Pearlson Shiplift Corporation discusses global demand
Pearlson Shiplift Corporation is currently in the process of expanding its business to prepare for the inevitable necessity of high-performance superyacht infrastructure around the world.
Pearlson Shiplift Corporation is a company that prides itself on a rich history and legacy in the shipyard sector. The company dates back to 1958 and begins with Raymond Pearlson, the inventor of the modern shiplift which he patented and named ‘syncrolift’.
Although the company faced various trials and tribulations over the decades, it managed to reconstitute the original team more than 15 years ago and has now become the global market leader for shiplifts. Its resumé includes having built the largest shiplift in North America, as well as installations in MB92 Barcelona, Savannah Yacht Center and Abeking & Rasmussen.
While the marine community is incredibly global, it is still relatively small, and when you are in the business of creating one of the most crucial features of a shipyard, your reputation matters. That’s why the yearly strategy at Pearlson is to ensure that performance, quality and client services are at the very forefront of every single one of their products. As Bryan Fraind, the COO, puts it, “When you do something right and you do it good, everyone knows about it, but the same would apply if anything were to go wrong.”
While the company does have a big reputation in the yachting world, it is also involved in military operations. “From the military side, I would say the US market is just absolutely booming,” explains Fraind. “With the geopolitical climate we’re in, it seems like governments are just spending a ton of money.
“Now, with the military side, that money is actually flowing down to private and public entities that build shipyard infrastructure and want dual-purpose facilities. So we’re building one facility right now which will be for US destroyers. However, they also do superyachts. So there will be US destroyers right next to superyachts, which is kind of interesting.”
With regards to the superyacht industry, there are so many different regions in the world that are switching on to the benefits of having the proper infrastructure for luxury vessels. As it stands, the current infrastructure cannot keep up with the expanding fleet, and as superyachts become bigger in size it is up to forward-thinking individuals to anticipate the need to facilitate and maintain these vessels.
On the regions showing the most promise for immediate infrastructure development Fraind says, “The Asian and Oceania area seems to be pretty popular right now with the superyachts. There are a lot of, let’s say, affluent people in that area of the world and so they also want their toys and they have to have a place to service those toys.
“However, I can’t also discount the Caribbean. The Caribbean seems to have some enquiries as well; they want some infrastructure down there because five months out of the year these people take their yachts down there and they need a place to service. But there’s not a whole lot of infrastructure down there at the moment.”
The company does partly rely on forward-thinking individuals, and with younger stakeholders adopting a more mature industry there is certainly an opportunity for a company such as Pearlson Shiplift Corporation to flex its future-proof products.
Fraind says, “On the superyacht side, I will tell you that the margins the shipyards make on boats are exponentially larger the bigger the boat becomes because there are fewer dry-docking facilities for those boats.
“So a boat that’s 80 metres plus, they don’t have a whole lot of options if they want to get that boat out of water. And if you want to use a floating dock to get that boat out of the water, you can. But the shipyard now has occupied that one floating dock for the duration of that repair or whatever it is that’s needed for that vessel. Whereas with the shiplift, you can get that boat out of the water and you can make money on that boat and still have multiple berths on land.
“The margins you can get on the bigger yachts are exponential compared to the margins on, let’s say, something under 30 metres or 40 metres even. With regards to progressive thinking, Pepe Garcia [-Aubert of MB92] for example, he was forward-thinking from day one, so he knew where he wanted the company to be. Ultimately, thinking about the future does translate into success for a shipyard.”
With the company expanding, hiring new staff and moving into new offices, it’s fair to say that it is preparing for a future where infrastructure demands can satisfy the ever-increasing fleet of luxury superyachts. The question now is who else is ready to embrace that future and which region of the world is prepared to become the next global superyacht hub?