SCHIFFFAHRT | SHIPPING
SCHIFFFAHRT | SHIPPING New Lürssen 55-metre designed by Bannenberg & Rowell © Jeffery Superyacht Industry: Full ahead, Digitally! A year ago, HANSA predicted that superyachting would adapt and survive. A look at the order books and design studios confirms the market is thriving. Digitalisation is the key at work, creating high-end platforms to transport families away from screens. By Nick Jeffery 2020 sucked and 2021 is ridiculously busy!« was the immediate response by Rupert Connor, Founder and President of Luxury Yacht Group, when asked for an assessment, adding »As we are so dependent on crew placement sales our 2020 was down 50 % on 2019 as most projects went silent due to lockdowns. The recovery in 2021 has been good and there is a massive shortage of crew. The lack of crew is probably going to cause major issues in the industry over the next 12–24 months with salaries rising and crew being given roles for which they possibly lack the necessary experience.« Of two new projects in build, one has no delays and the other minimal supply line delays due to Covid. Lots of money available Espen Oeino, designer of REV – whose management have reported delays to its schedule – points out that most projects slowed down during the late stages of build during Covid as people needed to travel (for example for SOLAS inspections, MTU engineers visiting, specialist sub-contractors fitting equipment) and because of a need for smaller teams on site, to keep a safe space between them – sometimes this being overcome by shifts working 24 hours/day. HANSA asked Oeino if he believed designs need more opening ports for onboard ventilation but he responded »there is a general trend towards being outside more – even pre-Covid – and now, rather than ventilation, people are demanding more space for provisions to have longer autonomy and range. Some were stuck aboard for weeks and have seen importance of garbage disposal, fresh produce storage and so on«. Oeino’s office – who presently have a new range of catamarans being built in China – is working about 50:50 in the studios or from home and, when tracked down to his mobile in St. Tropez on a Friday afternoon mid July, admitted to having been at meals and meetings with clients, saying »the number of enquiries is up for us and you‘ll find the same with the yards. The reason is not so clear but perhaps it could be as some people have lost loved ones and want to build a yacht before they pass away themselves. There is also lots of money available«. »Good level of workload« DNV’s Maritime Impact Yacht portal states: »Rapid response, with enthusiasm for all yacht projects – from straightforward plan approval for classification to solutions to highly-complex technical queries (or initial design brainstorming) put to DNV Advisory Services – is a factor recognised to be critical to newbuilds. DNV can draw on all its global network of specialists and vast data efficiently thanks to its digital technologies, that have received significant investment over the past decade.« Edmiston reported a healthy first half year in 2021 with 25 brokerage yacht sales of over 30 m LOA having a total value of half a billion Euros. As an aside, when 28 HANSA – International Maritime Journal 09 | 2021
SCHIFFFAHRT | SHIPPING »The health crisis has forced an industry-wide shift toward new and more adaptive work strategies, ensuring equal if not better efficiency« François Zuretti Chairman Nick Edmiston was asked about a new British Royal Yacht he replied: »When I spoke to Prince Philip on the subject, about a dozen years ago, he was far from enthusiastic to have a new one. I believe that Prince Charles and Prince William hold the same view. The original ›HMY Britannia‹ should never have been decommissioned but rather given a complete refit and re-engined. Regrettably, in my opinion, the requirement for a new Royal Yacht, in these days of air travel, is questionable«. More buying »unseen« Hampshire Marine’s CEO Dean Smith – who, having worked at Devonport many years ago, might be open to managing the build of a new Royal Yacht – echoes the state of the market »business is very upbeat with a number of projects underway (including the world’s largest sportsfisherman at Royal Huisman) and enquiries in hand. It seems ›stable not crazy‹ at present with plenty of work involving the existing fleet of worldwide superyachts and the full order book of new builds in the shipyards. Most companies we work and liaise with are also seeing a good level of workload so everyone is grateful given that many industries have been turned on the heads by Covid.« Winch Design has seen enormous growth in yachts, aircraft and architecture design work and, in its 35th anniversary year, recently announced the company has been fully transferred to employee ownership – the Winch Employee Ownership Trust (WEOT). Perhaps this will set a trend. Chris Cecil Wright’s Monaco-based broker partner, Henry Smith, points out that »More people have been buying yachts unseen, in part due to travel restrictions but also due to the advance in marketing technology. Using the Matterport 3D scanning system and Zoom, I hosted a yacht viewing on the 62m »New Hampshire«, which was located in Imperia, whilst I was in North Yorkshire. The buyer was in New York, his captain was in Fort Lauderdale and the captain of »New Hampshire« was on his new command in Panama. »We toured the yacht as normal – in terms of the route taken – and discussed points whilst actively being able to see specific items on our screens. We went to contract immediately following the call. In terms of sales we are seeing around 35–40 % uplift, year on year, and have multiple lines of inquiry open to acquire vessels«, he said. © Espen Oeino A SpaceCat by Espen Oeino and SilverYachts HANSA – International Maritime Journal 09 | 2021 29
