Feadship has completed a major refit in its home base of the Netherlands of the 57.60-metre superyacht W, originally launched as Larisa seven years ago. The refit included new anitfouling, modifications to the interior layout and technical upgrades.
The new livery and antifouling were part of an enormous range of alterations made to W over the past ten months. ‘After buying W in 2019 I set out to not only refit my newly acquired Feadship to my specific requirements but to also renew her in every possible respect while ensuring that she remained 100% a Feadship,’ explains the owner.
The foremost renewal activities included placing a larger Jacuzzi on the sun deck and implementing major modifications to the interior layout. The number of of staterooms available has been increased from four to six, which increases the total persons on board capacity from 22 to 26.
The former VIP stateroom on the lower deck has been converted into two equal-sized guest suites to port and starboard. A double Murphy’s bed has been installed in the bridge deck lounge and the adjacent powder room refitted into a dedicated marble-clad bathroom.
Technical upgrades
On the technical front, the wheelhouse on W has been given a comprehensive upgrade with all-new screens. All on-board lighting has been switched from halogen to LEDs, which necessitated the removal of all ceilings and relaying of all cabling. The AV and IT systems have been renewed and a new sewage treatment unit fitted.
Both MTU main engines have been completely overhauled and all other systems reviewed and modernised where required. Many other smaller maintenance jobs were also catered for, from sprucing up areas of the bridge coloured by the sun to adding new glass inserts to all the interior cupboards.
The project was initially started in Aalsmeer with the dry-docking phase taking place in Makkum. This enabled all the extra work requests from the owner’s team to be fully met without having any impact on other ongoing timetables. After completing post-project sea trials, the yacht was handed back to its owner on Friday 17 July.
Covid challenges
The projected delivery time was extended due to a doubling of the scope of the activities and the need to take the coronavirus into account. The latter did lead to a slight lowering of the work pace as yard shift patterns were staggered to enhance safety, part of a rigorous series of measures implemented across all four Feadship yards in the Netherlands to ensure they continue to operate in a Covid-secure manner.
‘An additional challenge was the need to have travel restrictions lifted before key crew members could rejoin the vessel,’ explains Project Manager Hans van der Wiel. ‘The owner was very impressed with how these unprecedented issues were handled, especially because much of the refit had to proceed with only “remote” consultations possible with his team.’
