Creative Minds: Wesport Shipyards

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[ CREATIVE MINDS: WESTPORT SHIPYARDS ]

SIZE ISN’T EVERYTHING

While the new Westport 35M is only about two meters longer than the yard’s entry-level model, the design comes with big differences

by Diane M. Byrne

Some of the stand-out features of the Westport 35M include a split-level flying bridge (below), which, in combination with the hot tub on centerline, makes foot traffic flow more easily. This more voluminous model shares some styling (right) with the 34M, and of course allows customers full personalization inside (bottom)

There’s an old saying that you shouldn’t mess with success. Westport Shipyards understands this quite well. One big reason: About 70 percent of its customer base is comprised of repeat buyers. Yet another reason: those customers know that their feedback is taken seriously. Not only can they request and receive changes that other semi-custom superyacht builders don’t permit, but also Westport has used some of these requests to create entirely new models. The Westport 35M (also known as the Westport 117), revealed earlier this year, is the latest example. If you’re familiar with the American shipyard’s series builds, then you may remember that the so-called entry-level series is the 34M (also known as the Westport 112). Technically, the new superyacht is just 1.76 meters longer. But, to think of the project in terms of LOA would be a mistake. She has more volume and, even better, more owner- and crew-friendly amenities. It helps to know the history of the 34M to better understand how the 35M came to be. The 34M is Westport’s most successful series to date, with 72 deliveries. Introduced in 1998, the raised-pilothouse yacht has, of course, undergone some styling changes over the years. Not coincidentally, many of those changes were initially individual customer requests. Westport believed more clients would like them, so it decided to make them permanent design updates.

The on-deck master suite (above) and good-size galley (below) will please buyers who like privacy yet also sneaking snacks at midnight

In recent years, though, one particular request kept coming up. “The 112 has been so amazingly successful, but we’ve had people say, ‘Gee, I’d like to have walk-around decks,’” Daryl Wakefield, Westport’s president, explains. The shipyard actually could have retooled the molds to do so, he adds, but it’s a big job. Therefore, it made more sense to design and engineer a new model. Interestingly, it’s become common for superyachts like the long-standing 34M and new 35M not to have

walk-around decks. But, there’s good reason to include them. “Crew always try to be invisible, but it’s challenging on the 112,” Wakefield says, meaning that they have to walk through the saloon to ultimately reach the foredeck. With the new yacht, “We’re trying to improve areas for crew, too.” Crew further have a bosun’s locker beneath the deck the way an even larger Westport, the 38M, does. Additional aspects of the Westport 35M improve life aboard for owners and their guests. Besides the side decks, one of the most readily visible differences is an on-deck master stateroom and four staterooms below decks. This gives customers one stateroom more than the smaller yacht does. The 35M additionally has a dedicated beach club, which the 34M doesn’t have. Plus, the upper deck is more open than it is on the 34M. “There’s a lot in that package,” Wakefield says, referring to the smaller yacht’s flying bridge, “so this has more elbow room.” Indeed. Both models offer a helm, seating, a bar, and tender stowage, but the new project certainly provides a comfortable traffic flow. Buyers who pay close attention to volume will be pleased that it’s “significantly greater” in comparison to the 34M, Wakefield says. Specifically, displacement for the 34M is 125 metric tons. For the new superyacht, it’s 147 metric tons. With inquiries coming in, and at least one customer visiting the yard to learn more, Westport is proving it has a good recipe for success.