We’re buying a new boat !!

[henryf]

I had my first ever visit to the Princess factory yesterday. All the previous boats were stock boats so no need to get involved with the factory. This was a bit of a general visit with a bias towards the F55.

The first thing to say is it’s quite overwhelming. Princess are a huge set up and we just scratched the surface. Lots of different production facilities covering various aspects and models. I have to be careful what I post as some stuff is highly classified, they perfected marine Flubber a couple of months ago …. Ok, maybe not but there are a few development aspects that aren’t fully released yet so I don’t want to upset anyone.

Being a production boat the build process is fairly well honed. Once the hull is formed it starts along a production line not unlike car manufacture all be it at a slower pace. At each stage of the journey a series of tasks are completed before it moves on. Things like the wiring loom go in early on and gradually components are added. Furniture / cabinetry modules get introduced at various stages, the master cabin wardrobe for instance goes in fairly and remains protected in foam cladding.

The 55 is actually built some distance from the water before being transported in the middle of the night to the main Princess site for launch and shake down. They have a large fresh water swimming pool to do initial run up tests before transportation to the main site.

 

[Bouba]

I had my first ever visit to the Princess factory yesterday. All the previous boats were stock boats so no need to get involved with the factory. This was a bit of a general visit with a bias towards the F55.

The first thing to say is it’s quite overwhelming. Princess are a huge set up and we just scratched the surface. Lots of different production facilities covering various aspects and models. I have to be careful what I post as some stuff is highly classified, they perfected marine Flubber a couple of months ago …. Ok, maybe not but there are a few development aspects that aren’t fully released yet so I don’t want to upset anyone.

Being a production boat the build process is fairly well honed. Once the hull is formed it starts along a production line not unlike car manufacture all be it at a slower pace. At each stage of the journey a series of tasks are completed before it moves on. Things like the wiring loom go in early on and gradually components are added. Furniture / cabinetry modules get introduced at various stages, the master cabin wardrobe for instance goes in fairly and remains protected in foam cladding.

The 55 is actually built some distance from the water before being transported in the middle of the night to the main Princess site for launch and shake down. They have a large fresh water swimming pool to do initial run up tests before transportation to the main site.

A couple of those hulls don’t look new. Almost like they are there to have bow thrusters retrofitted

 

[henryf]

As the boat moves down the production facility it gradually takes shape and turns into a recognisable F55

 

[henryf]

A couple of those hulls don’t look new. Almost like they are there to have bow thrusters retrofitted

They are all new boats.

Where antifoul is going to be applied there is no white pigment. The structure is “clear”. Antifoul is applied quite late in the production process after the surface has been abraded.

 

[Portofino]

Something occurred to me .As Priny .Fr as based in la Nap I did notice the arms race in verticality over the years .More so as the dealer berths were next to S/Sker , Absolute etc .
The Hat 52 debut at Cannes was king for few days until Priny brought something or other out .

Getting to the point Henry’s “brag “ if you like “ it’s a Seekeeper 9 as std as opposed to a 7 “ was that on the Hat ?

Reading between the lines they must have tested the 7 or what ever .They are in it to show a bottom line to someone , sometime , somewhere ?? In theory Princess yachts is a business ?

Why incur more buying off the shelf components , hidden components at that ? No one can see it it’s can’t woo punters at static shows .It can’t woo punters at wet shows in pancake calm conditions either .

So if a 9 is needed and fitted , and competitors are getting by with a 7 it follows to me may be its a a inherently a top heavy boat to start with and extra rolly.

As long as it’s recognised fixed by jumping from 7 to 9 .

You could argue the same concept with cleats , anchors , pumps etc Aircon dimensions etc etc .

Bean counters tend to rule in the boardrooms theses days .

 

[Hurricane]

That brings back memories, Henry.
Ours was assembled (from the bare hull) in Newport Street which is right beside the creek where they launch the boats.
Interesting - in the case of the 55, do they actually mould the boats next to the assembly line?
I thought that there was a curing period before they could start assembly.
But things are very different since our 67 was built - all injection moulding these days.
In fact, I believe that the lower half is translucent/clear so that they can see any imperfections.

Still, enjoy the experience - we did.
And I've been back to the factory a few times since - it is always really interesting.

 

[MapisM]

So if a 9 is needed and fitted, and competitors are getting by with a 7 it follows to me may be its a a inherently a top heavy boat to start with and extra rolly.

Aaaaargh, noooo!
Between two hulls of identical size, if one needs more powerful stabilizers it's because its inherent stability is HIGHER, not lower!
Is this so hard to understand?

