The team mentality, the culture, you know, the continuous improvement, we're all driving to one goal and that's to build the best quality boat we can. I'd want to know whatever boat I was buying, whether it be a Sportsman one of ours or not, who is the team behind it? Who are the folks behind that product? What's their track record? Are they going to take care of them? You know, when I have a problem, if I have a problem. And that's, you know, really, I think I really pride myself on our team and how we're able to do that through our, of course, through supporting our dealers. We've got a world class customer service team. And, you know, these boats are built by human beings. They're not machine made like the automotive industry and some other industries. We don't stamp them out with a press. We make them every day. You know, it's lots of labor involved, lots of love involved, but a lot of labor in these boats. And, you know, you have things from time to time. And what we're very proud about is, you know, when we have an issue, we take care of it and take care of our customers and stand behind our product. From an early start, Sportsman always had a driven vision. Well, obviously for our customers, we want to start out with a dealer network that is a world class dealer network, not only world class in terms of, you know, sales and creating the brand expansion that we look for, but also providing the total experience from before and after the sale. So we only choose dealers that are going to commit to us what we want for our customers, which is a total ownership experience throughout the life of the ownership for our customers. In today's market, buyer trust is something that is very important for the success of the relationship between our brand and ultimately our customers. And this is something that we strive to earn every single day. When a customer sees the transparency that we offer through our website, through our pricing, through our dealer network, it just instills trust in them that they want to spend their hard-earned dollars with us because they know they're getting a product that's going to last, that's going to, you know, have quality, but also they're doing business with somebody that's going to stand there for them when they have an issue down the road. It starts from the first time they visit our website to the first time they visit the dealer. They're building that trust the entire way. And so I just think it helps give them the confidence and the trust they need to spend their hard-earned dollars. As a customer, we felt like it was very important for our customers to be able to get to price very quickly, very easily, without a lot of gimmicks. So we started internet pricing several years ago to provide that overall transparency. Our brand is positioned to be an incredible value proposition. In other words, for what you're going to get from sportsmen, from what we install in the boat standard to our dealer network to the customer, what you're going to get is an incredible value for dollar for dollar. This year we celebrate our 10th year, and our organization has evolved just as much as our product. The evolution of the company has been fun to watch, but specifically two to three years ago was when we really throttled down on bringing, you know, upping our game from an engineering standpoint, specifically product development. First and foremost, I definitely think we are an engineered-based company. That's one of the true enjoyments I have of working for a company like this. We're constantly trying to innovate. It's what drives the design and us be able to come to market quicker, usually the most, and more products quicker as well. And it goes back to the innovation we talked about earlier. Without it being an engineering-based company, you wouldn't have the focus that our ownership and management allow us to do to get to that, to get to the market quicker to make it to fruition and make it happen. So process improvement for sports and boats is, you know, it's a continuous thing. You know, daily activity, daily meetings, you know, how do we do it better? You know, find the root cause of each problem, come up with a solution, and then acting upon that. So every issue out in the, whether it's out on the floor or in the design process, we're always trying to troubleshoot and find how we make it better and bring a solution to the table. So as new products come out, customers give us feedback on what they want to see in the boat. And we as a group decide, yes, that should be in the boat, it's designed in. So it should appease the masses and it's a turnkey ready boat and everything fits. When we asked what the key to success was over the last 10 years, the answer was consistent across the group. It's the team. You know, it really is. It's the people. And, you know, when I was in this business for a lot of years, I got out of it for a little while. That's the thing I miss the most was the people. First and foremost, our team here, our employees. I just love working with these people. We have just a great group of professionals. And also the dealers and the customers. You know, I enjoy interacting with our dealers and our customers at our boats. So that's probably number one. Second to that would be just the product development side of the business. You know, I love that. I love working with our engineering team and trying to bring a little value to that proposition on product development. And so I spent a lot of my time there. And so yeah, that's probably a couple of things that I enjoy the most. As we come to a close on this season, we want to thank everyone involved in making this series possible and to you for your support, comments and feedback. From Somerville, South Carolina, my name is Victor and thank you for watching.