Pantaenius and Markel’s partnership is the logical development when faced with today’s unstable yacht insurance market.
It has been announced that Markel International is to partner with European yacht insurance provider Pantaenius.
Pantaenius has offices across Europe, USA and Australia and has been providing a range of yacht insurance and related protection for yacht owners for more than 50 years.
Markel’s yacht and superyacht team was established two years ago, with the appointment of senior underwriter Mike Wimbridge to head up the business. Mike will become part of Pantaenius, while remaining located in Markel’s London office.
The US Coast Guard Marine Safety Center published an update to its technical note “Marine Safety Center Review of Rigid Hull Inflatable Vessels.”
The US Coast Guard Marine Safety Center published an update to its technical note “Marine Safety Center Review of Rigid Hull Inflatable Vessels.” The document provides an alternative design standard equivalent to certain regulatory requirements found in 46 CFR Subchapters T and S for rigid hull inflatable and rigid hull foam collar small passenger vessels (RHIs).
The alternative design standard presented in the technical note provides consideration of the unique stability and structural characteristics of RHIs. These guidelines do not preclude the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMI) from approving RHI structures and stability or applying alternative requirements or restrictions.
Canal & River Trust will move resource from its centrally based roles into its six regional customer-facing teams to improve customer service and engage with local communities.
The changes will be made as part of the trust’s waterways and well being strategy and will see operational management roles adapted to meet the requirements of the new regions.
Richard Parry, CEO, commented: “The Canal & River Trust has been repositioning as a charity for the waterways and well being, with a new structure that has seen us move from ten waterways to six larger regions, with some activities previously managed centrally now devolved to these regional teams, and a reduction in senior manager numbers overall.
The report team found that the risk clearly depends on the level of congestion.
A new Volvo Ocean Race (VOR)-commissioned report has examined ocean racing at night in areas of high vessel traffic density to establish possible steps to mitigate risk following the death of a fisherman during the race.
The independent Volvo High Traffic Density Report follows the collision between Vestas 11th Hour Racing and a fishing vessel this January, in the final stages of the leg into Hong Kong during the most recent edition of the race. The crews recounted that virtually all the vessels had some form of lighting and exhibited AIS. The fishing vessels were either stationary or travelling at slow speeds of 3-6 knots and they did not form an impenetrable barrier.
The future development of Bavaria is taking clear shape: The yacht builder, respected worldwide for its good price/performance ratio, will once again build its boats one hundred percent in Germany. Bearing the seal of quality “Made in Giebelstadt”, both sailing and motor yachts will be manufactured and handed over to customers in Franconia. The R55 motor yacht, previously produced in Croatia, will for the first time be hand-built at the company’s headquarters in the first half of 2019. The moulds and tools are currently being transported from Croatia to Germany and installed in Giebelstadt.
“We want our outstandingly well trained and committed employees to develop and build all our yachts primarily under own management. The workforce identifies strongly with Bavaria Yachts; it is the key feature of our company,” explains Managing Director Erik Appel, who has been Chief Operating Officer of Bavaria Yachts since December 2017. “This is why we intend to further increase our permanent staff and simultaneously reduce the proportion of temporary workers. This will help considerably to bring down Continue reading “Bavaria Yachts is relying on 100 percent Made in Giebelstadt”
On the drawing board is a ship known as Havfarm (“Ocean Farm”), 430 metres in length and 54 metres wide, it will lay at anchor, fixed to the seafloor using the offshore industry’s technological solutions.
In conjunction with Nordlaks, NSK Ship Design has designed an aquaculture ship that could be the beginning of a sustainable revolution in the fish farming industry, named the Havfarm.
There is an air of excitement at NSK Ship Design, because they have been quietly working away since June 2015 on a special project for Nordlaks – a project that can be classified as no less than sensational for the fish farming industry.
Of the other complaints, there was one about the routing of HS2, as well as others in some way related to land or property.
252 complaints were received by the Canal & River Trust in 2017/18, according to the latest Waterways Ombudsman report.
