Wine Cellars Are Like Sailing Boats.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Many serious wine collectors are successful alpha males living very busy lives. They understand that a wine cellar can be far more than just a place to store wine and that a large yacht offers a lot more than simple transportation on water.
Wine cellars and large yachts are similar in many ways. While appearances are very important, both of these creations may be subject to powerful forces that require proper engineering to withstand earthquakes and storms while protecting the valuable contents. They must meet stringent performance requirements, keep the occupants happy and always look good.
During the development of a functional design, considerations regarding structural integrity, strength, and flexibility, are essential when creating an elegant solution. When a client selects a designer for a project, he trusts that the designer will first consider the functional necessities before adding elements that might improve the appearance of the finished product.
Designs for large custom wine cellars in locations that are subject to earthquakes must consider that the masses of wine and glass may move significantly within the cellar. Since the cellar is a container for this mass and is often part of a larger structure that will also move, it is essential to properly engineer its perimeter. It must withstand the stresses exerted by the outside structure, while containing any stresses imposed upon it by the large masses of wine and glass within.
Modern wine rack systems have evolved from an English design that supports each individual bottle while allowing good airflow through the rack. The primary function of this seemingly fragile and flexible rack system is to support the wine properly while allowing each bottle to become part of a large thermal mass linked by continuous airflow. This large thermal mass, contained within an insulated structure, makes it possible to maintain the very stable storage conditions so necessary for the proper aging of wine.
One of the characteristics of this rack design is that the entire mass of wine, glass, racks, and other contents in the cellar becomes a very live load during an earthquake. The flexibility of the rack system allows it to deform and move with the wine, supporting it until the event is over. Repositioning the rack system and repairing a few pieces of laminated trim is readily completed. In cellars with rigid rack systems, the wine will still move by falling out of the rack, or breaking it.
Because the structural integrity of the ideal rack system is the primary design consideration, the shape and dimensions of the cellar perimeter must necessarily determine the rack system layout. The next requirement is to ensure good access to the cellar and each rack space. The capacity of the rack layout and the type of container to be stored, whether it be a single bottle or a wooden case, is not a consideration at this stage and does not require any input regarding the special needs of the client.
The initial primary design or designs may be modified so extensively that they may bear almost no similarity to the original plan while still maintaining some of the functional requirements. Curved corners can become stone pillars, openings and arches may be inserted into the rack system, and racks can be broken up into blocks within stone alcoves. Each departure from the original solution becomes a trade off between form and function.
I have designed and built many thousands of wine cellars for special clients all over the world over a period of twenty-five years. Experienced collectors and new enthusiasts understand that their collections may evolve beyond their existing capacity and I develop suggestions for targets in the various bottle sizes. The primary structural designs are almost always accepted in the same way that the lines of the hull for their new yacht would be accepted.
The cost of a wine cellar is not a factor in the design since the goal is to produce the best possible solution for a client. The value of the proposed design is something that the client must decide for himself. When considering the full cost of the wine, cellar construction, climate control, security systems, and racking systems, we get to large numbers. The differential between low cost wine racks with free designs, and fully developed high quality racks systems that will be admired for generations is not a significant consideration in the market that I serve.
To be successful in any serious sales opportunity one must first have excellent knowledge of the product. From my experience, how you feel in the sale is more important than what you actually say. Remember that you are asking for money in a fair and even exchange for goods leaving both parties satisfied. It will help to remember that it is not your money, it is the client’s money and he must make the decision to buy. If you think that you are asking for too much money, everything will be fine because you will probably not make the sale.
Paul Wyatt.
www.customcellar.com
© Paul Wyatt 2006
Many serious wine collectors are successful alpha males living very busy lives. They understand that a wine cellar can be far more than just a place to store wine and that a large yacht offers a lot more than simple transportation on water.
Wine cellars and large yachts are similar in many ways. While appearances are very important, both of these creations may be subject to powerful forces that require proper engineering to withstand earthquakes and storms while protecting the valuable contents. They must meet stringent performance requirements, keep the occupants happy and always look good.
During the development of a functional design, considerations regarding structural integrity, strength, and flexibility, are essential when creating an elegant solution. When a client selects a designer for a project, he trusts that the designer will first consider the functional necessities before adding elements that might improve the appearance of the finished product.
Designs for large custom wine cellars in locations that are subject to earthquakes must consider that the masses of wine and glass may move significantly within the cellar. Since the cellar is a container for this mass and is often part of a larger structure that will also move, it is essential to properly engineer its perimeter. It must withstand the stresses exerted by the outside structure, while containing any stresses imposed upon it by the large masses of wine and glass within.
Modern wine rack systems have evolved from an English design that supports each individual bottle while allowing good airflow through the rack. The primary function of this seemingly fragile and flexible rack system is to support the wine properly while allowing each bottle to become part of a large thermal mass linked by continuous airflow. This large thermal mass, contained within an insulated structure, makes it possible to maintain the very stable storage conditions so necessary for the proper aging of wine.
One of the characteristics of this rack design is that the entire mass of wine, glass, racks, and other contents in the cellar becomes a very live load during an earthquake. The flexibility of the rack system allows it to deform and move with the wine, supporting it until the event is over. Repositioning the rack system and repairing a few pieces of laminated trim is readily completed. In cellars with rigid rack systems, the wine will still move by falling out of the rack, or breaking it.
Because the structural integrity of the ideal rack system is the primary design consideration, the shape and dimensions of the cellar perimeter must necessarily determine the rack system layout. The next requirement is to ensure good access to the cellar and each rack space. The capacity of the rack layout and the type of container to be stored, whether it be a single bottle or a wooden case, is not a consideration at this stage and does not require any input regarding the special needs of the client.
The initial primary design or designs may be modified so extensively that they may bear almost no similarity to the original plan while still maintaining some of the functional requirements. Curved corners can become stone pillars, openings and arches may be inserted into the rack system, and racks can be broken up into blocks within stone alcoves. Each departure from the original solution becomes a trade off between form and function.
I have designed and built many thousands of wine cellars for special clients all over the world over a period of twenty-five years. Experienced collectors and new enthusiasts understand that their collections may evolve beyond their existing capacity and I develop suggestions for targets in the various bottle sizes. The primary structural designs are almost always accepted in the same way that the lines of the hull for their new yacht would be accepted.
The cost of a wine cellar is not a factor in the design since the goal is to produce the best possible solution for a client. The value of the proposed design is something that the client must decide for himself. When considering the full cost of the wine, cellar construction, climate control, security systems, and racking systems, we get to large numbers. The differential between low cost wine racks with free designs, and fully developed high quality racks systems that will be admired for generations is not a significant consideration in the market that I serve.
To be successful in any serious sales opportunity one must first have excellent knowledge of the product. From my experience, how you feel in the sale is more important than what you actually say. Remember that you are asking for money in a fair and even exchange for goods leaving both parties satisfied. It will help to remember that it is not your money, it is the client’s money and he must make the decision to buy. If you think that you are asking for too much money, everything will be fine because you will probably not make the sale.
Paul Wyatt.
www.customcellar.com
© Paul Wyatt 2006
Labels: Bad Wine, Cellars, Design, earthquakes, engineering
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