Carlo Riva 30,50 mt Vespucci

The owner of 30.5-metre classic yacht Vespucci had a favourite boat when he was a child. It wasn’t one that floated, but that did not seem to matter much. In 1978, when Philippe was just shy of 10 years old, he accompanied his father to Monaco Boat Service – known for its cave-like vault of classic Rivas – and was mesmerised by an oversized model of Carlo Riva’s own boat. The steel and aluminium motor yacht had just been launched that year by CRN to a design by Carlo, a pairing that foreshadowed the Italian marques of Riva and CRN eventually coming together under the umbrella of the Ferretti Group.

“The white hull, the wood, the modern lines, the fittings, everything was perfect,” says Philippe, who went in to look at the model many more times. “I even asked my father if we could buy it, thinking it could be like a toy boat.” That young boy had no way of knowing it at the time, but one day he’d be the proud owner of the real yacht that had inspired the model he admired so much.

For many years before buying a boat, Philippe and his wife, Miene, were avid charterers who gravitated to classic yachts. Miene heard about a motor yacht that she thought would suit them, and Philippe went off to inspect it with few details known beforehand. The broker casually mentioned that Monaco Boat Service still had the original model of the yacht in its shop. Philippe had all but forgotten about his beloved model boat until that moment. “It was a total surprise,” Philippe says. “I knew Riva made bigger boats, but it wasn’t clear from the description that this was the boat.” He was filled with emotion to finally see “the mythical Carlo Riva yacht”.

Stepping on board Vespucci, however, Philippe was greeted by a rather unpleasant, dusty and damp smell. A run-down appearance matched the odour. “The fabric smelled, the electronics were outdated and there was a huge, ugly television in the wrong place,” he says, referring to the forward bulkhead over the dining table, where a beautiful red painting now resides.

Despite its condition – or maybe because of it – Philippe and Miene saw a world of potential in Carlo Riva’s former boat. From the outset, they were intent on restoring her as faithfully as possible to her original beauty, with the addition of comforts such as more outdoor seating and modern electronics, the latter of which required the ceilings to be cut open so that 1.6 kilometres of cable could be installed in the yacht. Carlo Riva had put the yacht to good use with his family for many years, and she had only two other owners before Philippe and Miene purchased her in 2016. Vespucci had had minor refits over the years, but never anything as thorough as what Philippe and Miene were about to embark on. Though it would be their first refit, and first time owning a boat, the couple loved a project and were ready for it.

The owners were introduced to Captain Benjamin Calzaroni by their sales broker, and in turn the captain led the owners to Monaco Marine for the refit. “We compared three different yards, and we thought Monaco Marine was the best for the price and the fact that they had all the specialists in-house, from steel to joinery. That was important, because when we found a problem, we didn’t have to ask a sub-contractor, which saved time,” says Philippe. Still, it wasn’t a quick refit by any means, taking 18 months and 20,000 work-hours.

It was one of the most challenging and expensive refits that Monaco Marine has completed, according to the yard, but they were fully in step with the owners’ precise restoration goals. “Our main objective was to give her back her initial radiance,” says Kamel Fekhart, Monaco Marine’s site director. “The owners were very involved in this project and were easy to work with. It was clear from the beginning that the most important aspect was to preserve and to respect the spirit of this beautiful boat.” The owners also contacted Monaco Boat Service to nail down the finishing touches. They didn’t have to carry out too much research, though, as Philippe was already a self-avowed Riva geek. As a kid, he had learned to waterski off the back of his grandfather’s Aquarama and has been fascinated by Rivas for as long as he can remember.

Like most classic yacht refits, Vespucci’s problem areas were revealed incidentally. When the decks were being replaced, opening up the flooring showed that the pipes and a portion of the hull were rusted. “Some pipes were almost clogged with rust,” says Fekhart. More than 260 metres of Vespucci’s old steel pipes were replaced. And then when the teak was being reinstalled on the main deck, the yard noticed a substantial disparity in the levelling of the deck, requiring more than 80 square metres of surface to be smoothed out.

