What started out as an ambitious project to build a 28m aluminium yacht by a group of New Zealand boat builders in the early 1980s led to the creation of Alloy Yachts just two years later. During the 1980s, a 12-13m yacht was considered large by New Zealand standards where the focus was on light displacement, relatively austere, high performance sailing yachts. The use of aluminium for the 28m Chanel (right) and the greater attention to the owners desired luxurious finish created a new level of skill and performance amongst the local boat builders involved. With the next project the tender launch for the 1987 New Zealand Americas Cup challenge the foundations for todays highly-rated aluminium superyacht building team were laid.

Many people involved in those first two projects remain as key members of the Alloy Yachts team, including Tony Hambrook who joined the company as production manager and was asked to take over as managing director in 1990. Through the 90s Tony led the team through a period of massive expansion. A series of innovative developments in technology and engineering moved the company up the hierarchy of the worlds superyacht builders. Several yachts mark the advances achieved by the Alloy Yachts team, including the completion of their first yacht over 100ft in length in 1991. With the first carbon-fibre mast and an efficient fully-battened mainsail, 32.6m Esprit featured the transfer of technology from Americas Cup design into the superyacht cruising domain.

For more information, please visit http://www.alloyyachts.com