Rodriquez Quarterly n. 4.pdf - RODRIQUEZ - Cantieri navali

R O D R I Q U E Z Yards
cruising motoryachts. “I got the idea in my
head,” recalls the engineer, “when I was
going back and forth to Ischia on the catamarans.
‘If only we could have space like
there is here,’ I thought to myself. And little
by little I developed the concept of the wide
body, even on relatively small boats.” Thus
in 1991 the 15 meter long Chorum 48 was
launched with a full-beam saloon, compatible
to one found on a 25-meter boat. The
typical fore-aft passageways were moved
to the upper deck and were accessed from
the aft cockpit by two staircases, and led
to the foredeck where the sunning and
anchor handling areas were located. The
profile was kept low, leaving the vessel
with the same height as a traditional flybridge
boat, but with the advantage of a
very spacious interior for a boat of its size.
Among the numerous innovations found
on the Chorum 48 was the retractable passarelle,
now a standard on all boats. This
particularly impressed Giovanni Morace,
the Managing Director of Rodriquez, and
marked the start of a relationship that led
over time to the acquisition of Conam by
Rodriquez Cantieri Navali.
From this early design, which evolved to 54
and then 60 feet and had a production run
of 42 boats to date, the Conam 75 Wide-
Body was developed. “We had already
drawn up a project for a 72-foot boat,”
recalls Cimino, “that contained essentially
the same concepts that we can see today
on the 75-footer. The group’s strength and
synergy allowed us to realize the boat with
a final touch provided by Francesco Paszkowski.”
The incorporation of Conam with Rodriquez
Cantieri Navali has given a major
boost to the Neapolitan yard’s production
capacity. “It’s been a bit like marrying off
a daughter,” explains Cimino, “who is exposed
to new experiences and has to make
the most of her new opportunities. With the
handcraftsmanship-based structure that
we previously had, we had reached our
limits. In the first decade of the yard’s existence
we developed our ideas and in the
second decade we established our yard’s
reputation both at home and abroad. Now
in the third decade, we’re ready to combine
ideas, projects, and technologies by
taking full advantage of the group’s crea-
tivity, engineering skills, and technical and
construction capabilities. This has allowed
us to expand in ways previously unimaginable
but without, however, losing the special
touch of the craftsman that makes one
of our yachts a unique product.”
What’s on Giuseppe Cimino’s drawing
board (or rather, computer screen) today?
“The next project,” predicts the engineer,
“is an open 80-footer, a model that is very
much in demand today and which is derived
from the 75-footer including the full
beam concept. It’s a very original design,
with a sliding glass roof that makes it a
real open boat at any time. Then there’s
a 50- to 55-foot WideBody which is an
important size as it is on the threshold
between the small and large yachts. Then
there are plans, yet to be finalized, for an
extension of the Naples yard that will allow
us to produce twenty boats of up to twenty
meters a year there in addition to the five
or six boats over twenty meters being produced
at Sarzana.”
Why are there so many names of Greek
origin? “I attended a high school specialized
in classical studies,” reveals Cimino,
“and I liked the idea of taking names from
the classic world and combining them with
a modern product.”
A COMPLETE LIST OF CONAM’S MODELS
Year Model built N°
1980−81 Solaria 15
1984 America 30 51
1984−92 Lupo di Mare 36 83
1987−04 Theorema 42/45/46 Sport 42
1989−01 Synthesi 40 48
1991−04 Chorum 48/54/Special/60 WB 42
1996−04 Chrono 52/58 Sport 32
2003−04 75 WideBody 4
20
FACTS & FIGURES
Naples Yard 6.000 sqm (3.000 covered)
Workforce 35
Yearly production (full capacity) 26 boats
Turnover (at full capacity) 25 million Euro