Vespucci’s owners and captain were hands-on during the refit. Philippe and Miene visited the yard at least twice a month, and Captain Calzaroni oversaw all the exterior work. The crew also lent a hand, refinishing and varnishing the joinery, the majority of which is original. The owners sought to restore and retain the yacht’s numerous historic details, from the original lamps to the black toggle light switches and the joinery to the portholes, the latter of which were also caked in rust. The portholes were carefully removed, cleaned and restored while the yacht got a fresh coat of paint.

The original engines, a pair of Caterpillar D346-TA diesels, were rebuilt with Monaco Marine custom-making parts that were no longer available to purchase, including the engine exhaust. The yard replicated or ingeniously found replacements for several original parts and structures in the refit of Vespucci, including the plumbing manifold, fairleads and the front bulwark structure. “Most of the parts that had to be replaced were no longer manufactured, but thankfully our team was able to find solutions,” says Fekhart.

This commitment to a faithful restoration was a cause of dispute between the owners and the designer who had been hired for the refit. “He wanted to change too much, and we had to fight to keep and restore everything,” says Miene, who previously worked for an auction house and understands the value of vintage materials and furnishings. “It was very important for us to keep as much of the original boat as possible. Not the fabrics, of course, because those need updating. But the rest is part of the design. Carlo Riva was a great designer, so it’s important to keep what he created.”

Much to Miene and Philippe’s chagrin, the refrigerator in the galley, which had been designed by Carlo specifically for the boat, was removed without their approval. “It was a pity – it was a fantastic, huge fridge that still worked even though it was 40 years old,” she says. When the designer and owners eventually parted ways, Miene took the reins on the interior while Philippe, who works in architecture, guided the exterior design.

At the owner’s behest a new foredeck seating area was created, which also hides additional storage space. Philippe is an avid diver and underwater photographer, so the boat is stocked with scuba gear and water toys. On the flybridge, an al fresco seating area was added to port, which is the owners’ preferred spot for breakfast. A tender is located in the original spot, aft on the flybridge, but the old cradle, which was fixed, has been replaced with one that can be moved so the deck can be fully enjoyed. “We wanted to have a big deck space like you see on modern boats,” says Philippe. A table can be placed on this area when the tender is launched, creating another al fresco dining option, or the deck can be left clear for cocktail parties, as the owners were able to put to the test during the MIPIM real estate conference in Cannes. “We had more than 50 people on deck and we had more than enough space.”

Miene’s goal for the interior was to create an atmosphere that was elegant but understated and homely – “no bling allowed”. The result is an interior that feels true to the era of the late 1970s whence Vespucci came, without being kitschy. A round dining sofa and table are set in the corner against the bulkhead and paired with three retro stools. The sofa and stools in the main saloon are all covered in a light champagne fabric, which is soft to the touch. The stand-up bar across from the sofa hides a built-in television that rises from its top.

Throughout the yacht, the refreshed, gleaming teak and light materials create a warm and welcoming effect. Bright artworks and carefully chosen accent materials add a pop of colour. The tones found inside and out are a nod to Carlo Riva, recreating his trademark sky blue and lobster red shades, which Philippe and Miene had researched. The aft VIP cabin, with beige bed linens, has a chaise and another retro stool covered in a patterned material with a “Riva red” inspired colour scheme – this material is also used in the twin guest cabin on the throw cushions. The spacious full-width master suite and the second twin guest cabin, meanwhile, have sky-blue cushions. It might seem a simple detail, but it’s something that will be noticed and appreciated by true Riva fans. Even Lia Riva, Carlo’s daughter and the CEO of Monaco Boat Service, commented on the cushions when she came on board post-refit.

Vespucci might have been refitted with the dedication of a historian, but she is more than a showpiece: her owners plan to use her often. Fortunately for other Riva fanatics, Vespucci is also on the charter market and has already enjoyed a busy summer. Perhaps another young boy – or girl – will lay eyes on her and plot their own dreams of owning a Riva one day. Custodians of historical yachts, like Philippe and Miene, are invaluable in keeping classic boats sailing into the next century.

