What a difference a year makes.
That’s the thought that went through my head as I walked around Icon Yachts’ facility on Sunday afternoon. I’d visited for the first time almost exactly one year ago. Then, the administrative offices still smelled of fresh paint, and the build shed housed just a hull. This time, the offices bear multiple scale models of designs. More importantly, hull number one is more than just a hull. Simultaneously, hulls two and three are underway, and all are 62 meters (203 feet) LOA. Although abundant work remains, the management team is determined that hull number one will debut at the Monaco Yacht Show.
In fact, short of installing wall paneling themselves, they’re doing practically everything possible to make it happen. The yard has two shifts working each weekday, with some craftsmen additionally working weekends. Every megayacht yard naturally recognizes the importance of exhibiting in the water at the Monaco Yacht Show. However, the three-year-old Icon Yachts believes it’s crucial. This first project will, in its eyes, be proof to its competitors and to potential buyers that it is capable of high quality for less money and time.
To be sure, the team encountered delays with hull number one. Trying to build a shipyard and a yacht simultaneously is difficult. Despite these delays, Icon Yachts believes its emphasis on modules saves man-hours and cost. The modules are technical areas designed and assembled in individual “blocks,” separately from the yacht. They undergo tests before installation onboard. All of this occurs earlier than in traditional construction. Twenty-one modules exist for the engine room alone on hull number one. Overall, an estimated 50 models will make up the yacht. Icon is confident this approach will result in 20 to 25 percent fewer man-hours by hull number five. Already, it’s claiming a time savings for the first megayacht. Accordint to the management team, the engine room completion took nine days. This included everything from modules installation to sealing the soft patch in the deck overhead, through which all equipment lowered.
Icon expects to conduct sea trials for this first project by the end of July. It’s an ambitious schedule, so look for more details here in the coming weeks.
Leave a Reply