Boating Safety News
1997 IMTEC INNOVATION AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Judges reward technical advancement & simplistic thought
This year’s International Marine Trades Exhibit & Conference (IMTEC) Innovation Awards found the number of categories doubled in which new products could be entered. Included in the contest were Boats (including inflatables and dinghies), Engines, Electronics, Marina Equipment, Water Sports, Soft Goods, Trailers, Original Equipment/Components, Service Shop Equipment and General Accessories.
The judging staff, consisting of Boating Writers International members who are acknowledged experts in various fields of the marine industry from naval architecture to engines to electronics, meet early in the morning the day before the show opens to whittle down the hundreds of entrants to a manageable number that can be personally visited by each. This is not an easy process and the judges very carefully stick to the following judging criteria. To be considered as a finalist, each product must exhibit:
An absolute distinction from any other product currently being
manufactured;
An obvious benefit to the consumer of the marine industry;
Practicality;
Cost-effectiveness;
The product must be on display at IMTEC for the first time (not
shown at a previous IMTEC);
Product must be currently in production.
This year’s judges included chairman Dean Travis Clarke, Bill Pike - Boating, Joe Skorupa - Boating World, Rick Eyerdam - Marine Business Journal, Roger Marshall - Soundings, Jim Barrons - Trailer Boats, Gordon West - freelance electronics writer, Chris Kelly - Power & Motoryacht and Jim Gorant - Popular Mechanics.
ENGINES
Suzuki’s 60 & 70 hp four-stroke outboards took top honors in this category for having significant improvement over other four-strokes. A solid-state ignition, sequential multi-port digital fuel injection, an unusual water-cooled "long-track" intake manifold that uses harmonics to increase power while reducing noise and a new idle-speed control are just a few of the technological breakthroughs Suzuki offers.
Honorable mention went to Motorguide’s new voice-activated Lazer trolling motor. Simply speaking to this electric trolling motor from anywhere aboard the boat will cause it to go forward, backward, left, right, faster or slower.
Finalists included Honda, with the first four-stroke outboard to break the 100-hp barrier. Honda’s new 135-hp engine now represents the biggest four-stroke available.
Toyota made its debut in the international marine community with a new 4.0 liter, 90-degree V8 gas inboard that turns out 300-hp. This high-tech aluminum powerplants features twin, double overhead camshafts and 32 valves.
MerCruiser introduced its Horizon Magnum MPI engine, a 454 cid package that requires much less maintenance that comparable engines.
Sea Maxx entered its special fuel cell that eliminates vapor locking and reduced performance in fuel-injected engines.
OEM
Steering a high-horsepower outboard without hydraulic steering is a difficult and tiring endeavor. Morse Power Steering solves that problem with its new electro-mechanical steering system. Turning the steering wheel activates an electronic sensor which in turn, sends a signal to a gear and cable system mounted by the engine. With only two turns lock-to-lock and constant self-centering, Morse Power Steering makes tough steering easy at a very affordable price.
Finalists included Atlantic Marine Products, who offered its new LectroTabs. This electro-mechanical trim tab system works exactly the same way as a hydraulic system, but without oil or bulky hoses.
Charles Marine Products Isoboost T100 combines all the safety and security features of a true marine isolation transformer with the addition of specially designed circuitry to counteract low dock voltage that can often ruin your sensitive onboard electronics and appliances.
SeaLand also made the finalists list with a new vacuum head that fits in just about the same space as a manual or portable toilet. This unit combines a vacuum tank, pump and 3-gallon holding tank in one compact unit.
TRAILERS
Mardikian Design offers the Super Sonic Sports Trailer, a sleek, virtually custom trailer with loads of truly unique features. The front of the trailer has an aerodynamic cargo section containing numerous lockable compartments, an integral 50-gallon fuel tank with regular gas-pump-type nozzle for easy refueling and solar panels for powering trailer lights and recharging your boat or watercraft’s batteries. Available with custom colors and one-, two-, or three-axle configurations, the Super Sonic Sports Trailer starts at a mere $1,995.
The one finalist is the first computerized, universal tow vehicle/trailer electrical connection system. No matter what type of plugs either has, the Plug & Go system allows you to quickly and easily hook up lights with no additional plug requirements.
WATER SPORTS
L.E.A.D. Corp. promotes safety and comfort aboard personal watercraft with its Safety Spotter handle. The spotter on a PWC needs to ride backwards but the integral handles force the spotter to lean over in an awkward position. Safety Spotter is a sturdy scooter-type handle that bolts to the stern pad eye and straps to the seat handle. It can be adjusted up during use or down other times to keep it out of the way.
The finalist was ICONN Sports with a slalom ski that makes turns with much less effort and gets up on top of the water with greater ease.
MARINA EQUIPMENT
It’s always a treat to see a company introduce a product that helps the less fortunate. Bellingham Marine has built the Marina Ramp Rider, an electric ramp car specifically to allow dock access to wheelchair-bound boaters. The design allows the electrically-operated car to remain upright and level no matter the tide height or inclination of the ramp. Every comfort and safety detail has been considered, making this winner really innovative.
Snap-Back Enterprises was a finalist with their self-adjusting dock anchoring system called the DC1000 Dock Compensator. This self-contained unit fits under the dock decking and automatically adjusts the tension on cables to compensate for tides or lake levels.
