David W. Taylor Medal for Notable Achievements

Following a career with the U.S. Navy, where he managed the Combatant Craft Department, Blount formed DLBA in 1988 “as a naval architecture and marine engineering firm, specializing in the technical development of high-performance marine craft consulting services related to the design, evaluation, testing, and construction management of motor yachts, custom sportfishing boats, production boats, commercial, military and paramilitary vessels.” He has been a periodic contributor to PBB. A major achievement was development of the 222‘ (67.7m) Destriero, which set recordws crossing the Atlantic from New York to England in 58 hours, 34 minutes, averaging 53.09 knots. The story is chronicled in PBB Nos. 109 and 110. In 2014 he published a book containing much of his extensive research: Perfor­mance by Design: Hydro­dynamics for High-Speed Vessels.

The press release also describes Gibbs & Cox as “a global leader in maritime engineering and design, with nearly 7,000 vessels designed to our standards since 1929. Gibbs & Cox supports military and commercial clients in the U.S. and internationally with all phases of marine design, construction, and life cycle management.”

Also of note, and possibly of more interest to PBB readers, is the company’s 1960 publication of the Marine Design Manual for Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic, perhaps the ultimate refutation of beliefs that boatbuilders of that era didn’t know much about the physical properties of fiberglass and so based scantlings on their experience with wood construction.

The recognition award Blount received from SNAME was established in 1935 and may be given annually, but not more often.