In order to offer sales prices that are equal or even less than those asked for by other market players in Northern Europe, Dörries Yachts decided to reduce general costs, in particular caused by administration and sales, without adverse effects on quality and delivery times. With this in mind, we further developed a business model that we call the “Shipyard on demand”.
Shipyard on demand means that we do not have our own facilities and, apart from a core team, we do not employ permanent staff. As a result, we have to allocate only reasonably low general costs. Possible capacity constraints are met by collaborating with a consortium of experienced German and Dutch companies actively engaged in the yacht market.
Low general costs and moderate profit rates combined with performance based workflows, professional project management and passionate stakeholders enable Dörries Yachts to offer luxury motor yachts “made in Germany” at very competitive sales prices.
More than twenty years ago, Werner Dörries founded an engineering office in Bremen, Germany. Whilst initially busy with marine supervision, quantity and quality control and related matters, the focus shifted to technical and planning-related services, primarily for the super yacht industry. As business expanded, Werner Dörries created Dörries Maritime Services GmbH in 2009, which was later converted to a GmbH & Co. KG (DMS).
Today, acting in a network of expert companies, DMS offers consultancy services in relation to the refit, conversion and new construction of luxury motor yachts. DMS recently co-managed the new-building project of an 82-metre motor yacht, today known as “Graceful”, and from autumn 2013 until summer of 2014, DMS managed the refit of a large motor yacht (name withheld due to legal reasons).
It was in spring 2013 when the decision was taken to create an own yacht brand and the foundations for Dörries Yachts GmbH, as a spin-off of Dörries Maritime Services GmbH & Co. KG, were laid. Today, both companies co-exist in the yacht market, offering different services.
Upon signing of a construction agreement, we expect the buyer to open an irrevocable letter of credit for 20% of the contract sum in our favour, instead of an advance instalment payment. Such letter of credit shall serve as security for any costs incurred by us in case of breach and/or termination of the construction agreement by the buyer and the final instalment payment due upon delivery of the yacht.
We further expect the buyer to pay the remaining contract sum of 80% in as many as twenty instalments starting from the date of fabrication commencement (start of flame-cutting), i.e. about nine months after the construction agreement entered into force.
As soon as reasonably possible, we will register the yacht as “vessel under construction”, and we will secure the instalment payments by the buyer either by bank guarantees or by transfer of title to the “vessel under construction”.
Upon delivery of the yacht, we will provide the buyer with security for warranty claims in the amount equal to 2.5% of the contract sum, in the form of a warranty bond or a bank guarantee with a maximum term of 2 years.
We conduct the conceptual engineering design and project management exclusively with own experienced personnel, in the latter case organized in dedicated cross-functional project management teams. Apart from these specific tasks and duties, we buy in all other services and supplies from a group of highly qualified companies, which are also regularly engaged by other German yacht builders as, for example, LÜRSSEN, ABEKING & RASMUSSEN and Blohm + Voss.
We pre-fabricate and assemble the hull as well as the superstructure in dedicated “dirty” shipbuilding halls, and, after completion of all major hot works, we move the rough hull into the “clean” outfitting hall, where it stays for outfitting until launching. After having launched the yacht, we conduct harbour acceptance tests at the outfitting pier, close to the outfitting hall, followed by sea acceptance tests, remedial works, and the delivery of the yacht to the owner.
For purely cost reasons, we do not own facilities like all well-known yacht builders in Germany, but, through our network of companies, we managed to secure access to comparable building halls and floating docks in Bremerhaven, Germany.
All these facilities are located in a lock port, whereby we avoid the tide impairing harbour tests or other completion works on board the yacht moored at the outfitting pier.
The largest building hall we have access to in Bremerhaven, is about 160 metres long and 30 metres wide and provides a height of 30 metres beneath the crane hooks.
The hall as well as the pier in front of it, are equipped with a heavy-load track system whereby we can move up to 110-metre motor yachts ashore and onto a special pontoon for launching.
In reliance upon the quality of our services and supplies and, of course, those of our contractors, we offer a twenty-four months warranty period starting from the date of delivery of the yacht. With regard to the hull structure, we offer even a warranty period of sixty months from the date of delivery. During the first three months after the delivery date, the project manager will be in charge of warranty claims, jointly with a dedicated after-sales engineer, who will be solely responsible after the three months period until the end of the warranty period.
© 2016 Dörries Yachts · Uthoffstraße 14-16 · D 28757 Bremen/Germany · Phone +49 421 0689 98-13 · This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. · www.dorriesyachts.com
