ONBOARD Magazine spring 2024

YACHT MANAGEMENT
OCEAN DRIVE
Time on your yacht is precious, so why spend it worrying
about the meticulous management of your yacht’s minute
details? At Ocean Drive, they recognise that yacht ownership
is an investment, and they are committed to ensuring you
get the utmost value from your investment. They provide
comprehensive support encompassing maintenance, refits,
budgeting, accounting, registration, insurance, and compliance
with maritime regulations. Additionally, they excel in crew
management and offer top-notch charter services.
For further details Tel: +33 (0)4 93 63 16 71
or visit www.oceandrive.fr
WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?
JMS has one of the most competent teams in the industry.
It is independent and not linked to sales or brokerage and has
locations in the UK, Palma, Monaco and Florida.
LaMotte cites the company’s experience, knowledge (the company
has built 110 yachts) and, like JMS, independence - unaligned an
unassociated with any other firm that might create a conflict of
interest. “Also,” he says, “We understand that the best results
are achieved when we work as a team – owner, captain, MCM –
not driving a wedge between the parties.”
Ocean Drive on the other hand prefers to cover all the aspects of
the yachting business including sales, brokerage, management &
charters. Says Walia, “We take great pride in delivering customised
and personalised services to our clients. As a boutique family
office situated at Port Camille Rayon, we value the personal touch.
We invest ample time in comprehensively understanding needs,
expectations, and circumstances, ensuring that we safeguard
owner interests at every turn.”
“New people to yachting should be made aware that captains and
crew ought to be able to look after their vessels and operate them
and manage them on board themselves but there is absolutely no
substitute for having someone to call when something is broken,
there’s been a problem, or you are planning a large maintenance
Very clear visibility of what is being
charged, what are the extras, why are they
being charged and avoiding unquoted big
jobs. That’s how we add value.
period and you are still trying to maintain a summer standard’s
crew,” says Andreason. “Having someone at the end of the
phone, having a support team to prepare for the shipyard or the
big refit. People with financial oversight to work with the family
office, it’s the essential part of what we do in management.”
TIME OUT
Yacht refits are an important element of the yacht manager’s remit
and each of them has their own criteria on matching the right
shipyard for the job. Jansen considers location, availability, price,
time and quality. Experience and reputation are also important.
MCM also takes into account previous experience and reviews of
trusted colleagues. “Yards differ in their core areas of expertise,
so choosing one most appropriate for the intended scope of work
is key,” explains LaMotte. “When working with a yard for the
first time, we look for strong communication skills from the point
of contact that we will be dealing with. That way, expectations
are set from the outset. Contractual structures and pricing
naturally need to be clearly considered and compared.”
“As well as the above we also evaluate the facilities and capabilities
to ensure they align with the specific requirements of a refit,”
says Walia.
“Availability is an obvious one and not that easy,” says Andreason;
“You need a yard with whom you can engage ahead of time
and look at a very clear pricing structure in order to present
something that is at least within some percentage points of
what will actually happen. We understand overrun in areas but
need to control this carefully. I think that is very important.
Very clear visibility of what is being charged, what are extras,
avoiding unquoted big jobs. That’s how we add value.”
ONBOARD | SPRING 2024 | 145