 

[henryf]

That brings back memories, Henry.
Ours was assembled (from the bare hull) in Newport Street which is right beside the creek where they launch the boats.
Interesting - in the case of the 55, do they actually mould the boats next to the assembly line?
I thought that there was a curing period before they could start assembly.
But things are very different since our 67 was built - all injection moulding these days.
In fact, I believe that the lower half is translucent/clear so that they can see any imperfections.

Still, enjoy the experience - we did.
And I've been back to the factory a few times since - it is always really interesting.

In the case of the 55 yes, the hulls are moulded in a building adjacent to the production line. Newport Street is for 70 / 80 ft production (I think I’m correct in saying) as well as final launch. That’s where we met up in the morning and the picture of us by the engines is. They have opened the shed up by removing a lot of the upright pillars since your boat was built.

 

[MapisM]

In fact, I believe that the lower half is translucent/clear so that they can see any imperfections.

Yup. In fact, it would make sense to use clear coating for the whole mould, and eventually paint the thing.
Which also grants a better finishing than gelcoat, BTW.
But it adds one (rather expensive) production step.

 

[MapisM]

P, you have enough mates on here to enjoy a Solent trip at any time. You might need to bring some Italian sun please?

Thanks a lot P, but I'm afraid I couldn't guarantee that!
Though actually it isn't so much the weather that puts me off: the few times when I've been around your S coast during the summer, maybe I've been lucky but I always found it pleasant.
It's the sea that fails to attract me, frankly speaking.
I guess I'm spoiled by being used to check how the anchor rests on the seabed from the bow of the boat, in up to 15m of water...

 

[henryf]

Something occurred to me .As Priny .Fr as based in la Nap I did notice the arms race in verticality over the years .More so as the dealer berths were next to S/Sker , Absolute etc .
The Hat 52 debut at Cannes was king for few days until Priny brought something or other out .

Getting to the point Henry’s “brag “ if you like “ it’s a Seekeeper 9 as std as opposed to a 7 “ was that on the Hat ?

Reading between the lines they must have tested the 7 or what ever .They are in it to show a bottom line to someone , sometime , somewhere ?? In theory Princess yachts is a business ?

Why incur more buying off the shelf components , hidden components at that ? No one can see it it’s can’t woo punters at static shows .It can’t woo punters at wet shows in pancake calm conditions either .

So if a 9 is needed and fitted , and competitors are getting by with a 7 it follows to me may be its a a inherently a top heavy boat to start with and extra rolly.

As long as it’s recognised fixed by jumping from 7 to 9 .

You could argue the same concept with cleats , anchors , pumps etc Aircon dimensions etc etc .

Bean counters tend to rule in the boardrooms theses days .

I think you are totally wrong here. Let me try to explain why:

Princess build 20 individual models over 6 ranges. Assuming launch, refresh at 3 years then replacement at 5 years that means 4 “new“ models every year so yes, there will always something new. Who doesn’t like a product launch to generate interest at the boat show?

Now your thinking behind gyro choice. Yes, I do gain comfort from the fact that Princess fit the Seakeeper 9 in comparison to Sunseeker’s Seakeeper 6 but I’m not sure there has been the series of sea trials and comparisons you think happens. Princess boffins speak to Seakeeper boffins and a decision is made. There are no bean counters involved because Princess aren’t paying. I am. It’s a £86,000 as opposed to £68,000 (from memory) at Sunseeker box to tick.

What it does mean is Sunseeker say they can fit Gyro stabilisation for less but you are getting a lesser product in the Seakeeper range. They both use the same supplier. Are Sunseeker compromising absolute performance, are Princess being overly cautious? I don’t know but my experience is than Princess champion usability in the field over style and price saving. Their cleats are always in the right place, something I have identified as shortcomings on lots of boat show visits.

I didn’t realise it at the time but one of the first people I saw in the Princess car park was an unassuming looking chap called David King. He is one of the original founders of Princess when they built boats from a little shed across the estuary from Newport Street. He is still very much involved in product development and approaches things from the same direction he did with the original Project 31 in 1965. The boat has to work as a boat before it does anything else. They still build life sized mock-ups to check usability rather than rely on CAD renderings. Other builders listen to the stylists and designers or the bean counters.

 

[benjenbav]

Something occurred to me .As Priny .Fr as based in la Nap I did notice the arms race in verticality over the years .More so as the dealer berths were next to S/Sker , Absolute etc .
The Hat 52 debut at Cannes was king for few days until Priny brought something or other out .

Getting to the point Henry’s “brag “ if you like “ it’s a Seekeeper 9 as std as opposed to a 7 “ was that on the Hat ?

Reading between the lines they must have tested the 7 or what ever .They are in it to show a bottom line to someone , sometime , somewhere ?? In theory Princess yachts is a business ?

