Columbia

Russian Oligarch Vekselberg's Superyacht Seized in Spain

Spanish police on Monday impounded a superyacht belonging to Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg on behalf of U.S. authorities, the first time the United States has seized property belonging to a Russian oligarch since its invasion of Ukraine in February.Valued at more than 90 million euros ($99 million), the 78-metre-long "Tango" (255 ft) was seized in a shipyard on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca, the Guardia Civil police and the U.S. Justice Department said in parallel…

Tillberg Design of Sweden and COLUMBIA blue Launch Ship Design Partnership

Maritime leisure management company COLUMBIA blue – The Leisure Group said it has teamed up with cruise and yacht interior designer Tillberg Design of Sweden (TDoS) to work together on conceptualizing and building vessels from scratch.“The design skills of TDoS and the operational proficiency of COLUMBIA blue form a unique set of expertise, offering a seamless and complete project lifecycle of a vessel design – from the first lines on the sketch board, to the actual operations of the yacht or cruise vessel,” said Julia Siebert…

Sperry Marine, Telemar Yachting Secure Bridge Contract

A combination of global expertise and local presence enabled Sperry Marine and Telemar Yachting to secure a landmark leisure sector contract despite strict travel restrictions during the Coronavirus lockdown.With co-ordination between headquarters and local offices, the Sperry Marine network was able to support Telemar Yachting with sales support when tendering for a newbuilding to be built at the Crescent Custom Yachts of Richmond, British Columbia.The result of this exceptional…

AMI Welcomes Affiliate Partnership with WMA

The Association of Marina Industries (AMI) has welcomed the Wisconsin Marine Association (WMA) as its newest membership partner. Now all WMA marina members will receive the additional benefit of being members of AMI in conjunction with their WMA membership. This means WMA members will now have access to all AMI services, products and benefits in addition to those they already receive from WMA. The WMA was launched in March 2009 with the planning and support of several WI marina operators, the Wisconsin Harbor Towns Association, and funding support from the Wisconsin Department of Administration's Wisconsin Coastal Management Program.

IMTRA Adds Two Account Reps

J. Mark Barrett and Eric MacDonald have joined the outside sales team of IMTRA, a manufacturer and importer of marine and commercial products. “After 35 years with the company, Jerry Truax has retired from IMTRA,” said Eric Braitmeyer, CEO, IMTRA. “He has been a tremendous technical resource, a valued advocate for his customers, a dedicated representative for IMTRA and just a great person. With such big shoes to fill, we have decided to do so with two people. Barrett joins IMTRA on January 26 as recreational Pacific Northwest account representative.

MarineMax Acquires Hall Marine Group

MarineMax, Inc.,  recreational boat and yacht retailer, has announced that it has completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Hall Marine Group. Hall Marine was founded in the mid 1970’s by Rod and Fran Hall. With fiscal 2016 revenue exceeding $50 million, Hall Marine is one of the largest privately-owned boat dealers in the Southeast. Hall Marine operates through six locations covering the following markets: Charlotte, North Carolina; Lake Wylie, Greenville, Columbia and Charleston, South Carolina; and Savannah, Georgia. The locations include two large marinas and four highway locations.

Mercury Marine Adds British Columbia Distributor

Mercury Marine parent company Brunswick Corporation has acquired Payne’s Marine Supply Inc., one of Canada’s national wholesale distributors of marine supplies. The acquisition will allow Mercury Marine to grow its global parts and accessories distribution network and better serve customers across Canada. “We continue to look for opportunities to grow our distribution channels around the world, and Western Canada is one of the areas that we had targeted for growth,” said Mike Gyorog, Mercury Marine vice president global service & marine parts and accessories.

Eastern's Columbia on Display in Fort Lauderdale

Eastern Shipbuilding Group’s reengineered Columbia, built from the original design plans of the classic 1923 Essex-built schooner, will be on display at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, October 30-November 3, 2014. The original Columbia, a 141’ classic Gloucester Fishing Schooner designed by William Starling Burgess, built at the historic A.D. Story shipyard of Essex, Massachusetts and launched April 17, 1923, was bred for speed, challenging – and nearly defeating – Canada’s legendary Bluenose schooner in the International Fishermen’s Cup Races in Halifax.

1923 Schooner Replica Completes Sailing Trials

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) announced that the Columbia (ESG Hull 981) a steel hull exact replica of the historic Gloucester Fishing Schooner, has completed her sailing trials. The sailing trials were held on September 18, 2014 directly offshore of the beaches of Panama City, Florida. Ninety-one years earlier, the original Columbia was officially measured on October 27, 1923 just before her race with the Bluenose by Raymond J. Milgate, a marine surveyor of Halifax, N.S. The original Columbia was a 141’ classic wooden hull Gloucester Fishing Schooner built at the historic A.D.

