‘The Beast’ Begins Work at Lauderdale Marine Center
(Photo: Lauderdale Marine Center)
The United States’ largest yacht repair facility Lauderdale Marine Center (LMC) announce that the boatyard's massive, new travel lift, nicknamed The Beast, has begun hauling boats from the New River onto the yard for service.
Built by Italian manufacturer Cimolai, it stands over five stories tall and 47 feet wide. Painted bright green, The Beast is now one of three lifts in operation in the South Florida area with capacity over 400 tons and is the largest lift on the New River, the heart of South Florida's yachting repair community.
Boasting a maximum capacity of 485 tons, the green machine is capable of hoisting yachts up to 180 feet long with a maximum beam, or width, of up to 34.5 feet. The first boat hoisted by the new travel lift was the 143-foot Van Mill motoryacht, Star Ship. The Beast is one of two new boat lifts recently purchased by LMC.
"Increasing LMC's haul-out capabilities enables us to maintain our position at the top of the list of yacht repair facilities in South Florida and to accommodate the ever-growing worldwide fleet of large yachts that come annually to this area for service," said Doug West, president of LMC. "For jobs of all sizes and budgets, our unique business model gives owners and captains total control and peace of mind from the time they arrive at the yard."
Other recent enhancements to LMC include improvements to the west portion of the upland property, which expanded the boatyard's capacity to accommodate 14 additional yachts up to 120 feet, with multi-phase, multi-voltage power capabilities up to 480 volts.
Renovations at the adjacent Riverbend Marine Center, acquired by LMC, are nearing completion and include new tenant workspace, offices, and space for an additional 75 boats.
LMC also recently announced the opening of the world's first marine Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) at its facility. The new FTZ offers numerous benefits to the South Florida yachting industry, as current cruising license regulations forbid selling or showing foreign-flagged vessels to U.S. residents while in U.S. waters outside an FTZ. The marine FTZ at Lauderdale Marine Center is expected to support business development in South Florida's yachting industry as more owners, brokers and builders keep their inventory in the area to be shown, chartered and serviced.
