Light and fast or sumptuous and slow
Another trend is in the building materials used. Overmarine Group has so far built its yachts from composite materials such as carbon fiber. They are lightweight but provide the necessary structural strength. That is important when you are making high-speed, high-performance craft. “You can feel the speed on these yachts,” Nicola Onori illuminates. But not all clients want that. Many of them connect leisure time with luxury and distant shores rather than speed and excitement. Just a short while ago, Overmarine Group launched its first displacement yacht. It is made of steel and aluminum and is marketed under the Mangusta Oceano brand. Its maximum speed is a moderate 16 knots, courtesy of two 12-cylinder mtu Series 2000 engines, each delivering 1,080 kW. But the yacht can cover 4,000 nautical miles on one tank of fuel – easily enough for an Atlantic crossing.
”My colleague has the hardest job“
The new Mangusta Oceano is currently undergoing sea trials, as will the Mangusta 165, currently the object of the frenetic activity just behind us, at the end of the year. “We have three captains at Overmarine Group who put each yacht to a very thorough test”. One thing is imperative – every yacht that leaves the Overmarine Group shipyard must be able to promise its owner totally carefree leisure time - there must not be even the slightest whiff of a problem. “My colleague has the hardest job,” says Nicola Onori, pointing to Massimiliano Bini, the Group’s After Sales Manager, standing a few meters away. “He has to field calls 24 hours a day from customers all over the world to give them assistance in case of need.” And those problems can be almost anything. “We can solve a lot of issues over the phone, but often we have to be on site as well.” Like mtu, Overmarine Group has a world-wide network of service agents. “Fortunately we have had very few problems with these engines so far,” says Bini. After their warranty has expired, he recommends customers to take out an mtu ValueCare service contract, which he sees as the safest way of avoiding unexpected costs.
Ultimately, being on a luxury yacht is all about having a totally relaxed holiday, preferably not in the marina but out somewhere in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, the Atlantic or the Indian Ocean. Where would Nicola Onori spend his holidays? “Somewhere in the Mediterranean, and preferably on a Mangusta yacht.”