Today’s silver-hulled Riva superyachts are not the first “big Rivas” to ply the water. Though the brand is often associated with classic mahogany runabouts, Carlo Riva had a few bigger boats up his sleeve too. In the late 1950s, he began drafting designs and then a client began raving about the quality of Dutch shipyards. In the early 1960s, Carlo collaborated with Feadship De Vries and De Voogt Naval Architects. This meeting of minds brought three yacht series to life: the 26.7-metre Atlantic; the 35.2-metre Viking; and the 22.5-metre Caravelle. The latter – a steel-built, fast yacht powered by two GM V8 diesel engines – was the biggest success, with seven models between 1961 and 1965. One of the 1965 Caravelles, Absolute (ex-Quien Sabe), recently completed a year-long refit at Feadship’s Makkum facility. In the 1970s, Carlo returned to his Italian roots, striking up a collaboration with CRN shipyard. The fruit of this was Carlo’s personal yacht, Vespucci.


Riva

( www.riva-yacht.com )

Riva 33,50mt Dolcevita

Since Brigitte Bardot was first spotted on board her Riva Super Florida Nounours off Saint-Tropez in the 1960s, the Riva brand has been synonymous with glamour, speed and classic good looks. It’s a heady combination that has earned the Italian builder a loyal fan base. Vintage Rivas are so legendary, in fact, they are some of the few yachts to increase in value as they age – the last wooden-hulled Aquarama to be built was sold at auction for $975,000 (£763,000) nearly 40 years after its launch.

The question was, as Riva moved into building fibreglass motor yachts in the 2000s, could the style, grace – and success – of a classic Riva ever be replicated on a larger scale? The builder’s latest fibreglass flagship, the 33.5 metre 110' Dolcevita, is specifically designed in the hopes of answering this query with a resounding yes.

“Bringing the iconic Riva styling into a larger boat was the target since the beginning of the project,” says Giordano Pellacani, head of sales and marketing at Riva, under the Ferretti Group umbrella. “If you look at the previous Riva models, they were not exactly in that style.” The Dolcevita is a step up from the 29.9 metre Corsaro model that, while good-looking in its own right, did not carry forward the trademark Riva styling to the same extent that the Dolcevita aims to.

Riva embarked on a thorough review and development process, spending twice as long in the planning phase as they usually would on a project. “We interviewed many customers and found they wanted something that reminded them of smaller Rivas, with attention poured into our classic details – but on a megayacht,” Pellacani says, referring to Riva’s trademark use of mahogany wood, gleaming stainless steel and rich leathers. These features loom large on the Dolcevita, but with a modern twist. The team at Officina Italiana Design – the exclusive designer of Rivas since 1994 – was inspired by classic Rivas but was careful not to create a retro boat. The new Dolcevita had to perfectly balance modern styling with the timeless luxury that clients associate with Riva.

“Riva design centres around clean, spare lines, resulting in elegant boats,” says the CEO of Officina Italiana Design, Sergio Beretta. “The 110' Dolcevita is in the spirit of Riva tradition. The lines are clean and elegant, including throughout the model’s interior, where the style was personalised to suit the owner’s requirements.” With an integrated flybridge and a silver-grey paint job, the 110' Dolcevita has a sporty look. Gaze closer, however, and you’ll notice sinuous exterior lines that are detailed yet well-balanced, providing just enough handsome Riva styling while meeting the design team’s maxim that less is more. The black windows on the main deck form a continuous band, a feature that defines the exterior but is best appreciated from inside, where such glazing allows for 270-degree views.

“The saloon has unusual windows that run for most of the yacht’s profile, creating a sense of visual space and breadth aft because there is no structure,” says Mauro Micheli, chief designer of Officina Italiana. “From an engineering point of view, it was an interesting challenge. The idea was, how can we give something to owners that no one else has in this size range? You might see windows like this on a much larger yacht, like Vava 2 or Musashi. But how could we create this atmosphere on a smaller yacht? When we told the engineers what we wanted, they said, ‘You’re crazy’.”

