Ground

HamiltonJet Breaks Ground on New Production Facility

Works began today on a new state-of-the-art production facility for capacity expansion for HamiltonJet, the New Zealand manufacturer of marine propulsion technology. This morning’s groundbreaking ceremony was held on site in Lunns Road, Christchurch.HamiltonJet has over 70 years of experience designing and manufacturing waterjet propulsion systems. It was founded in the 1950s by Sir William Hamilton - who pioneered the first commercial waterjet - and the company remains a market leader of waterjets and vessel controls.The new plant…

Luxury Sailing Ship to be Powered by Ingeteam Electrical Equipment

The French shipyard Chantiers de Atlantique has selected Ingeteam to provide the electric propulsion for the luxury sailing ship Orient Express Silenseas.The ship has solid sails which make it the largest sailing ship in the world. It is one of two vessels that will emulate the famous Orient Express train, enabling more ecological and sustainable navigation via the latest marine technology.The ships belong to Accor Group under the Orient Express brand, and Ingeteam will supply two motors to drive the main propulsion plus the three transverse thrusters…

Godfrey Marine Breaks Ground on Expanded Manufacturing Facility

Godfrey Marine, manufacturer of Godfrey pontoon boats and Hurricane deck boats, innovator in versatile deck boat designs, announced it has expanded its manufacturing facility in Elkhart, Indiana. Members of the Greater Elkhart Chamber of Commerce joined in the celebration on May 10 with ceremonial shovels to break ground.The new facilities include a 27,000 square foot warehouse and an automation wing. The warehouse will enable 30% growth in production, while the automation wing creates space to add innovative technology for pontoon tube production.

BIO-UV Adds FGS as Italian Representative

Ballast water treatment system manufacturer BIO-UV Group announced it has tapped La Spezia-based Fluid Global Solutions (FGS) for the sale and delivery of its BIO-SEA ballast water treatment systems to Italian operators, builders and repairers of all ship types, including offshore and naval vessels.FGS, provider of pumps and spares to the Italian maritime sector, will reinforce existing partners in Italy, namely, Tefin, which focuses on the region’s yacht sector, with its sales agent Gianfranco Catanese.With its partnerships…

Inmarsat Launches I-6 F1, Latest Tech Communication Satellite

With a rapid evolution of communication connectitivity need, Inmarsat launched I-6 F1, the first of seven new Inmarsat satellites to be launched by 2024, a key piece of the satcom giant's platform to deliver enhanced ELERA (L-band) and Global Xpress (Ka-band) for Indo-Pacific.Inmarsat confirmed the successful launch of its first Inmarsat-6 satellite (I-6 F1) by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) from the JAXA Tanegashima Space Center in Japan.The Inmarsat-6s (I-6) are Inmarsat’s first ever hybrid L- and Ka-band satellites…

Torqeedo Breaks Ground on New HQ

Electric drives manufacturer  announced it has broken ground on its new headquarters and production facilities in the Munich metro area on Wednesday.Construction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2022, and the site will consist of 3,720 square meters of office space, with a mix of co-working spaces and on-site offices, 4,800 square meters of warehouse, production, and research and development area.Dr. Ralf Plieninger, managing director of Torqeedo, said, "The new facilities will allow direct contact and exchange between various departments.

Vesper Marine Announces Cortex Update

Marine electronics manufacturer Vesper Marine announced new features for existing and new Cortex owners with the upcoming release of an automatic software update – version 1.5.Designed to be future-proof, Cortex is built on a feature-rich and extremely powerful platform that will grow with new capabilities. Software updates are installed via the Cortex Onboard app and the latest version includes Directional Voice Alerts, Boat Network, Auto Orientation and an easy-to-use Setup Walkthrough.“When we created Cortex, we didn’t hold back,” said Brady Cox, CEO, Vesper Marine.

Derecktor Breaks Ground on New Florida Shipyard

Plans to convert the century-old Port of Fort Pierce into a repair and refit facility for the global fleet of megayachts and large sailing yachts are moving full speed ahead.After a lengthy permitting and review process, Derecktor Shipyards has been granted approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners and the City of Fort Pierce to begin construction of its newest shipyard – Derecktor Ft.

UK's Newark Marina Expanded

Responding to increased demand for berthing, Inland and Coastal Marina Systems has designed and manufactured a 33-berth extension to the popular Newark Marina.Situated on a non-tidal section of the River Trent, Newark Marina’s expansion has not been without its challenges. Extensive flooding, buried vehicles and the ongoing pandemic have caused disruption to the realization of Managing Director James Wilkinson’s vision of a bright and attractive new extension to the picturesque inland marina.The endeavor…

USACE Approves Derecktor's Plan for New Megayacht Yard

Plans to convert the nearly 100-year-old Port of Fort Pierce into a full-service repair and refit facility for the global fleet of megayachts cleared a significant hurdle, Derecktor Shipyards announced.After 11 months of review, the engineering and plans for Derecktor Ft. Pierce’s new haul-out basin have been officially approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, paving way for construction to commence once the City of Fort Pierce Building Department gives its final approval.“Securing a permit from the U.S.