The report show that the number of complaints is above the average of 225 over the past five years. During the year the Ombudsman received 35 enquiries about the Trust, down on 39 last year. Fifteen new investigations were opened, which was one more than the previous year and the number of completed investigations was 14, three lower than the previous year.
Of the 14 investigations completed, one was upheld, while in a further four investigations the complaint was either upheld in part, or elements of it were upheld. Goodwill awards were proposed in three cases, although in one case the complainant did not accept it.
The new 49m tri-deck yacht will have an interior that can be styled to each owner’s taste.
Sunseeker International is set to partner with Dutch based ICON Yachts to produce aluminium boats and other metal boat production.
The first boat, due for launch in 2021, will be a 49m yacht and will capitalise on the demand the boatbuilder is seeing for larger vessels.
“We know there is demand there for larger Sunseeker yachts as the 155 Yacht proved,” said Sunseeker International sales director, Sean Robertson. “The decision to stop building that model was a commercial one based on space and capacity and certainly not due to lack of demand, so we knew we needed to rethink our approach to this size of vessel and have spent considerable time looking at various opportunities.”
Around 20 R35s will be built each year, each using the latest technologies that have been developed through working with BAR Technologies.
Princess Yachts’ latest launch is its R35, a 100% carbon fibre craft whose hull weighs half a tonne less than a comparable GRP boat explained executive chairman Antony Sheriff.
The launch of the R35 follows on from the boatbuilder recording its highest ever revenue in the history of the company in 2017 and increasing the size of its workforce by 50% over the last two and a half years.
“Innovation, design, high levels of build quality and better perceived,” said Antony. “it’s all condensed into one boat, the R35. It’s about beauty and comfort.”
He added: “This boat is symbolic of the revolution that’s happening within Princess. It’s been a very exciting run over the last few years.”
Bavaria Yachts saved by sale to private equity fund
The boatbuilder, Bavaria Yachts, which went into administration in April this year, has been sold to a private equity fund advised by German based CMP Capital Management-Partners. The acquisition includes Bavaria Yachts with its 550 staff and all the shares in its subsidiary Bavaria Catamarans that employs 250 people.
The purchase will be completed after merger control clearance by the German Federal Cartel Office – expected in a couple of weeks.
Restructuring
“We are convinced of Bavaria’s global market potential and will sustainably develop the company,” said Kai Brandes, CMP Capital Management-Partners MD. “The restructuring measures will focus on regaining market share and improving production costs.”
Key to the Balpha Mast program is the stainless-steel mast housing which can be adapted for use with the Barton Boomstrut which controls the boom under sail.
The challenge of being able to lower the mast on a small yacht to get beneath bridges and access under other low obstacles is an age old problem. Addressing this matter, a new rigging programme allows the Balpha Mast to be lowered and raised during cruising easily and safely using a boom strut to hold the boom in place.
Working together, Balpha Mast and Barton Marine have made technical improvements and advancements to refine the core apparatus and the carbon fibre mast system now has UK and US patents in place.
NTSB determines that the probable cause of the capsizing and sinking of the Gracie Claire was the towing vessel’s decreased stability and freeboard due to undetected flooding through a hull leak in the rudder compartment, which made the vessel susceptible to the adverse effects of boarding water from the wake of a passing vessel.
The US NTSB issued an investigation report on the capsizing of the towing vessel ‘Gracie Claire’, while moored on the Lower Mississippi River in Venice, Louisiana. The report revealed that several factors affecting the stability of the vessel led to its capsizing.
The incident
On 23 August 2017, at 0756, Gracie Claire was moored in Tiger Pass near mile marker 10 on the Lower Mississippi River. While taking on fuel and water, the towboat began to slowly list to starboard. After the wake of a passing crewboat washed onto the Gracie Claire’s stern, the list increased. In a short period of time, water entered an open door to the engine room and flooded the space.
The towboat sank partially, its bow being held above the water by the lines connected to the dock. All three crewmembers escaped to the dock without injury. Approximately 1,100 gallons of diesel fuel were discharged into the waterway. Damage to the Gracie Claire was estimated at $565,000.