To conjure up an open feeling reminiscent of a Riva runabout inside a superyacht was no small feat. Riva’s engineers devised a “spider structure” that allowed for huge windows supported by minuscule mullions. Four transversal and four longitudinal pieces of stainless steel combine to make a frame that is attached to the hull, supporting the stress of the yacht and connecting the hull and superstructure. The result is what Pellacani calls “the crystal palace” – a light-filled interior with seamless windows, remarkable indoor-outdoor continuity and panoramic views.

The abundance of glass lets in massive amounts of light to the wood-filled interior, illuminating the high-gloss joinery. “We used a lot of wood, as per Riva tradition, but in this case we went for rosewood,” Micheli says. Rosewood is similar to mahogany, but has darker veining and a dense grain that makes it very durable, and the wood takes a polish well.

For 70 per cent of its boats built these days, Riva uses pre-engineered woods to avoid mistakes, knots or misalignments showing in the veneer. “For Dolcevita, we opted to use real wood and keep the defects in, we wanted to see them, then apply our love of detailing,” Pellacani says. “We use more material this way – because sometimes you need quite a big piece for the furniture – which is reflected in the price point.”

The wood is refined by a team of in-house carpenters, the same craftsmen who work on smaller Rivas. Real wood, in all its natural glory and coated in gleaming varnish, certainly elicits the richness of a classic Riva launch. Deckheads are raised and the ceiling inset with shining rosewood, which gives a warmth to the spacious saloon.

To complement the light-reflecting rosewood, Officina Italiana Design brought in a pale-grey matte finish for the walls, which matches the light grey sofa. The interior has an understated elegance. Classic nautical materials combine with modern furnishings, such as the glass dining room table paired with leather and stainless-steel chairs. “There are a lot of details in leather and stainless steel that is the leitmotif for the interior and exterior,” Micheli says. The Riva branding is signalled in this and in more literal detailing, like the curved silver door handles imprinted with a Riva logo.

Nine Dolcevita hulls have been sold so far, heading off to locations ranging from Asia and the Middle East to Europe and the US. Half of those owners already have a smaller Riva and were looking for something to represent their love of the brand on a bigger scale. Hull five was the first to be seen by the public at the Monaco Yacht Show last September; the first four were delivered quickly and are being enjoyed by their owners. The new offering seems to appeal to both to Riva loyalists and to those looking for interesting amenities in a smaller package.

Feedback from one owner, who was looking for “big boat features but on a smaller scale” inspired Dolcevita’s unusual layout. While nearly every large yacht has the guest passageway to starboard and the crew to port, this Riva has the hallway leading to the full-beam owner’s cabin on the port side.

“We looked at our bigger 40- to 50-metre boats, and one of the things they must have is a dayhead near the main saloon, because owners throw dinner parties and do not want people in the guest cabins,” Pellacani says. “So we decided to have a very large dayhead on the left side of the main deck.” This dayhead is tucked under the port-side superstructure, set in a wide hallway just before the door to the owner’s suite.

Like the saloon, the master cabin is adorned with rosewood, grey soft goods and carpeting, and chocolate-brown leather chairs. Stainless-steel details also decorate the raised ceiling and are used for the wardrobe door handles. A smoked glass wall across from the bed adds depth and conceals a television. This recurrent theme of “Riva details”, reaffirming the yacht’s ties to its heritage, is carried through into the guest cabins as well. Four are found below, with the layout customisable. The owner of hull five opted for three VIPs and one cabin with twins and a Pullman berth. The rosewood details are even seen in the guest bathrooms.

Exterior spaces aim to recreate the feeling of flying jauntily around the harbour on a much smaller Riva. One such space is the foredeck lounge, accessed via a stairway leading forward from the starboard side. This sunpad-laden spot encapsulates the feeling of sprawling out on the back of an Aquarama, but with even more comfort. The foredeck lounge can also be customised to the owner’s wishes: this one has a rumble seat all the way forward, while another Dolcevita has a spa pool built on the bow.

