News: Abeking & Rasmussen's SWATH

SWATH By Abeking & Rasmussen
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Custom German superyacht builder Abeking & Rasmussen (A&R) is a noted and well-respected name in German marine construction sphere. In the superyacht realm they are known for manufacturing some of the most well known superyachts floating today. 81-meter hulls "Kibo" and "RoMEA", 78-meter hulls "TITAN", "Amaryllis" and "C2"/"HBC", 82-meter "Secret" now "Sea Pearl" to the 98-meter "Aviva" to the 118.2-meter "LIVA°" to the 41-meter "Silver Cloud" now "NURJA" these are just a few of the amazing yachts A&R has built over the years. The last one in question, NURJA, is a SWATH (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull) platform and when she launched as a custom yacht back in 2008 she certainly stood-out because in the yacht world there was not much like her. Yes, power and sailing catamarans existed but the closest resemblance is they have two hulls.

Silver Cloud is still in service today as NURJA after a significant refit in 2024. She lost her blue hulls and is now Grey after a multi-year refit that started in early 2021 and lasted through to 2024. Focus Yacht Design redrew some of the yacht's exterior elements but overall she still retains her original ethos. The original owners were drawn to this SWATH platform because the wife regularly became sea sick on monohulls. After being invited on one of A&R's SWATH-platformed pilot launches and being taken to the North Sea, they were sold on the idea and that is how Silver Cloud was born.

It is interesting that not many clients seem willing to go the SWATH route when choosing a platform for their new yacht. Perhaps it breaks with the current convention aesthetically despite the comfort benefits of having a twin-hulled stance and small contact areas with the water when underway which helps to minimize movements and vertical acceleration. The yard may not have built alot of these vessels as yachts but the offshore industry especially pilotage and other transfer vessels have taken notice.

Currently A&R is building the first of two Pilot Transfer vessels (Hull 6517) for the Dutch Pilotage Service Organization. The current order is for two of the latest generation of tenders, each 25-meters long. According to the shipyard, they are around 20 percent more fuel-efficient than their predecessors. A&R won the tender process that started in April 2023. These new-buildings are being financed by the Dutch bank BNG. This would not be the first time the Dutch pilots have ordered SWATH vessel from A&R. The Dutch pilots had already ordered SWATH tenders from the Abeking & Rasmussen shipyard 20 years ago.

For more information:

Abeking & Rasmussen
An der Faehre 2
27809 Lemwerder
Germany
www.abeking.com

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