A new boat's quality depends on the brief written before the first line is drawn. Where will the boat be used, with how many people, at what speed and for how long? The answers set the design, the budget and the choice of yard.
Three ways
- Series production
- A proven model; limited options, more predictable schedule and price.
- Semi-custom
- Interior layout and equipment changes on an existing platform.
- Full custom
- A project starting from design; the most freedom, and the most decisions and risk.
The brief
- Cruising area and design category.
- Guests and crew; cabin layout.
- Speed, range and fuel capacity.
- Draft and length limits: the marinas to be used and their travel lift capacity.
- Ease of maintenance and use; access to systems.
Who does what
- Designer
- Exterior, general arrangement and interior.
- Naval architect
- Hull form, structure, stability, weight and propulsion calculations.
- Yard
- Production and production engineering.
- Owner's representative
- Following the brief, specification and contract on the owner's behalf.
Start with the brief
A new boat's design starts with a written brief of how it will be used: how many people, in which waters, for how long, at what speed and with what comfort. The clearer the brief, the more accurate the designer's proposal and the yard's quote. A vague brief turns into change requests and budget overruns during the build.
Stock design or custom?
Choosing one of the yard's existing models brings the advantage of a proven design and a known production process; time and cost are more predictable. A fully custom design answers the owner's needs exactly, but design time, uncertainty and cost are higher. There is a middle way too: an existing hull with layout and equipment adapted to the owner.
Choosing a designer
The designer's experience with boats of similar size and type, the chance to talk to owners of earlier projects and how they work with the yard are weighed. Whether designer and yard are the same firm or separate parties matters; when separate, the designer can stand on the owner's side.
What the design should deliver
- General arrangement and profile drawings.
- Structural calculation and laminate or plating schedule.
- Weight and stability calculation.
- System diagrams and specification.
Design rights
Who owns the drawings and design, and whether the same boat may be built for others, is written into the contract from the start.
Deciding early
A decision taken at the design stage costs far less than the same decision taken during the build. Time spent here pays back many times over in the rest of the project.
Independent review
An independent review of drawings and specification before signing catches gaps while they are still cheap to close, and gives the owner a clear view of what the price includes.
References
Visiting a boat built to the same design, and talking to its owner, is the best test of any proposal.
Writing down the owner's priorities, and the order they come in, gives designer and yard a way to settle the trade-offs every project meets.
Speed or range, volume or performance: with the owner's priorities in writing, each trade-off has a clear basis, and arguments during the build are settled by the brief rather than by whoever is loudest.
Every question asked at design stage prevents a change request later.
Keep a list, and get written answers.