The stylish helm stations bear the hallmarks of a classic Riva with more wood, leather and stainless details. A second helm is found on the sundeck, which also brings in carbon fibre detailing in the hardtop.“The Riva tradition also is for the exterior area to have a lot of details,” Pellacani says. This presented another challenge, as all the exterior elements of the yacht – from the ceiling of the flybridge to the inside of railings to the bases of (fixed) deck furniture – are painted to match the hull and perfectly polished and flawless to meet Riva’s standards. “It’s very expensive and very detailed, and to paint these items and protect them from scratching during construction is challenging.”

Intense attention to detail is what makes Riva stand out, for instance installing screws and then painting their heads in the same colour as the hull. So it makes sense when Beretta says, “We don’t think of 110' Dolcevita as a ‘superyacht’ – she is simply a yacht built in the spirit of iconic Rivas.”

Iconic is an overused word. Many claim it, yet few are truly deserving. The undoubtedly iconic Riva runabouts like Ms Bardot’s are an exception. Only time will tell if the 110' Dolcevita will reach such legendary heights. So far she is certainly making Riva fans sit up and take notice – and place their orders, too.


Riva Yacht

( www.riva-yacht.com )

Kusch Yachts 101mt I Dynasty

Building the most complex yacht in history was not what Richard Hein, founder of Monaco-based studio The A Group, originally intended, but with I Dynasty, that is exactly what he achieved.

Designing for a client who wanted to cruise regularly with more than 12 in his party, Hein faced a choice: design the 100-metre-plus motor yacht to Solas passenger ship rules or to the new Passenger Yacht Code (PYC), created specifically for yachts with 13 to 36 passengers and still in development.

To build to PYC would grant more design freedom but its regulations for safety and materials were a moving target. Realising this standard would be the wave of the future, Hein and his client took the road less travelled: I Dynasty is the first yacht delivered to full PYC certification without additional restrictions.

A bit of backstory on the project is useful. Besides being a naval architect and designer with The A Group, Hein was also a yacht builder, having served as president and equity partner in the Dutch yard Oceanco from 1992 to 2004. After selling his interest in the yard, Hein travelled extensively and discovered an affinity for Japan and its culture. He was impressed with the quality of Japanese commercial and patrol vessels and invested with a Japanese partner in a new manufacturing facility, opening an office in Tokyo for his project management company, VegaYachts.

Vega’s first contract was for an 86 metre yacht to be built in Japan. Just before construction was due to start, the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami struck, followed by the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster. “Besides the potential radiation contamination issue, Japan’s manufacturing efforts shifted almost overnight to rebuilding its infrastructure,” says Hein. “We had to seriously consider starting over outside Japan.”

The client, however, was not discouraged; quite the contrary. Not only did he ask Hein to engage a European shipyard, he asked him to enlarge the vessel. He was adamant that Hein would serve not only as the naval architect but that he and his team would be the conduit through which I Dynasty was built. In essence, VegaYachts was employed as owner’s representative and general contractor for a turnkey project that included Studio Massari as the interior designer.

“The owner had some clear ideas: creating a multi-generation yacht with high manoeuvrability and heavy displacement for continuous cruising and boarding in all seas, efficient propulsion to minimise carbon emission and lots of pools and direct water access. Other things he left up to us,” says Hein. By the time the design was complete it was clear that I Dynasty was going to have to meet the newer, more comprehensive rules of PYC 2012.

“Starting the project after the adoption of the 2012 rules gave us a higher standard than those yachts that laid keels before 2012,” says Hein. “We had the option of applying for exemptions but the owner felt that if there was a guide for building the safest possible yacht we should adhere to it, and I agreed. We all had to discover the consequences of implementing the new Passenger Yacht Code to the normal design and construction process.”

The last sentence speaks volumes. PYC’s impact was ubiquitous at the Peters Werft yard in Wewelsfleth, Germany, where Kusch Yachts was building I Dynasty. Insulation materials, the all-steel construction, the bridge wing stations’ arrangement and the number of stairway escape routes were all guided by the PYC’s demand for fire containment. In the unlikely event of a fire starting (given the restriction on flammable materials), it must be contained via fire doors, use of low-flame-spread surfaces and fire breaks or areas where non-combustible material such as stone, steel or A60 fire-rated glass separate two combustible materials.