ESG Replicates Historic Schooner 'Columbia'

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) informs that a steel hull replica of the historic Gloucester Fishing Schooner COLUMBA has been launched at its Panama City, Florida, shipyard with employees, dignitaries and guests in attendance. The original COLUMBIA was a 141’ classic Gloucester Fishing Schooner built at the historic A.D. Story shipyard of Essex, Massachusetts, which was the center for North American Fishing Schooner construction. At the christening ceremony, Brian D’Isernia, owner of Eastern Shipbuilding Group spoke about the journey of bringing the COLUMBIA back to life…

Marine Businesses Choose DockMaster’s Hosted Solution

From coast to coast, dealers, marinas and boat yards have chosen a simpler, more convenient technology experience. Imagine running your business without having to purchase and maintain a server, incur heavy IT consultant expenses or perform regular backups of your data. For scores of marine businesses, that scenario has now become a reality. DockMaster,a  suite of marine business software, offers a hosted solution that allows companies to move technology—hardware, software and data—out of their facility and into the cloud. The result is less time and money spent on technology and more resources to focus on core business.

Watercraft Thefts Sink by 6% in 2013

With summer and boating season just around the corner, the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) has released its latest report on watercraft theft and recoveries in the United States. The report examines watercraft  reported stolen between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2013. The report draws from data contained in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Overall, there were 5,537 watercraft thefts reported during 2013, and that is a 6 percent decrease from the 5,870 thefts reported in 2012.

Brewer Buys Two Marinas from Mitch Nathanson

Mitch Nathanson, owner of Coastal Properties Management (CPM), announced the sale of two of their marinas located in Oxford Maryland, Oxford Boatyard and Mears Yacht Haven, to the Brewer Yacht Yards group on January 3, 2014. Mitch Nathanson has been the owner of Oxford Boatyard since 1988 and Mears Yacht Haven since 1994. As one of the oldest operating boatyards in the country, Oxford Boatyard has been in operation since 1866 offering complete yacht and boat retrofits, major and minor repairs…

New Yacht Transporter, Raven, Makes First Charter

Raven Offshore Yacht Shipping say that their first charter yach delivery with Grieg Star Shipping was loaded and departed on schedule from Vancouver, B.C. Co-founded earlier this year by industry experts, insurance broker Rick Gladych, and Anthony Utley of Raven Marine Services in British Columbia, Raven Offshore Yacht Shipping charters the decks of Grieg’s L-Class Ships (paid-in-full), virtually eliminating any third-party issues. “We chose to work with Grieg Star because of their tremendous safety record and quality ships…

Raven Offshore Yacht Shipping Sets Sail with First Charter

Raven Offshore Yacht Shipping announces that their first charter with Grieg Star Shipping was loaded and departed on schedule on Sunday, August 25, 2013 from Vancouver, B.C. Cofounded earlier this year by industry experts, insurance broker Rick Gladych, and Anthony Utley of Raven Marine Services in British Columbia, Raven Offshore Yacht Shipping charters the decks of Grieg’s L-Class Ships (paid-in-full), virtually eliminating any third-party issues. For each transport, Ship Raven exclusively utilizes the world-class lift on/lift off services of Marine Heavy Lift Services (MHL).

Jet-Ski Boats Most Favored Among Thieves: New NICB Report

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) has released its latest report on boat theft and recoveries in the United States. The report examines watercraft reported stolen between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2012. The report draws from data contained in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Overall, there were 5,870 watercraft thefts reported during the period, which is a 3 percent decrease from the 6,070 thefts reported in 2011. The top five states for thefts were identical in rank order to the previous report.

Raymarine Hurricane Sandy Refit Program

In October 2012 boaters all along the eastern seaboard and particularly in the Mid-Atlantic States sustained extensive damage to boats, homes and property due to Hurricane Sandy. Raymarine is offering relief to boaters affected by the hurricane to help get them back out on the water. Through June 30, 2013, Raymarine is offering boaters in the federally designated Hurricane Sandy disaster and emergency areas an extra incentive when replacing their storm damaged systems with brand-new Raymarine electronics.

Favorites Bested in World Class Sailing Trophy Race

Pine Bros Trophy favorites media mogul Ted Turner & "Mr. America's Cup" Dennis Conner, were beaten by Dennis Williams' 'Victory '83 Team'. In a competition featuring two of the most legendary yachtsmen in American history, and which saw the return of former America's Cup winner Dennis Conner, it was Dennis Williams and his 'Victory '83 team' that cruised to overall victory in the recent International 12-Metre North American Sailing Championships in Newport Rhode Island. Over the three day event held on Narragansett Bay…