Yacht painting projects: Expert tips

• Chasan Kalfoglou
• CEO
• +49 (0)1 62 24 92 90 0

What makes the painting of your yacht a success?

The paint process of a yacht is regarded as one of the most sensitive areas of a yacht refit, due to the differing opinions and expectations of the parties involved. In today’s demanding environments and extreme conditions, we feel the success of a good refit paint work comes down to a few key elements as follows:

Management

Management is one of the most important aspects, it includes liaising with your paint crew on board, shipyard staff, owner and the owner’s representative(s). This ensures a direct line of communication to all parties regarding planning, organisation, production and budget.

Quality Assurance/Quality Control

QA and QC are key to the client, inspector and the applicator. It includes ensuring all the parameters are met before the painted areas are presented to the client. During the job, weekly digital, technical and cosmetic reporting of the paint system are carried out on board. The reports are then compared to the pre-agreed acceptance criteria at the beginning of the project between client, inspector and applicator.

Choice of product

Not always seen as an important aspect across the industry but it's very important for us, as it's always good to discuss at the start all the benefits of different paint products to suit the yacht and the client’s expectations. Factors that need to be considered include; the size of the yacht, the purpose and usage of the yacht, the conditions and type of waters it will be exposed to and the cosmetic look required by all parties.

Warranties

Warranties are always an issue of concern after discussing the requirements and expectations at the beginning of a project, so it is important to draft out a warranty that is realistic with all parties involved. Refit paint work normally comes from the applicators' side with a standard 12-month warranty. If the client wants longer then it's a good idea to take a paint insurance warranty, which normally involves the yard, applicator and client splitting the costs, ensuring the client gets the warranty he or she is comfortable with. Should there be any warranty issues down the road everyone is covered, giving complete peace of mind.