Sourcing the best contractors helps your shipyard period go smoothly.
Like many skill sets we hone while working on yachts, negotiating contractors to hire in the yard is learned on the job. Often we find ourselves in unfamiliar shipyards with unfamiliar cultures and languages, coupled with massive variations in cost and quality of work between locations.
Most importantly, the location of the shipyard is the biggest factor in sourcing the best contractors, or more specifically, the ones most suited to the work that needs to be done.
Industrial/commercially oriented shipyards such as Savannah Yacht Center are likely suited to engineering-heavy work, including pulling shafts and stabilizers, while superyacht-specific yards such as Rybovich will offer better carpentry/canvassing or top-tier paintwork and finishes more typical of yachting. Often we don’t have the final say on yard location, but it’s something to keep aware of. There are always good contractors around to do the right work — sometimes it’s simply a matter of finding them. Here are five guidelines for sourcing the best.
1. Word of mouth. It’s such a small industry that even the best contractors are usually found by recommendations and word of mouth rather than through advertisement. With that in mind, consult your colleagues on who they’ve used in the past and how the work turned out. Some good starting points are officer/captain WhatsApp group chats and searching for past posts in Facebook pages (e.g. typing in the type of work — “varnish,” “stainless-steel fabrication,” “teak repair” and looking at who has been recommended in the past). Shipyard management should be able to present you with some decent options as well — just keep in mind they may tend to look after their own endorsed contractors.
2. Use past-proven first. If you’ve ever had work done (well) by a contractor before, it’s always better to stick with them, even if they come at a higher price than some of the competition. Their vessel knowledge will speed up the work, and they’ll already be familiar with the boat’s program and expectations. Plus, building rapport with contractors can do much more than additional money might.
3. Check previous work before committing. This is especially important if you’re sourcing someone brand new. Depending on the job being done, you ought to inspect work that’s been completed on previous vessels or at least chat to some past customers. Sometimes work may appear fine but begin to display issues weeks afterwards, e.g. bubbling paint, leaking seals etc.
4. Specialize, don’t generalize. If there’s the option, it’s better to go with contractors with specialized experience over general, even if they charge more and are harder to book. Yard periods seem to be always shorter and less frequent than we’d like so always aim for the highest quality of work to last. This specific experience might mean the contractor works with your specific build of yacht, specializes only on your outboard manufacturer or does varnishing only with your specific preferred varnish brand.
5. Use your own crew when you can. This can seem counterintuitive, but some seemingly too-technical work can be learned. For example, it might be possible to tackle a cracked teak step with epoxy and the right YouTube videos — granted, if it’s not front and center in a guest area. Yes, it can save cash but expanding a crew’s skill set pays even better dividends.
Finally, the best contractors are not coincidentally the busiest; organize the work well in advance and you’ll have a happy yard.