Why the Bailey Olympus could signify a caravan revolution

Bailey's Olympus follows hot on the heels of the best-selling Pegasus

Monday, 08, Feb 2010 12:00

Water ingress. Leakage. Damp. Condensation. Many caravanners will have experienced some variation on these themes during ownership, or taken steps to avoid the problems. While there is no doubting that caravan design has improved greatly over the last two decades, manufacturers are still working towards better solutions to these issues.

In the last year it was Bailey Caravans of Bristol in particular who created headlines with a revolutionary approach. When the firm posed the question of how to improve durability and resistance to the elements in caravans, it sparked an extensive period of research and development. The aim was to find a new construction method to address this age-old conundrum. In the process which led to the Pegasus and the new Olympus, the traditional method of manufacture came under the spotlight.

Sandwich construction

Around thirty years ago, the caravan industry saw a sea change in construction methods with the popularisation of sandwich construction. Previously caravans had in the main been "coachbuilt", with the body panels made of wooden frames faced with aluminium or plastic on the exterior. With interior panels made of wood, the gap in between was packed with insulation material.

Sandwich construction was a different way of thinking entirely. Both the inner and outer skins were bonded to a core of insulating foam and wood, to form a light and rigid structure. Rather than building a frame, in these caravans the strength of the bodywork lay within the bonded sandwich construction of the walls, floor and roof. The wooden inserts in the sandwich walls would be fixed to the floor, and as the walls were theoretically sealed, there was no need to provide any further treatment . Unfortunately this method suffered in practice from certain flaws.

Sealing the gaps

While sandwich construction offers the benefits of lighter weight and greater structural rigidity, the main problem relates to the number of joins involved. With typically nine panels to contend with, the caravan maker has to ensure all the joints are correctly sealed. Occasionally however there are problems with the sealant methods, resulting in water entering the caravan structure. If the bonding insulation is the open-cell type then the system acts like a sponge, absorbing and spreading the liquid. The more expensive method (closed-cell) cannot absorb the water - resulting in a localised problem. Yet despite these varied approaches the problem remained: the more joints on a structure, the more areas which require sealing to battle the elements.

A new approach

And so we return to last year and the launch of Bailey of Bristol's all-new Pegasus. What caused such excitement in the caravan community was the new construction method named "Alu-Tech". The new system consisted of five parts rather than the traditional nine, made up of a traditional floor, two laminated side panels, a solid back panel and a new single span front and roof section. These are then clamped together with a bespoke aluminium extrusion framework providing additional structural rigidity.

What was more of interest however was the absence of any external fixings, resulting in a major impact on reducing the chances of water ingress into the shell. Reducing the number of water access points and creating timber-free body panels drastically improves the caravan's defence against rain and moisture. So confident were Bailey that they offered an unprecedented 10-year guarantee.

Pegasus setting the standard

When an all-new design is foisted on a dedicated community, there is always the chance of initial resistance and a slow uptake as people judge the design for themselves. Not so however with the Pegasus, the first Alu-Tech caravan from Bailey. Many buyers had eagerly kept an eye on leaks and snippets during development, and Caravan Times was present at the NEC last year to witness the hugely positive response. What sealed the deal however is the sales figures - 65% of Bailey's total sales at the NEC were of the new Pegasus model. Furthermore, some of the new owners were well-known senior caravan journalists and industry figures convinced by the new construction.

2010 sees the launch of a second Alu-Tech model (the Bailey Olympus) on a smaller Pageant-sized platform, and the firm are clearly looking to capitalise on the runaway success. Last year the Pegasus advertising slogan was "one day, all caravans will be built this way". And with dealers anticipating another sales success, Caravan Times is wondering whether this slogan could eventually prove prescient. What is clear is that the caravan community will eagerly embrace change and innovation - if accompanied by warranty assurances and packaged in the right way.

Marcus Dubois