By: Lars Hofman Most yacht yards are not structurally understaffed. In many cases, the team is sized for the normal pace of ongoing projects. That works well enough until several peak moments start pulling on the same engineers, reviewers, and technical coordinators at the same time. Two projects move into an intensive engineering phase simultaneously. [...]
In yacht building projects, the tension between design intent and yard execution does not emerge on the shop floor. It develops much earlier, during the engineering phase. Designs are shaped around function, aesthetics and system logic, while yard reality revolves around build sequence, accessibility and available capacity. The moment these perspectives intersect determines the course [...]
Basic Engineering as the Technical Direction Setter for Medium-Sized Yards Basic Engineering formally ends before detail engineering begins. In practice, by that moment it is already defined how the project will technically behave. The space that remains available, the routes systems are allowed to follow and the areas where later correction is no longer possible [...]
Net Space as a Technical Reference Framework: Foundation for Parallel Engineering Net space is often treated in projects as a drawing milestone that must be completed before subsequent steps can begin. In day-to-day shipyard practice, this approach tends to create tension once multiple disciplines start working in parallel. Net space is the defined, discipline-aligned allocation [...]
Every engineer and project manager on a shipyard knows the moment a project officially starts while part of the technical input is still missing. Planning is running, capacity is reserved and decisions need preparation, yet not all boundary conditions are fixed. In that situation, the question is not whether Basic Engineering can begin, but how [...]
A new year in yacht building rarely feels like a clean slate. Projects continue, timelines overlap, and the next assignment is often already taking shape. That is exactly why this is the right moment to take a closer look at what really keeps engineering projects under control. The choice of partners plays a decisive role [...]
An efficient yacht is not only economical to run, but also easy to build, maintain and operate. Every yard knows that balance between comfort, performance and practicality. That’s why we focus on the start, the first sketch as part of the complete design. At HOFF, we see efficiency as something that runs through every discipline. [...]
When Jelmer de Jong started his graduation internship at HOFF, he took a fresh look at a familiar process. The basic structure of a yacht hull has been designed in much the same way for decades. But in a sector where speed, reliability and adaptability are essential, Jelmer saw room for smarter design. Not a [...]
Toen Jelmer de Jong zijn afstudeerstage bij HOFF begon, keek hij met frisse blik naar een bekend proces. De basisstructuur van een jacht ontwerpen gebeurt al decennia min of meer op dezelfde manier. Maar in een sector waar snelheid, betrouwbaarheid en flexibiliteit cruciaal zijn, zag Jelmer ruimte voor vernieuwing. Geen revolutie, maar wel een slimme [...]
In superyacht projects everyone knows that schedules are tight and different disciplines constantly influence each other. A delay in one technical area can have an immediate impact on several teams and the build sequence. That is when you need a partner who fits into the existing way of working, understands how your yard operates and [...]