Every interior area has a worst-case combustion heat load, and it’s up to the designer and builder to work out material trade-off to stay below each area’s allowable load. Hein notes that Lloyd’s Register and the Cayman Islands (flag state) worked closely in co-operation with the project team and Kusch to meet the PYC requirements for I Dynasty.

“I do not think it is possible for a designer to create a PYC yacht without involvement of a shipyard; it is just too complex a balancing act. It requires the designers, builder and engineers to be in a constant revision process to achieve the desired goal without compromising the appearance, the luxury or the liveability,” says Hein.

Visually, I Dynasty is a stunner but it is the amount of “hoop jumping” to meet the new code – with materials and finishes that either didn’t exist or were not in use on yachts prior to PYC – that makes her remarkable. Take, for example, a typical yacht design scheme that pairs pale leathers with the dark mahogany in the corridors: an impossibility with fire loading.

Rather than forego the elegance imparted by elaborate mahogany cornices, the project team found a supplier who could articulate the style using non-combustible plaster and faux wood paint. The fabric wall panels that designers typically rely on to cover large areas and/or absorb sound can’t be made fire retardant enough, but leather can, so beautiful stamped or woven leathers are used with abandon.

With 4,437 gross tonnes, I Dynasty offers her family tremendous interior volume and many special areas, such as a cinema, beach club and lower arrival lobby, sauna, hair salon, massage room, hammam, gym, dive centre with changing room, a forward-facing observation lounge, and main and upper saloons connected by a spectacular open staircase. Eleven cabins, including the owner’s suite and two VIPs, are concentrated on the main and upper decks.

Alessandro Massari, who designed the interior of the client’s three previous yachts, had the task of marrying The A Group’s contemporary exterior profile – with its outstanding use of glass – to an interior that honours classic design themes and a leitmotif of decorative floral elements. The owner asked for a cosy family yacht with “wow”.

Studio Massari chose warm honey-coloured woods, primarily anigre and madrone burr veneers, to form the background for stunning handmade marquetry that fronts the cabinets and built-in furniture on I Dynasty. The main saloon sole is patterned parquet because Massari believes it is more formal than carpet.

This saloon on I Dynasty is a multifunctional space aft of the dining saloon with several comfortable seating areas, including one around a fireplace, a games table to starboard and a library with a baby grand piano to port. Flanking the piano, a magnificent open staircase creates a tangible link to the upper saloon. “Together with Richard (Hein), we discussed how to deal with the number of family members cruising; that is why the two main saloons are directly connected,” says Massari.

“Part of the family could be downstairs while the rest is above engaged in a different activity entirely. It really is the heart of the yacht. The stairs minimise the feeling of being in two different spaces.” A custom five metre chandelier from Cenedese of Murano creates a waterfall of light.

The “wow” factor of I Dynasty’s décor is particularly evident in a fantastic stone foyer where dark Port Laurent marble recreates a design by Michelangelo across a field of white and Calacatta Gold marble. The light marble is the backbone of the staircase that wraps around a large glass elevator leading to the upper deck.

A wrought iron balustrade with gold-plated details takes up the floral motif. “It embraces you while climbing the stairs,” says Massari. Gold leaf appears throughout in accents and tray ceilings. While gold leaf itself is not low flame spread, the sealer is, according to Massari.

Each of the cabins on I Dynasty is a world unto itself with enormous space and rare marbles, some with powerful veining and striations, creating an unusual colour scheme. All of the guest cabins feature a backlit 3D oyster shell headboard with fan patterns mimicking the paving stones in Italian piazzas.

The mix of traditional and contemporary continues outdoors, where multiple dining areas, a covered cinema, pools and sundecks fore and aft, plus a float-in tender garage/salt-water pool, provide plenty of options for living at sea. Equally impressive are the spaces Hein dedicated to machinery, workshops, dry and cold stores, laundry, guest services and quarters for the 32-strong crew.

