Build a Yacht

Production, Semi-Custom and Custom Yacht Builds

luxury yacht construction in shipyard
Have you given any thought to having a yacht built to your exact specifications? The industry has evolved greatly in the sense of options a client has to build a yacht. The decision stems from many factors: yachting experience, passion for yachting, owner requirements, delivery time among others. There are three types of new builds available on the market we will review.
sunseeker production yacht cruising miami biscayne bay, build a yacht

Production

Production yachts are roughly 80 percent of the yachts you’ll see on the water today. A production yacht ranges from the smallest of around 32ft to about 100 feet. The new build process for these yachts is fairly simple because there is a limited amount of input a client can make to change the design of the yacht. We can assist you in allocating a production slot, choosing options, furnishings, tenders, soft goods and decorations. Aside from those few items, the shipyard may give clients the choice between two different layouts.

Semi-Custom

This is the most popular strategy in the custom yacht industry. Many factors lead clients to choose a semi-custom yacht such as an Amels 60 Meter series. The naval architecture is in place, the exterior design of the hull and superstructure are in place, this will reduce the build time and cost for the client while also providing peace of mind that they are on a well-proven platform. The semi-custom yachts available usually range between 80-200ft (24-60 meters) and are limited as to how much the client can edit the design of the yacht. There are many shipyards that build semi-custom yachts in the sense that they will let a prospective buyer choose materials for the interior, layouts of the upper decks, modify flybridges with accessories, add some amenities within the space and so on. Certain items can’t be modified with semi-custom yachts such as the hull design, exterior structure, propulsion and exterior construction materials.

Mr. Loui benetti yacht at anchor in miami
Grace benetti yacht at anchor in miami, full custom yacht

Custom

This is a magical process in which we sit with you, speak about your ideas and visions and build a base to begin working. The client’s input is the core to all full custom builds. The most popular custom builds are those found over 160ft, however, certain clients will opt to build a smaller fully custom vessel like a 50ft sportfishing boat. We work closely with you at first, getting to know all of your desires in terms of appearance, performance, amenities, materials, and all other special requirements you may have. Starting by analyzing all the different interior and exterior designers, we will choose a select few to provide us with their best representation of your visions. Once the design is chosen, we move to shipyards to bid on who is the best candidate for the job. Once the yard is chosen, a contract will be drafted which will be very specific in terms of expectations and requirements. Of course, there are many other steps to this process which we would be happy to discuss with you.