48 JUNE–JULY 2018 | International Boat Industry http://www.ibi-plus.com
Markets & Regions
BOATBUILDERS | AUSTRALIA
In 2014 Grand Banks Yachts Ltd brought Palm
Beach Motor Yacht Co for A$10m and appointed Palm
Beach founder and yachtsman Mark Richards CEO.
The manufacturing facilities of both brands continued
to operate at their respective locations – Grand Banks
in Malaysia and Palm Beach in Australia.STEBER – BIG YEAR
Steber International had a great
2017 – from winning awards to
winning major export contracts,
providing a great kick-start for- Recent awards include the
2017 Australian Commercial Marine
Group Commercial Manufacturer
of the Year Award (AIMEX) and
numerous regional business
export awards. “We are also finalists
in two State export awards, so
we must be doing something
right,” says general manager Alan Steber. “In these
troubling times, clients are looking for a strong, secure
organisation to deal with and our 71-year history
speaks for itself.
“The combination of export inquiries and
quotations and orders, an improving local leisure
market and government contracts, combined with new
innovative projects, is keeping everyone on their toes,”
he says.
Steber’s R&D program is also in full swing, with the
latest Bluebottle USV (unmanned surveillance vessel)
just completing a six-month stint at sea unassisted.
The Bluebottle is being developed under an Australian
Defence Department CTD (capability technology
demonstrator) program with a brief to produce the
world’s first unmanned surface surveillance vessel with
three forms of propulsion to detect
underwater objects. Prototypes
have already received plenty of
interest from overseas governments
and navies at a variety of marine
expos, both in Australia and abroad.
Another project just getting
underway is a hybrid electric/diesel
patrol boat. Projects for 2017-18
include police boats, a 52ft resort
vessel for export, a 60ft fisheries
research vessel for export, five
defence vessels, as well as a variety
of recreational boats.
Steber makes fibreglass commercial and recreational
vessels ranging from 20ft-65ft, offering an almost
endless choice of custom fit-out options. After 71 years
of manufacturing excellence, the Steber name is well
respected in the industry throughout Australia, with
growing recognition across a variety of world markets,
whether it be for commercial fishing, tourist/resort
vessels or just a luxurious recreational vessel.TRAILER BOATS - PRIMED FOR SOLID GAINS IN 2018
THE NICHOLS GROUP
The Nichols Group has been at
the forefront of Australian boating
since Roy Nichols established the
company in 1946. The Cruise Crat
brand was launched in 1960 and the
first fibreglass model came in 1967.
Danny Jordin, marketing
manager for The Nichols Group,
says that through 2016-17 the
company had a successful year with
approximately 15%-20% growth.
“Through the earlier months of
2018 we haven’t experienced great
improvement. However, there are
signs already that things are on the
way up. We also have some exciting
new products which we plan to
release in the second half of 2018
which we’re sure will kick things
along,” says Jordin.
Jordin adds that growth is for the
larger models, especially hardtops,
but remarked that for some time
now they have seen the emergence
of centre consoles from 6m-8m.“Either way, our core focus will
continue to be designing, fine-tuning
and producing premium ofshore
Aussie-built bluewater weapons,”
he says.HAINES SIGNATURE
One of Australia’s most iconic trailer-
boat brands, Haines Signature built
by The Haines Group, had strong
growth in 2017, with the business
growing again by over 8% vs 2016.
“We are already ahead of 2017
this year, so it looks to be another
strong year in 2018,” says Sean
Allen, national marketing manager
Australia/NZ. “Our major markets
are fishing boats. However, although
the sport bowrider market has been
in a down cycle for a few years now,
we are starting to see some growth
again in this segment,” adds Allen.
The Haines Group is also the
Australian importer for Suzuki
outboards and Allen says that in the
outboard business they are seeinglarge horsepower sales growing and
with the new emission regulations
coming into efect next year portable
four-stroke sales are strengthening
while two-stroke sales are weak.TELWATER
Telwater is Australia’s leading and
largest manufacturer of aluminium
boat and trailer packages in the
southern hemisphere. Australian
owned and operated, Telwater
produces up to 30 boats per day and
is supported by around 200 staf.
The privately owned company
specialises in the design and
manufacture of aluminium boat
brands Quintrex, Stacer and Savage.
Telwater is also the Australian
distributor of Evinrude engines.
Since the global financial crisis,
Telwater has expanded its business
horizons, which led to a 30% staf
increase, with Telwater re-employing
staf and hiring new staf to cope
with the business demand.Director of marketing and sales
Damien Duncan says he is pleased
with Telwater’s progress and is
looking forward to an exciting future.
“This year’s boat show season
has been strong for Telwater,
bringing in a mass of orders and
even new dealers, both in Australia
and New Zealand. Victoria, NSW and
Queensland are the strongest states
on the local market, with growing
exports to New Zealand and the
Pacific Islands, especially Noumea
and Tahiti. Exports are very much
driven by the $AUD, so when it’s low
we do well,” says Duncan.
Duncan says the biggest issue
is finding skilled labour to work in
all areas of the business and this is
holding back production. “We could
build more boats and satisfy dealer
demand if we had the staf”.
Located in a prime Gold Coast
location, the company continues
to expand and is looking forward to
another big year.The combination
of export inquiries
and quotations and orders,
an improving local leisure
market and government
contracts keep us
on our toes