Vesper Marine Begins Shipping New VHF Radio

Marine electronics manufacturer Vesper Marine announced its new VHF radio Cortex has completed certification requirements and has started shipping to distributors in late July.Cortex is the world’s first marine VHF radio with wireless touchscreen handsets, built-in Class B SOTDMA smartAIS transponder and remote vessel monitoring and is available through Vesper Marine’s network of distributors and dealers.“With the intention of completely changing the paradigm of on board VHF communications…

Dockmate Selected for New Summit 54

Dockmate, manufacturer of advanced wireless remote controls for yachts, has announced its Dockmate wireless remote control docking system has been selected by Summit MotorYachts, to be incorporated into the Summit 54. Summit MotorYachts is a new brand that lives under parent company Kadey-Krogen Yachts.The Dockmate wireless remote-control docking system allows boaters to easily operate electronically controlled engines, bow and stern thrusters, anchor winches and horns from anywhere on board with a small handheld device.

New 75-Meter Arrow Makes Her Bow

On January 10, Feadship held a ceremony for the christening and official naming of their newest 75-meter yacht , Arrow. Having originally left the construction hall at the Feadship yard in Aalsmeer in mid-December, this launch event was the first occasion that the nearly completed Arrow had been seen with her lighting added and exterior outfitting complete.Feadship director Henk de Vries said, “While all Feadships are pure custom projects, there have been quite a number built recently around the 90-metre mark…

ACR Launches Next-Gen ResQLink PLB

ACR Electronics is launching its next-generation ResQLink Personal Locator Beacons (PLB) – the first and only buoyant PLBs designed using real-life survivor feedback. Providing a trusted and affordable link to rescue in a life-threatening situation, the new ResQLink 400 and ResQLink View PLBs introduce user-friendly design innovations and add enhanced functionality.Introducing ACR’s Optical Display Technology for even more reassurance and peace of mind, the ResQLink View’s screen displays all the beacon’s operational activities…

Inmarsat Enhances Superyacht Connectivity

Inmarsat has revealed plans to triple the number of satellites servicing its flagship Ka-band Global Xpress (GX) network, the high-capacity VSAT constellation behind its Fleet Xpress high-speed mobile broadband service, by 2023 to meet rapidly increasing user demand for data across the globe, including the Arctic region.Inmarsat’s GX fleet is currently composed of four satellites (GX1-4). The initial launches, the first of which is scheduled for this year, will see it augmented by three GX payloads (GX5, GX6A and GX6B) by 2021.

UK Marina Operator Opens First Luxury Hotel

Yacht Havens Group, one of the UK’s leading marina owners, operators and developers, will make an ambitious move into luxury hotel accommodation with the opening of the Salt House Hotel at Troon Yacht Haven, Ayrshire, Scotland, in early 2020.With the Salt House Hotel, the Yacht Havens Group aims to capitalize on a growing niche for ‘relaxed luxury’ accommodation with an exciting ‘Scandi-Scot’ influenced collection of suites overlooking the stunning coastal setting of Troon Yacht Haven.Externally…

Whirlwind of change: Where’s Trinity Yachts' crew today?

Four key players of the disbanded Trinity Yachts, once the world’s sixth largest custom yacht builder, are working in new roles in yachting since the company’s break-up about four years ago.Billy Smith, Geoffrey van Aller, Jim Berulis and Phil Nuss rolled with the punches, just as they did when this author interviewed them at Trinity’s Cinco de Mayo crayfish boil celebrating their new Gulfport facility in Mississippi in May, 2006. In a region suffering after Hurricane Katrina toppled the Gulf Coast and sank New Orleans on August 29…

Reid Gantry for Sailing Club

Newport Uskmouth Sailing Club (NUSC), located at the mouth of the River Usk in South Wales, is using a 3,000kg capacity Tall Porta-Gantry crane system from Reid Lifting to lift boats and other items during repair and maintenance work.The crane, which has a 6m-long beam and is fitted with a Yale 360 chain block for lifting and lowering loads, is principally used to lift vessels where work is required to the hull and / or keel. The system, fitted with a rope control system for lateral movement across the length of the beam…

RMK Merrill-Stevens introduces electronics division.

The refit on the Miami River continues as RMK Merrill-Stevens Shipyard (RMKMS) introduces a marine electronics service and sales division led by David Gratton, past chairman of National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA). Gratton is an expert outfitting megayachts with complete electronics systems, having serviced and installed equipment on thousands of vessels with Martek of Palm Beach, which closed in 2018. During his tenure at Martek and on NMEA’s board, Gratton pioneered…