“From the beginning the stated goal was to design a very robust vessel built completely in steel to prevent dissimilar metal distortion while cruising,” says Hein. “Plate thicknesses in excess of that required by class were used to reduce distortion due to welding, thus minimising the use of expensive filler, while also adding a margin against future corrosion.

“From a technical point of view, our main goal was to maximise all engineering and construction solutions to prevent the unnecessary use of diesel power and related exhaust gas emissions.”

The diesel-electric powerplant on I Dynasty utilises a full package of Rolls-Royce equipment and five engines, with power generation limited strictly to electrical load demand, thus hindering unnecessary fuel consumption and inherent gas emissions. Huge particulate filters occupy an exhaust silo underneath the mast, allowing clean emissions at anchor or in port.

The yacht’s power management system is seamless and offers surge-free power with a clean supply from 690 to 110 volts. I Dynasty does not rely on battery banks for smoothing peak loads but on generators of variable sizes that start or stop automatically. As propulsion and hotel loads vary, the full range of operating scenarios can be covered efficiently. “This is an important achievement,” says Hein. “This isn’t about propulsion any more, it is power management.”

The wheelhouse on I Dynasty is a masterwork designed by Rolls-Royce and the client’s captain after he spent substantial time in the Rolls-Royce bridge simulator. It looks like an updated version of the bridge from Star Trek’s USS Enterprise. Two custom high-tech helm chairs slide back and forth on rails to suit the preferences of the helmsman. Each of the chair arms are fitted with controls and the ability to switch any combination of information displays to the centre LED screen.

There are also full control stations port and starboard on the console and, of course, wing stations outside. A large navigation area is behind the con to port with a monitoring station to starboard. The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System station and a night-time working area with night-vision-safe low-level illumination are aft of the bridge proper.

I Dynasty is highly manoeuvrable – she turns in her own length at 16 knots thanks to a pair of Rolls-Royce Azipulls. Used with the bow thruster, they provide I Dynasty with a full dynamic-positioning mode useful in deep water or fragile seabeds, as well as for positioning the tender side-boarding platform away from the wind and waves.

The naval architecture, engineering and exterior design also contribute to the owner’s demand for “wow”. The floodable 10 metre tender garage holds a custom Pascoe limo tender launched via a system engineered in collaboration with Kusch Yachts. When I Dynasty’s tender is deployed, the space becomes a huge pool deck with light and air also flowing from a 12.5 metre starboard-side shell door that opens to launch a Riva.

A brilliant piece of engineering allows the tender to clear the stern opening while maintaining a closed pool for children to swim in. To keep water from sloshing unpleasantly, a teak-planked slope aft dampens motion and allows water to spill back to the sea.

The exterior lines on I Dynasty are slick and fresh and the walkaround side decks are so large they invite placement of steamer chairs. Glass is both a feature and a structural element, with floor-to-ceiling windows on the main and upper decks capped by glass “shark fins”.

A signature attribute, they form a windbreak and a visual transition from the strong horizontal lines of the lower profile to the top of the mast. The A Group and Massari worked closely to design exterior living areas that, thanks to hidden glass doors and windows, are usable in all weather.

Although I Dynasty passed PYC certification with flying colours, Hein admits there are still parts of the code that make it challenging to meet owners’ expectations. For example, rules mandate additional crew and extra escape routes via stairs rather than ladders, which use considerable space in both owner and crew areas.

Hein does not take issue with the extra research and design, build costs, the eight mandated watertight zones on the two lower decks or the continuous double-bottom requirement. It’s that some of the rules demand materials that are yet to be developed to acceptable yacht standards, such as fireproof and waterproof exterior deckheads. It’s also the lack of transparency that leads to different interpretations of some of these rules by surveyors and flag states.

“At The A Group, we don’t just design, we design to build,” says Hein. “Designing to build to previously unknown rules has been a challenge for me as the naval architect and exterior stylist, and also as the owner’s representative and partner in the building process with Mark Dethlefs of Kusch Yachts. To accomplish this in three and a half years’ build time is, as I look back on it, more than we could have imagined possible.”

Kusch Yachts

( www.kusch-yachts.com )