looking for some guidance

Ok, So I have a group of friends and we are investigating what would go into starting a shipyard. We have some ideas im not going to go greatly into detail on but I did have a few questions I was hoping to get answered. We are currently putting research into this and doing a market analysis.

What tools go into the fabrication of parts for a boat as far as a sheet metal shop and a machine shop? I have to imagine that you need some sort of CNC machine and I have grown up around a barrage of welders but there has to be some machines required to bend the sheet metal and what not. I guess what I am really looking for is if someone can give me some insight on like a list of machines you would have in the support building of your shipyard if you had one. We are looking primarily into aluminum.

 

Also, If anyone has any literature on the actual production of boats in the shipyard setting that they would not mind passing on or think I should pick up, my email is reidcrown@gmail.com

 

Guidance...hmmmm, don't do it?
Okay, that's not very helpful.
Get whatever tools you're going to need for your first customer and go from there.
If you're looking to a boat forum to base starting a business, I think you may be in trouble.
Good luck.

 

One thing you may want to check on, if you haven't already, is your state's environmental regulations for such an operation. It will affect your equipment and costs.

 

Well, im more here to learn more about it. Ive got two people in this with me, one is in school for marketing and buisness management and the other is in school for mechanical engineering. We have also recently picked up a person who is in a trade school to be an electrician. We are 73 pages into a business plan and have conducted about a quarter of a market analysis. So im more here to learn about the production of them. Im attending school to study naval arch and marine engineering with a minor in entrepreneurship, 158 hours to graduate, ewe.

 

Do you mean small recreational craft, or large commercial ships?

One requires a huge amount of money and expertise, plus a market that will support it, most existing companies in this segment struggle to stay alive.

And that was the easyier segment of the two.

 

Im talking about the ability to build huge craft, we have a dry dock budgeted and the DBA we filed is under the name of "Crown Yacht Co." I understand that the yacht market is pretty tanked right now and sea ray has still not found a buyer but thats a small portion of the buisness plan. If you could list the machinery you think would be nessicary for the fabrication of boats all the way from 30-150 feet thats kinda what im looking for, then agian, any knowlage I can learn from a person opposed to reading a text book would be awesome!

 

Your best approuch IMO, is to find a shop that's looking for investors or a buy out. They'll have much of what you want on hand and a good idea of what you'll need as well. It's not an easy to break into industry, though with some help from some of the former employees and management, you'll have a better start.

 

So, nothing is concrete, but I do have a sort of platform that I can build the shop off of. Some long time connections have put me in a position to kinda develope a budget and go from there but I will definately look to see if I can find one. I have emailed 22 shipyards and only gotten a few replies in an effort to try and do a study on the manufacture side of the industry. I just figured maybe this forum would be a good place to look for some knowlage.