We built the SeaPod roof upside down so when it was finished, we had to get it flipped over. We called this process The Flippening and it was quite the feat. We didn’t want to put the weight of the roof directly onto the fiberglass roof material so we built a steel frame on the inside that distributed the weight to prevent damage.
After we flipped it over, we used the frame again to lift the roof onto the top of the spar of our first SeaPod prototype so that it could be mounted in place. This frame was installed only to help move the roof around so it isn’t needed anymore now that we have mounted the roof in place.
Removing the frame is not easy. It weighs nearly a ton and wraps around the center spar. So the first step was to rig ropes to the frame on all sides. Then we disconnected the frame from the roof and let it dangle from the ropes. We then used those ropes to slowly lower the frame down to a level where we could manage it. Once the frame was down, we had to cut the metal to get it out since it surrounded the center spar.
Luckily for us, everything went smoothly. We didn’t run into any major issues and we got the frame removed without damaging anything on the SeaPod. This was a big step for us as we move toward getting this first SeaPod prototype finished and into the water. Things are coming along nicely and we continue to have success on our first attempt at various things around the factory which is a great sign!
