Exploring the art of yacht making in Cape Town
Cape Town - The Weekend Argus went behind the art of yacht making right here in Cape Town where the meticulous craftsmanship takes up to 137 days to complete the catamaran beauties which are in demand internationally and locally.
The story begins with the vision of John Robertson, who was not a great sailor but was competitive during his schooling career and went on to start, Roberson & Caine.
Robertson and the late Jerry Caine in 1997 founded the company in and have built more than 2816 boats, which is in demand in the US East Coast, the Caribbean, Seychelles, Mediterranean, Asia, South Pacific and South America.
They have since reached international status, being the Best Overall Import Boat in the USA in 2005 and the Sail Best Boats in 2010 and in 2019, they received the Cruising World Boat of the Year.
Today, they are South Africa’s largest boat builders, manufacturing for export including building of catamarans.
Inside one of their plants and warehouses in Woodstock, it's like a huge gigantic puzzle or lego which are being put together, according to technical specialist, Graham Kirk.
Kirk, a seasoned expert in the field, led an engaging tour of the production floors, showcasing the impressive massive yacht shells. The air was alive with the distinct and vibrant scents of paint, resin, and other essential bonding and sealing materials, highlighting the craftsmanship in progress.
First, we are introduced to a set of women who are painting and stripping a section where resin infusion will be filled, using pipes.
Wrapping material is being used to create a vacuum, to set the resin, which seeps the product into the fibre glass.
Kirk said in 1997, this process was very different, where each layer had to be made by hand.
The process of the puzzle includes engineers, carpenters, painters to designers and many other role players.
Currently there are 2569 people employed who make the magic happen which includes strategic analysis and quality control, ensuring every piece fits.
Parts and pieces, material are also internationally acquired which is also part of meeting their deadlines for one of their biggest clients, Sunsail and Mooring.
“The boat can only be in this section for its build cycle which is 11 days,” said Kirk.
“The output is 1 boat per day and we move these boats at night. They take up several road lanes and we need to get a special permit to transport them.”
“The sail boat is a 6 day cycle. We begin the process with moulding and then go to the assembly plant to be completed.”
“Once we have finished that process, we ensure that the boat is launch ready.”
Over 200 boats are put out per year and if one part does not fit, the situation can come quite tricky, Kirk explained.
“We need to make sure that every part fits and one cannot be out with the size so it goes through various phases where it is examined repeatedly.
“We have a section where the hulls are made, they are made of three components. The moulds are later put together.”
The boats are made customised with an exception of custom made such as the size and amount of cabin space.
The team was shown the cabin space in its raw state and watched how it was coming to shape.
Below deck were four cabins, bathrooms and space sleep while carpenters were crafting the kitchen space which had to be designed strategically to fit the spaces.
“We have safety checks at each area which needs to be signed off,” he added.
“We also have inspectors, supervisors and quality engineers.”
Kirk added during the Covid-19 pandemic the demand grew for boats as many had sought a space during isolation.
“We had American clients ordering two boats.”
They have built a strong relationship with the two largest yacht charter companies in the world, The Moorings and Sunsail, and have supplied more than 2816 catamarans.
An online survey commissioned by Sunsail, tracked over 2500 responses about luxury overseas travel preferences and over three quarters of the total sample has been on past sailing holidays and would be keen to repeat the experience.
genevieve.serra@inl.co.za