Cutting the waves with Nova Craft
Nova Craft is a Canadian company that specializes in designing and building classic canoes from the best modern materials available. Founded by Ken Fisher in 1970, the company was one of the first canoe manufacturers to integrate aramid fibers into its products. Now in the twenty-first century, Nova Craft sells its fast and lightweight canoes – with Twaron inside – across the world.
Modern-day craft with a strong heritage
Working from an industrial setting in London, Ontario, Nova Craft remains rooted to nature and wild places. “Nova Craft has always been trying to recreate classic canoe designs,” says Tim Miller, President of Nova Craft Canoes. “The iconic wooden canoes of the early twentieth century still inspire our designs today. Our modern-day ranges are made from composite materials, including fiberglass, Blue Steel, and of course Twaron, for superior glide and long-term performance. As our canoes are extremely versatile, our market is very diverse too: our customers include cottagers, fishers, birders, trippers, wilderness canoeists and whitewater playboaters. Our canoes are suitable for users of different ages, experience and levels of competence.”
Golden yellow top performer
“One of the keys to making our canoes so versatile is the use of Teijin Aramid’s Twaron,” explains Tim. “Our customers want canoes that are not only strong, but also lightweight. Twaron is a material that allows us to build easy-to-carry canoes that are stiff and glide easily, performing great on the water. A great advantage of Twaron over other aramids is that it keeps its bright golden yellow color, rather than fading to a darker brown. Teijin Aramid do more than supply top-quality material – they’ve always offered us excellent technical and marketing advice. That’s why Teijin is now our exclusive aramid supplier.”
A secure future with aramid fiber
With a distribution network operating in Canada, the US, the UK, France and Denmark, Nova Craft has become established as one of the top canoe brands in the world. Far from being complacent, however, Tim Miller would like Nova Craft to keep on building on its success. “Although our core focus remains the same as in 1970 – to build quality canoes that give paddlers special experiences in the great outdoors – we have to keep up with market developments,” says Tim. “Our industry focuses on canoes that are ever stronger, lighter, and faster. As a result, the unique properties of Twaron will always play an important role in adding value to our products. I’m confident that we can continue to work closely with partners such as Teijin Aramid to deliver excellent end-products to our customers. Together, we can push the boundaries of the canoe experience!”
