Peace of mind in Sanremo

Cosmetic repairs for yachts in hibernation
Although the owner of this yacht is among the more famous of international celebrities, he has chosen a relatively modest yacht. It is a 29-meter standard model from Posilipo Rizzardi, the Technema 90. It is powered by two  mtu Series 2000  Type M93 engines that produce 1,790 kW each. With its gleaming blue hull and silver-grey superstructure it sits serenely in the marina. The blue fenders dangle along both sides of the ship. Now, at the beginning of the year, it is quiet in the marina. In the winter, at a crisp ten degrees Celsius in pale sunshine, only a few clients are in attendance on their yachts. Most of the boats are covered over, concealing their stylish lines from the Italian winter sun. The captain uses the quiet period to oversee maintenance and repair work. He runs the engines at regular intervals and takes the yacht out for short trips. The yacht season does not start until April when the weather and the water get warmer. Then the marina is teeming with leisure sailors. Among them are a few better known faces wanting to enjoy la dolce vita unrecognized and unworried on the water.

The captain organizes the sailing trips on the Mediterranean and everything else to do with the yacht for the owner’s family. He is on board almost every day. In the summer he cruises the Mediterranean for around 60 days with the owners, visiting the Balearics, Sardinia or the Spanish coast. At that time of year his working day starts at seven in the morning. He looks over the two 16-cylinder Series 2000 engines, checks the operating data on the Callosum automation system, goes over the final details of the day’s route and gets the yacht ready for one or more days at sea.

Extended coverage for carefree cruises
The friendly and reserved Italian knows his way around yachts. He has been a captain for more than 40 years, and he swears by mtu engines. “If you want a fast yacht, mtu is the only choice,” the likeable skipper smiles. The yacht he commands is capable of roughly 29 knots per hour – something over 50 kph. And the fact that the engines have run so reliably for more than five years is another argument in their favor as far as he is concerned. But should there ever be any problems, he has chosen the safe option for the yacht and her owner –  Extended Propulsion Coverage  from mtu, or EPC for short. After the two-year standard coverage, he signed the boat up for a three-year EPC contract and in June 2013 took out an EPC extension for another three years. The contract covers unexpected repairs outside the standard servicing. The cover for the unforeseen repairs also includes the replacement parts, labor charges for the mtu engineer and travel costs for the call-out. This client also has the engine checked over once a year by an mtu service engineer. “I actually only see the mtu engineers once a year for the annual checkup,” relates the captain. He does the rest of the maintenance work himself, having even attended an mtu engine maintenance course at the mtu Training Center in Friedrichshafen.

“Nevertheless, it is reassuring to know that someone from mtu will immediately come to my assistance if there is ever a problem,” the captain explains. After all, nothing is more annoying than having your precious leisure time interrupted by repairs. The EPC package can be customized according to the client and operating profile. It lasts for three years or a specified maximum number of engine hours. The mtu engines in this yacht run for about 120 hours a year. “That is relatively long for a yacht in this power class,” recounts Paolini. On most yachts, the engines are in use for about 70 to 80 hours a year.

Personalized trimmings not for everyone
Dark rain clouds are gathering over the marina near Sanremo – it is still winter in Italy, after all. So Paolini takes a quick look in the engine room of the 29-meter yacht with the captain before departing. “All systems OK” reads the message on the display of the Callosum automation system. The engines gleam in their standard silver-painted livery. Asked if the owner might not have preferred a more exotic color or maybe even chrome-plated cylinder head covers, the captain just laughs: “Whims and fancies like that are not important to us. What counts is that the engines work properly!”