Why incur more buying off the shelf components , hidden components at that ? No one can see it it’s can’t woo punters at static shows .It can’t woo punters at wet shows in pancake calm conditions either .

So if a 9 is needed and fitted , and competitors are getting by with a 7 it follows to me may be its a a inherently a top heavy boat to start with and extra rolly.

As long as it’s recognised fixed by jumping from 7 to 9 .

You could argue the same concept with cleats , anchors , pumps etc Aircon dimensions etc etc .

Bean counters tend to rule in the boardrooms theses days .

I think the explanation is that Seakeeper suggest that the maximum displacement for which Seakeeper 6 will work effectively is 24tonnes which is just about Princess’ quoted figure for the F55.
As the S9 is ~$40k more expensive than the S6 the manufacturer and its customers need to be convinced that the larger unit really is required for the application.

 

[MapisM]

Other builders listen to the stylists and designers or the bean counters.

All well and good H, but it seems to me that with the X95 they did listen to designers a lot - arguably too much...

 

[henryf]

I think the explanation is that Seakeeper suggest that the maximum displacement for which Seakeeper 6 will work effectively is 24tonnes which is just about Princess’ quoted figure for the F55.
As the S9 is ~$40k more expensive than the S6 the manufacturer and its customers need to be convinced that the larger unit really is required for the application.

Fully fuelled (2750kg), full water (600kg), supplied and 14 pax I suspect an F55 will be closer to 30 tonnes. I would expect the Manhattan 55 to come in around the same figure, certainly well over 24 tonnes.

 

[henryf]

All well and good H, but it seems to me that with the X95 they did listen to designers a lot - arguably too much...

I looked around my first X95 yesterday. It was packed full of stuff awaiting shipping but I’ll put some photos up. Very usable space, not the most visually pleasing vessel from a few angles……

 

[ari]

All well and good H, but it seems to me that with the X95 they did listen to designers a lot - arguably too much...

I think with the X95, the people they listened to were their customers, given how many of it they have sold.

 

[stelican]

Thank you for sharing your visit.
Are lifejackets mandatory just seems little unusual.

 

[ari]

I had my first ever visit to the Princess factory yesterday. All the previous boats were stock boats so no need to get involved with the factory. This was a bit of a general visit with a bias towards the F55.

The first thing to say is it’s quite overwhelming. Princess are a huge set up and we just scratched the surface. Lots of different production facilities covering various aspects and models. I have to be careful what I post as some stuff is highly classified, they perfected marine Flubber a couple of months ago …. Ok, maybe not but there are a few development aspects that aren’t fully released yet so I don’t want to upset anyone.

Being a production boat the build process is fairly well honed. Once the hull is formed it starts along a production line not unlike car manufacture all be it at a slower pace. At each stage of the journey a series of tasks are completed before it moves on. Things like the wiring loom go in early on and gradually components are added. Furniture / cabinetry modules get introduced at various stages, the master cabin wardrobe for instance goes in fairly and remains protected in foam cladding.

The 55 is actually built some distance from the water before being transported in the middle of the night to the main Princess site for launch and shake down. They have a large fresh water swimming pool to do initial run up tests before transportation to the main site.

High vis, lifejackets and face coverings for a factory visit? Looks like H&S have all the bases covered, plus a few more for good measure!

 

[jrudge]

Seakeepers are sized using the roll characteristics of the boat.

I have a SK6 on a squadron 58.

The aim is to model an 80% roll reduction at +/- 10 degrees.

I would not read too much into the difference between the SS and Princess. I appreciate that the " So princess is better" argument may win at Top Trumps but the odds of SS undersizing it are just the same as Princess Oversizing it - ie both unlikely.

 

[rafiki_]

I had my first ever visit to the Princess factory yesterday. All the previous boats were stock boats so no need to get involved with the factory. This was a bit of a general visit with a bias towards the F55.

The first thing to say is it’s quite overwhelming. Princess are a huge set up and we just scratched the surface. Lots of different production facilities covering various aspects and models. I have to be careful what I post as some stuff is highly classified, they perfected marine Flubber a couple of months ago …. Ok, maybe not but there are a few development aspects that aren’t fully released yet so I don’t want to upset anyone.

Being a production boat the build process is fairly well honed. Once the hull is formed it starts along a production line not unlike car manufacture all be it at a slower pace. At each stage of the journey a series of tasks are completed before it moves on. Things like the wiring loom go in early on and gradually components are added. Furniture / cabinetry modules get introduced at various stages, the master cabin wardrobe for instance goes in fairly and remains protected in foam cladding.

The 55 is actually built some distance from the water before being transported in the middle of the night to the main Princess site for launch and shake down. They have a large fresh water swimming pool to do initial run up tests before transportation to the main site.

Which one in the photo is Flubba?