Vicem, The Yacht for Yachtsmen

Vicem Yachts started in 1991 and after more than 20 years and 150 yachts produced become one of Turkey’s largest and most respected producers of classic style luxury motor yachts.

Every piece aboard a Vicem is made and installed by hand – from building the layered mahogany-epoxy composite hull, to carving the furniture. Vicem is highly regarded in yachting circles because of his magnetic down east style and for the outstanding quality of the company’s handcrafted construction process.

Since the beginning, Vicem Yachts mission is based on three company core values: total customization, timeless design and impeccable craftsmanship quality

Vicem Yachts headquartered in Istanbul, employs almost 400 staff in 3 manufacturing facilities – 1 in Tuzla and 2 in Antalya  – covering a total surface of 550.000 sq ft (50.000 sq mt). Worldwide operations are lead through an international brokers network coordinated by Vicem of America (Fort Lauderdale), Vicem of Europe (La Spezia) and Vicem of Asia Pacific (Australia). Unless Vicem Yachts carry on 3 millenniums of Turkish nautical tradition and heritage, innovation is infused in every single piece of the yacht. In fact, Vicem Engineering Department can count on 15 professionals – Naval Architects, Marine Engineers and Designers – last generation CFD software and collaborations with the most prestigious design firms like Frank Mulder, Art Line and Wetzels&Brown.

Vintage Line

Vicem Vintage line (classic/flybridge 52’ to 75’ – cruiser 78 & 92) is built using the cold molded process. This millenary, unique construction technique is different from any traditional craft building as it is based on engineered wood construction which uses laminated mahogany coming from managed forests and a specific formulated epoxy resin to form the hull, decks and principal structures of each yacht. This results in a stronger, quieter and smoother vessel with a natural insulation from humidity and noise.

Vision Line

Starting from the 2009, Vicem Yachts extended his production to mega-yacht range, introducing the new Vision Line with 46m & 35m tri-deck and 32m RPH, currently under construction.

The Cold-Molded construction

Vicem is highly regarded in yachting circles for its magnetic down-east style, the outstanding quality of the company’s handcrafted construction process, their utmost attention to detail and quality, and the highest reputation in cold-molded construction, the ancient art of building a wooden boat.

…A bit of history

In Anatolian Turkey, the tradition of building wooden boats is as old as Noah’s Ark. The ease of shaping wood, combined with its stiffness and durability, made it an excellent choice for building fishing, trading and naval vessels. In fact, it is not surprising that the world’s largest ancient port, Theodosios, was uncovered in Istanbul during a subway excavation a few years ago. Astonishingly, a total of 24 trading vessels dating back 1,500 years were found almost intact, preserved in silt and mud, proving wood’s durability and resilience.

….The Cold-Molded Methodology in details

Recognizing wood’s superior qualities and honoring the millenary tradition of wood working craftsmanship in Turkey, Vicem proudly continues to utilize traditional boat building method but with a contemporary twist. All the Vicem Vintage Line yachts – which includes Classic, Fly bridge, Cruiser and Bahama Bay lines – are built with the Cold-Molded process. This operation simply involves layers of thin veneers, oriented at different angles, to be glued up over a mold. The glue in this case is a specially formulated epoxy resin. The marriage of engineered wood with formulated resins yields a hull that is much lighter, much stronger and more durable than a traditionally built boat.

There are two basic reasons for this:

1) Wood is a very strong material. However, this strength is unidirectional, meaning you can easily bend the wood in one direction but it would break if you try to bend it in the other direction. Binding together several layers of wood at 90 degree angles makes the hull much stronger in resisting the complex set of forces that effect vessels in a seaway.

2) Preventing the hull from absorbing more moisture than ideal is crucial in a wooden boat. Many woods are two or even three times stronger when dry than they are when saturated with moisture. The cold molding system aims to keep the wood dry. The epoxy soaks deep into the wood, sealing it off from moisture and oxygen. Keeping the water out means no swelling, and no rotting. The glued joints are firmly bonded for long periods of time.
Through this method, the hull skin is built upon a wood frame in four directional layers of African or South American Mahogany (Sapele) composite planking.  Every piece of wood in the Vicem Yachts hull structure is coated with epoxy formulated for cold-molded construction.

…The work

The first layer (-45º) is fastened to the frames, keel, chine strake and sheer strake with galvanized nails and saturated with epoxy; the second layer (+45º) and third layer (90º) are fastened and bonded with epoxy and stainless steel staples, while the fourth layer (0º) is fastened via epoxy and stainless steel strapped staples that are then removed, leaving behind a smooth hull with no visible markings.

For larger, heavier yachts, an additional inner layer of edge-fastened strip planking mechanically locked together in a bead and cove fashion, with two outer layers of diagonally fastened mahogany planking, is required. Both methods have mahogany laminated internal structural members for the keel, chine, sheer and beams.

The final structural construction step requires coating the entire bilge area, engine room and exterior of the hull with 10-oz. “E-glass” cloth, epoxy resin and a polyurethane paint system. The exterior of the hull is finished on top of the “E-glass” by multiple steps of long boarding, epoxy fairing compounds, epoxy primers and polyurethane paint to achieve a mirror-like finish.

The result of this labor intensive, time consuming and meticulous work is a masterpiece called Vicem Yacht. It has all the advantages of a laminated wood hull, such as natural insulating properties for sound and humidity. It is also stronger than standard fiberglass and traditionally built wooden yachts. This yacht provides a smoother, more comfortable ride than any other materials and production techniques.

Alberto Perrone da Zara – Vicem Yachts CEO since October 2009 – declares: “Vicem Yachts is a shipyard with a precise mission: to blend a millenary tradition with the most advanced technology to satisfy a worldwide clientele of “happy few”. My role will be to consolidate organization and quality processes, to launch new lines of products and to expand operations approaching new markets and new segments of clients”. Vicem, The Yacht for Yachtsmen.

Vicem Yachts Headquarters
Organize Deri Sanayi 10. Yol I1 Parsel 34957 Tuzla – Instanbul – Turkey
Phone +90 216 394 0450 – Fax +90 216 394 0204 – info@vicemyacht.com

Vicem Yachts – USA

1535 SE 17th Street the Quay – Suite B-109 Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33316
Phone +1 954 713 0737 – Fax +1 954 713 1499 – sales@vicemyacht.com

http://www.vicemyacht.com/

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