SERVICE SHOP
According to several surveys, boaters cite difficulty, inconvenience and poor customer service as reasons for leaving boating. Industry wags constantly chide us all to MAKE IT EASIER! Quaker State’s Q-Lube division has done just that with its marine Quick-Lube Centers and mobile service trucks. In just 30 minutes, a boat owner can have all preventative maintenance done by either trailering the boat into the drive-through service bay or the mobile truck will come right to your dock. No muss, fuss or bother. Plus, Q-Lube will prevent many of the current "owner accidents" where unskilled boaters spill oil and such into the water. With outlets pretty much nationwide, boaters can prolong the lives of their boats through painless, convenient and inexpensive service.
GENERAL ACCESSORIES
Most anyone who’s ever run a small boat with a portable fuel tank will appreciate Dinghy Mate’s innovation award winner. It’s a portable tank that mounts handily on the transom, out of the way and secure. One of those "I should have thought of that" products, the 3-gallon Dinghy Mate tank is red translucent plastic, allowing you to see the fuel level at a glance. UL approved, this tank will make any small boat outing more pleasant.
Finalists were Future Products who brought a Type V PFD for kids to the show. These U.S.C.G.-approved devices incorporated flotation with swimwear.
Johnson Worldwide Associates entered its Generator 70B Compass featuring a zero-spin, direct reading compass card.
Statpower’s Prosine 2.5 Inverter/Charger provides ripple-free power in sine-wave form.
ELECTRONICS
Several incredible new products vied for final honors in this year’s electronics category. Once again, however, the simplest took the gold. Shakespeare’s new Centerpin PL-259 coaxial cable plug makes installing a plug so easy a two-year-old can do it. No solder, no tools other than a pair of pliers and you, too can make a perfect connection that provides better strain relief on the wire and improved impedance over a soldered connection. Not only will this product revolutionize the marine electronics industry, it has ramifications throughout electronics worldwide. This may well be the most innovative -- and simplest -- new product in the marine world this year.
"This category was the toughest one to call," said Judges Committee Chariman Dean Clarke.
Ratheon’s SL72 MagTronic radar utilizes previously classified military as well as commercial technology to boost radar performance many times over for the same amount of output power.
Si-Tex introduced the first affordable, color LCD fish finder/track plotter designed to be easily viewed in direct sunlight.
Nobeltec presented the most advanced navigation software for chart handling ever. Its Visual Navigation Suite also features trip planning, animated tide and current representations and more.
Neither Soft Goods nor Boats categories had an Innovation Award winner for this year.
Atlantic Marine Products
8790 Park Central Drive
Richmond, VA 23227
(804) 264-1169
Charles Marine Industries
5600 Apollo Drive, Charles Center
Rolling Meadows, IL 60008
(847) 806-6300
Dinghy Mate
7510 Orangewood - Unit E
Stanton, CA 90680
(800) 480-6330
Future Products Corp.
200 Andersonville Lane
Alto, GA 30510
(706) 776-6072
Honda Marine
4475 River Green Parkway
Duluth, GA 30136
(770) 497-6066
ICONN Sports, LLC
4602-B2 Chennault Beach Rd.
Mukilteo, WA 98275
(206) 349-1550
Johnson Worldwide Associates
1326 Willow Road
Sturtevant, WI 53177
(414) 884-1500
Mercury Marine
P.O. Box 1939
Fond du Lac, WI 54936-1939
(414) 929-5000
Nobeltec
1505 N.W. Gilman Blvd., Ste. 5
Issaquah, WA 98027
(425) 391-9131
Morse Controls
21 Clinton Street
Hudson, OH 44236-2899
(216) 653-7701
Mardikian Design
15662 Commerce Lane
Huntington Beach, CA 92649
(714) 895-0944
Plug-N-Go, Inc.
P.O. Box 1850
Apache Junction, AZ 85217
(602) 649-3051
Q-Lube (Quaker State Corp.)
1385 West 2200 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84119
(801) 972-6667
Raytheon
676 Island Pond Rd.
Manchester, NH 03109
(603) 647-7530
SeaLand
P.O. Box 38, 4th Street
Big Prarie, OH 44611
(330) 496-3211
Sea Maxx (Pleasurecraft Marine)
P.O. Drawer 369
Little Mountain, SC 29075
(803) 345-1347
Shakespeare E&F Division
19845 US Highway 76
Newberry, SC 29108
(803) 276-5504
Si-Tex
11001 Roosevelt Blvd., Ste. 800
St. Petersburg, FL 33716
(813) 576-5734
Snap-Back Enterprises
556 Reed St., Ste. #1
Santa Clara, CA 95050
(408) 235-7788
Statpower
7725 Lougheed Highway
Burnaby, BC
Canada V5A 4V8
Bellingham Marine Industries
P.O. Box 8
Bellingham, WA 98227
(360) 676-2800
Suzuki Marine
3251 E. Imperial Highway
Brea, CA 92821-6722
(714) 996-7040
L.E.A.D. Group
1102 Western Avenue
Mosinee, WI 54455
(715) 693-4546
Toyota Marine Sports
7658 Municipal Drive
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 370-7000