Lloyds specifications ????

Hi guy’s I was wondering what spec’s are needed to get a boat to, Lloyds Certificate.
I say this as we have a mould taken from a Pershing 50 that was fire damage and had to be broken for insurance purposes. All told there are 9 bits to the mould that I’m assured were professionally made. My idea was to gel and cast the boat myself, any ideas on that, or do you have to have years experience in the game to do this. I have repaired many a boat but never fully built one myself, am I in dreamland ? I’ve asked the lads at work but all they say is I haven’t the time or patience.

 

Hi Buckie,

Pershing currently makes a 50', and has been for some time. Thus, I would assume that their design office owns the copyright on the design. Building one from a copied mould would be "splashing", a practice that is highly unethical everywhere as well as being quite illegal in many countries.

From the way you've phrased this, it's hard to tell whether you have a fire-damaged mould that was taken from a Pershing 50, or a mould that was taken from a fire-damaged boat. In either case, you almost certainly don't have any of the structural plans, laminate schedule, etc. So you'd need a naval architect to help figure that out. There aren't many (if any) NAs who will reverse-engineer a splashed design, especially not one that is still in production. Thus, the pursuit of a Lloyd's or other certificate becomes a moot point.

If you want to build a boat, start by finding a design (and designer) that suits what you really want to do with the boat. That way, you'll get what's right for you, and you'll have legitimate rights to it as well as the support of its designer during its construction.

 

I thought there may have been a catch !

cheer's

 

After a conversation with this guy he has revealed that for copyright protection the mould has been altered somewhat but looking at the finished product only owners of a pershing would in fact notice the difference. Full weight and balance specs, along with cloth layup specs are included. There is also a variety of cabin configrements to choose from, with structural plans. This mould is fully legal, as have been others produced from other leading models. He would not have been in business for 12 years no as a mould maker if it were in fact in breach of any copyright or ownership issues.

As I'm not going into business and basically want to build a yacht myself, this does appear to be a cheaper way of doing it rather than starting from scratch. I'm getting, or can get the complete mould for the price it would cost to build the plug then mould. Alternatively, he has offered to refund my deposit if I tell him by 15th July.

 

Lloyd's Requirements

Buckie,

Going back to your original question - what is involved in obtaining Lloyd's certification? - I think you will find this to be a long and expensive option.
Some of the things involved will be:
Design
You will need to prove that all the structural parts meet or exceed the Lloyd's rule scantlings. You can do this by submitting detail drawings, calculations or show that the same class has been in safe operation for a number of years.
Build
You will need an enviromentally controlled workshop and a trained team of laminators - at least 4 I would say to handle this size of hull.
Inspection
Lloyds will want to come and inspect at various stages.

Sorry to put a damper on your plans but these people (classification societies) charge the earth and it is probably not viable for a one off own build.
Is there any reason you want certification?
A good marine surveyor will look at your drawings, inspect your workshop and the laminating at a fraction of the cost.
I have had reports accepted by many insurance companies to prove the quality and suitability of hull builds in GRP and other materials.

Anyway, good luck with your build and keep the forum in touch with progress.

Graham Westbrook
Naval Architect
Marine Surveyor

www.westbrookmarine.co.uk

 

Thanks for that, it basically was for insurance purposes, as I thought it had to be certified by Lloyds, so that’s very interesting to know, cheer’s

 

Buckie

You'll need to find out what the insurance company "requires", this is your starting block. Otherwise you'll waste time and money. It may say class compliance, or maybe today ISO small boat code and/or MCA...depends what level of insurance you're asking for etc.

I've just been involved with an insurance claim for damage to a boat. Nothing is really clear or laid out properly, typical insurance really. So check and double check what they want, and what it 'covers' you for too. Since their cover may not actually make any difference whether you're class/MCA approved or not - depends upon the premiums and hence the cover...better check!