Creative Minds: Fabiani Yachts

Maurizio Fabiani, founder of Fabiani Yacht. The yard was established in 2015 on the basis of the famous Intermare brand, which at the peak of its activity was building over sixty yachts a year. Along with two partners, engineer Maurizio Fabiani decided to buy and relaunch it with a new name and larger yachts. His personal environmental and ethical awareness gave rise to his decision to aim for a fibreglassfree production

[ CREATIVE MINDS ]

Three basic ideas underpin Fabiani Yacht’s philosophy – innovation, sustainability and safety. That may sound like a slogan, but for the Livorno-based yard they’re not just words – they are facts of life. The yard was established in 2015 on the basis of the famous Intermare brand, which at the peak of its activity was building over sixty yachts a year. Along with two partners, engineer Maurizio Fabiani decided to buy and relaunch it, but when he analysed the projects in the light of market demand he opted to start from a clean slate, with a new name and larger yachts. Above all, though, he introduced a drive towards innovation backed by his ability to think outside the box, something that had already led him to take out three patents. One of these is for a new type of multifunction aft platform, as wide as the yacht itself and 2.5 to 3.5 metres deep, depending on the model. It would rise like a lift from a metre below the water to the flybridge, becoming in turn a beach platform, gangway, extension to the cockpit or a sea terrace with a row of stanchions serving as a bulwark. In port it connects the yacht to the jetty, and as it is wider than conventional gangways it enables heavy loads, pushchairs, wheelchairs, motorbikes, bicycles or small cars stowed directly in the garage to brought on board easily. Maurizio Fabiani’s personal environmental and ethical awareness gave rise to his decision to aim for a “fibreglass-free” production, after entire generations of yachts made from that material. “While I was looking for the best way to relaunch the yard I’d taken over”, he says, “I noticed that the yards in this area had dumped a large number of fibreglass moulds out in the natural environment”. Fibreglass cannot be recycled, and disposing of it at end of life entails a significant cost, which it seems not everyone is prepared to pay. “All our yachts are aluminium. We don’t need to use moulds. We build the frame, all the exterior sections are attached using precision-shaped sheets so we can then weld the aluminium, our go-to material. As it’s lighter it offers other advantages – for example, we can use less powerful and less thirsty engines”. The 77’ Hybrid model currently under construction is also made of aluminium. It is the first of the seven Fabiani Yacht builds between

The 77’ Hybrid model (in the renders) is currently under construction. It is the first of the seven aluminium Fabiani Yacht builds between 20 and 30 metres long. It features the multifunctional platform and is equipped with a retractable 110-square-metre solar array, also developed and patented by Fabiani himself

The solar panels, together with the fixed panels above the flybridge helm station, power the batteries that enable the yacht to sail under electric power for sixteen hours at six knots, in silence, at zero cost and with zero environmental impact

20 and 30 metres that is ready for completion, embodying the yard’s technical and design philosophy. It features the multifunctional platform and is equipped with a retractable 110-square-metre solar array, also developed and patented by Fabiani himself. “I don’t want to boast, but I’m always excited by original ideas. There was a considerable gap between the conception and development of the yacht, though, enabling us to study its feasibility, which conforms to all safety criteria. I imagined a main deck floor with a double layer, allowing the solar panels to slide out between them, extending like wings from the hull”. These panels, together with the fixed panels above the flybridge helm station, power the batteries that enable the yacht to sail under electric power for sixteen hours at six knots, in silence, at zero cost and with zero environmental impact. Of course, the yacht also has two diesel engines for sailing at speeds of up to twenty knots. The yard’s marketing strategy means that every classic yacht model is matched by a hybrid yacht – but it’s the yard’s hybrid yachts that provide added value in innovation. fabianiyacht.it