Surftech is a
surfboard
A surfboard is a narrow plank used in surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding an ocean wave. They were invented in ancient Hawaii, where they were known as ''papa he' ...
and
standup paddleboard
Standup paddleboarding (SUP) is a water sport born from surfing with modern roots in Hawaii. Stand up paddleboarders stand on boards that are floating on the water, and use a paddle to propel themselves through the water. The sport was doc ...
manufacturing company.
["Surftech Announces New Ownership"]
(January 07, 2015). prweb.com. Retrieved January 21, 2015. It specializes in mass-produced
expanded polystyrene
Polystyrene (PS) is a synthetic polymer made from monomers of the aromatic hydrocarbon styrene. Polystyrene can be solid or foamed. General-purpose polystyrene is clear, hard, and brittle. It is an inexpensive resin per unit weight. It is a ...
boards pressed in molds designed by established
surfboard shapers.
[, p. 201.]
History
Surftech was founded in
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz ( Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 62,956. Situated on the northern edge of Monterey Bay, Santa Cruz is a pop ...
in 1992 by
surfboard shaper Randy French
Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of them ...
, who wanted to see the industry expand from its focus on individually-shaped boards to efficiently manufactured mass production.
[ French had previously owned a ]sailboard
Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing g ...
manufacturing company called Seatrend, where he developed the production techniques he later employed at Surftech. The success of his initial product attracted the interest of other professional shapers such as Dale Velzy
Dale Velzy (September 23, 1927 – May 26, 2005) was an American surfboard shaper, credited with being the world's first commercial shaper. He opened the first professional surf shop in Manhattan Beach, California in 1950, personally hand fashioni ...
, Reynolds Yater
Reynolds "Renny" Yater (born 1932 in Los Angeles) is a surfboard builder. He was one of the first commercial surfboard builders of the 1950s.[Donald Takayama
Donald Moke Takayama (November 16, 1943 – October 22, 2012) was an American professional surfer and surfboard shaper. Originally a longboard surfer, Takayama won the Master's division of the United States Surfing Champions in 1971, 1972 and 1 ...]
, Mickey Munoz
Mickey Munoz, nicknamed "The Mongoose", is an early surfing pioneer and surfboard shaper. He was featured in the 2004 surfing documentary ''Riding Giants''. He currently resides in Capistrano Beach, California and designs boards for Surftech, a ...
and Robert August.[
Surftech came to the fore at a time of increased focus on new technologies within the surfboard production industry. Whereas traditional boards are made using ]polyurethane
Polyurethane (; often abbreviated PUR and PU) refers to a class of polymers composed of organic chemistry, organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethan ...
foam "blanks" that are then cut and sanded to form by shapers, Surftech uses a process of blowing polystyrene
Polystyrene (PS) is a synthetic polymer made from monomers of the aromatic hydrocarbon styrene. Polystyrene can be solid or foamed. General-purpose polystyrene is clear, hard, and brittle. It is an inexpensive resin per unit weight. It is ...
into preset mold
A mold () or mould () is one of the structures certain fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of spores containing fungal secondary metabolites. The spores are the dispersal units of the fungi. Not ...
s designed by its various shapers. The blanks are then coated with polyvinyl chloride, laminated, and finished. This results in a board that is stronger and considerably lighter than traditional polyurethane boards.[
Surftech boards are now manufactured in ]Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
and shipped throughout the world.[ As of 2015, Surftech is owned by Triple D, a Thailand-based investment company.]
References
{{reflist
External links
Official site
Surfing equipment