First of all, I should say that I am framing my response to the headline question from the viewpoint of who should a yacht owner select to manage a refit on their behalf, although I expect shipyard and refit facilities have very similar requirements. And this is very much a personal view based on my experience over the past 20 years of plying my trade as an owner’s representative/project manager in the superyacht sector and my 40-plus years in the field of professional project management.

Back in the early noughties, I came to the superyacht world from the offshore oil and gas construction industry, a heavily regulated and professional sector in which project management is recognised as a professional management discipline in its own right.

When I arrived on my first new-build yacht construction project, I was immediately surprised by two things: the paucity of the contract and specification, and the assumption that as the owner’s representative/project manager you were also expected to be a subject-matter expert in a broad range of large-yacht construction topics – or for me, the beginning of a very steep learning curve!

Before I get into the question of ‘who’, it’s probably worth considering the ‘what’, as in ‘what is a superyacht refit?’. Refit is a wide term that is used to describe everything from a brief stopover at a shipyard or refit facility for a minimal amount of work, to a Classification society special survey often in combination with other owner-requested works, through to a major project to add new, replace existing or even extend or reconfigure the layout of the subject yacht.

In truth, a refit project is best described as a large, complex multi-discipline capital project. Throw into that mix the fact that the project will often employ multiple parties who are geographically dispersed and you have a significant management challenge. Finally, consider that a refit will often be time-limited. How many times do we see refit contracts that include a fixed redelivery date agreed upon before the scope of work is clearly defined, and a boss trip or charter planned to commence within days of the planned refit completion?

On the topic of scope definition, one key variable is the amount of ‘open and discover’, a phrase used to describe the discovery of defects or anomalies during the performance of the planned work that must be rectified before the planned work can commence or continue. This can often be in form of corrosion or the actual situation on board not reflecting the as-built drawings or, in some cases, failure to adequately plan for the contracted works. Remember that once opened and discovered, you often have no option but to rectify a problem if you are to maintain the vessel in Class, and that rectification costs both time and money.

In short, and again in my own experience, a refit project can often be far more challenging than a new-build project for both the owner and the shipyard.

So against this background, who would I want to manage a refit project on my behalf? I have three main criteria: 1) someone who I can rely upon to act in my best interests at all times; 2) someone who has the required knowledge to manage the project given its envisaged scale and complexity; and 3) someone with a demonstrated track record of having successfully completed similar projects. To ensure that the appointed person or organisation fulfils these criteria I would be looking for a professional project manager with emphasis on the word ‘professional’.

Alongside professionalism I will be looking for an individual who can demonstrate knowledge of the major elements of a superyacht – from naval architecture, marine engineering, electrical engineering, audio-visual, IT, interior and exterior outfitting, paint and teak, through to how to mount a piece of priceless artwork

In the world of project management, professionalism is governed through an internationally recognised two-level structure under the leadership of the International Project Management Association or IPMA, and regional daughter associations such as the Project Management Institute (PMI) and the Association for Project Management (APM).

Daughter associations publish their own ‘body of knowledge’ publications, offer structured career paths coupled with training and certification, and hold their members to account against a commitment to continued professional development and a code of conduct that requires their members to act professionally, honestly, ethically and with integrity at all times. Failure to do so will result in expulsion from the association.

Membership of a professional association is a demonstration of commitment to the profession by the individual and is earned based on peer validation of both knowledge and experience. For me, this says a lot about the individual and goes a long way to answering the question of whether I can trust this person to act in my best interests at all times, and whether they have the skills and experience necessary to manage my project.

Having the right to use the postnominals ‘MAPM’ (Member of the Association for Project Management) is a source of great personal pride and is something I seek to protect by upholding the APM code of professional conduct.

Of course, alongside this professionalism I will also be looking for an individual who can demonstrate knowledge of the major elements of a superyacht – from naval architecture, marine engineering, electrical engineering, audio-visual, IT, interior and exterior outfitting, paint and teak, through to how to mount a piece of priceless artwork.

How many of these skills are required will really come down to the structure of the refit contract in terms of how much responsibility has been transferred to the shipyard or refit facility, and the structure of the shipyard or refit facility. For example, most new-build shipyards will have in-house subject-matter experts who can lead the design realisation, whereas many refit facilities rely heavily on the local supplier base and may be light in their own in-house engineering and project-management skills.

It’s therefore necessary to fully understand the context and the environment of a refit project and then to ensure that you have the necessary skills in your team to supplement or even substitute for the skills of the shipyard.

In closing, the famous phrase ‘there is no substitute for experience’ applies to refit project management just as it applies to various other areas of life. Success can never be assured, but with professional and experienced management, the chances of success are greatly improved.

This article first appeared in The Superyacht Report – Refit Focus. With our open-source policy, it is available to all for a limited period by following this link, so read and download the latest issue and any of the previous issues in our library. Look out for the New Build issue coming in February!

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Hill Robinson

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