In the case of refitting one’s own boat or after buying a boat that needs improvement, due to an accident or simple breakage, it is often necessary to call in a specialised boatyard.
On these occasions I accompany owners towards the feasibility, economic and quality study of the most suitable workmanship, controlling all the steps up to the delivery of the vessel.
The first study that the surveyor will do is to analyse the workmanship. The priority is to establish the extent of the work, its functionality and whether it needs to be carried out, after which the study of materials and related labour is carried out.
Often, the study also guides the choice of the site by analysing the skills on the Italian territory compatible with distances and logistical problems.
After having framed the work and the materials that can be used, we move on to the analysis of both specialised and unskilled labour, to verify that the cost offered by the site is congruous with the market.
Once the study phases have been completed and the shipowner has sent the client to the shipyard, the surveyor or the specialised technicians appointed by him, through a series of scheduled inspections with the shipyard itself, will check the progress of the work and its congruity according to the shipowner’s expectations.
In the most complex cases, the undersigned appraiser usually requests the collaboration of highly specialised and recognised collaborators in the Italian nautical panorama, whether technicians, designers or mechanical workshops.
At the end of the work, comparing the commissioned work specifications, a site completion survey is always carried out.
The document issued by the undersigned appraiser together with the invoices issued by the shipyard make up documentation that the shipowner will keep to demonstrate the goodness and truthfulness of the work carried out; this gives value to the vessel and makes it easier to sell even in the event of structural damage that has been repaired. Last but not least, it makes the boat insurable again in the event that it has suffered an accident that has been compensated for by the insurance company under a comprehensive hull insurance policy (known as “Polizza Corpi”, in italian).
Supervision of work also assists the owner in the case of ordinary maintenance, i.e. even for those simple jobs for which the boat owner is unable to assess the work carried out due to either logistics or timing.