With the ever-growing tech bubble that shapes our modern world comes a whole new scope for weird and wonderful features that make the new age of tenders a sight to behold. Gone are the days when tinted windows or plush seats are enough, it has now become a challenge to produce a tender that is beyond what anyone has seen before, with gadgets that even the wealthiest among us could not imagine. After all, impressing an owner that has seen everything, is no mean feat. The philosophy of a 21^st century custom tender manufacturer is whatever you want, and it is then created. The production boat has its place on many yachts but for owners who want the best there is an increasing emphasis on coming up with personalised individual tenders, often matching the mothership. The mind-set that anything is possible opens an unlimited number of doors and means that although it can be claimed that yachts and tenders have been behind other forms of transport in the technology race, that is not necessarily any longer the case. As this goes to press Superyacht Tenders and Toys have 10 fully custom boats in build for clients, where they have been designed from the ground up to meet the client’s requirements with many features that push the boundaries. With this experience we have put together some of the latest trends and requests for readers interest.

 

When it becomes difficult to think of what can’t be placed in a boat you know you are headed in the right direction. With underwater lights, electric swim ladders and mega sound systems becoming a regular on the spec. sheet, where do you go next? When you sit down in the office one day and start having a joke about what you might want in a tender that then turns into proposal of ideas ranging from wireless kill cords to air-conditioned seating, you start to realise what can be achieved. Matching what can actually be built and be reliable is key here but for the brainstorming there are no stupid idea’s. If an interactive deck head in the cabin of a 40ft Limousine tender doesn’t impress, then it is by no means the bottom of the barrel. As the size of your average superyacht gets larger so does the size of the tenders that service them and this often allows more room for creativity, which there is no shortage of in a world where money is no object. Even, what has become a relatively mundane feature, is now being pimped into something more. The likes of JL and Fusion creating monster speaker systems is now not only a feature in wakeboard boats but can be seen in a variety of custom tenders. One recent project had tower speakers coming up out of the hulls of a catamaran landing craft, which rotated to the beach, so the client could create a DJ booth and entertain guests on the beach for a party!

 

There are also some great features being passed over from homes, offices and cars where there are large R & D budgets to come up with new products and features. Your standard fridge on board a tender is no longer a cooler box in an under-seat locker but can be anything up to a fully stocked interactive wine fridge with media screen, and when coupled with chilled cup holders a cool drink on a hot day is never far away. One current project we even have titanium chilled champagne glasses embossed with the client’s logo as an example.

 

With all of this obviously comes a price tag and considerations into design, fabrication and support of using emerging tech and products. As well as this, as we know, custom has a price tag and thus on the other production or semi-custom tenders we have in build full custom is not appropriate for every client. There is a lot to be said for having proven reliable technology with minimal opportunity for breakdowns and getting this balance is critical.

 

Emerging tech and trends

 

Automatic Volume control – The Boost Box

 

The Boost Box automatically adjusts your stereo volume when pulling riders on wakeboard boats.  When you accelerate to pull a rider, the Boost Box automatically turns your stereo up to compensate for the roar of the engine and the rush of the wind.

 

 

Air-Conditioned Seating

Ventilated seats perform the opposite task of heated seats, providing three levels of cooling, rather than heating. Cool air gently circulates through perforations in the seats, keeping you cool, which is especially nice after the summer sun has been baking those black leather seats. These seats will help adjust your comfort levels quickly, so you get to your next destination without getting overheated.

 

Concept seat design

 

French car seat manufacturer Faurecia has produced a concept design for a state of the art seat. Sensors in the seat detect a driver’s heart rhythms and breathing patterns and the data is used to trigger fans (right) to blow out air and motors to give the occupant a massage. The ‘Active Wellness’ seat has built-in biometric sensors to detect if an occupant is lacking energy or is under stress – and responds by offering a suitable massage and blowing air through its ventilation system.

 

Interior Deck-head Design

 

On previous tender projects, we have used the deck-head and roof as a design feature of the interior of the Limousine. Having an interactive screen on the walls, roof or even floor is a great feature able to change the mood and look of a tender according to the use. You can have rivers running along the floor, mountains on the walls or whatever lighting, including starry skies at night for instance. The only constraint is the designs you want to have.

 

Cup Holders

An emerging application in the automotive industry is the temperature-controlled cup holder. Based on a switch setting, thermoelectric devices will preserve the warmth or chill of a beverage by temperature regulation of the cup holder. Further advantages of thermoelectric in this application include a built-in condensation management system

On previous tender projects we have built in LED lighting into the cup holder which can change colour according to the mood.

 

There are so many options here, that it is hard to quantify these, however some of the ones SYTT have recently been requested to do have included:

 

• Automatic door sensors
• Crew call buttons
• Trackers with monitoring systems for engines/drives and equipment, with a go home function
• Wireless charging in arm rests for phones and tablets
• Hidden cleats, ensuring a 100% flush deck
• Retractable mooring lines on springs built into the side of the boat
• WASSP sonar sea bed sonar with recording function to use when in unknown or uncharted destinations. This remotely records charts from the tender onto the mothership
• Bulletproofing, including lining the hull with Polyethelene and bulletproof glass
• Remote secondary helm for in bullet proof boats to create a citadel when under threat
• Retractable tender chocks, so that the tender can sit on deck without the need to have a separate chock. This also ensures that the tender can sit on any dock for maintenance periods or storage without the need for a cradle
• Wireless kill cords and occupant sensors alerting any man over board instances
• RGB lighting able to be any colour, including running lighting into teak caulking
• Underwater speakers for clients to listen to music underwater

 

 

Superyacht Tenders and Toys lead the way in yacht tender sales, and also project management of tenders in build, and have a wealth of knowledge into the best designers, builders, products and services to suit a clients’ budget and requirements. We are involved in ordering and managing the build process of a wide range of tenders. Whether it is a 16m chase boat, a 10m limousine tender, a classic mahogany tender or a RIB the added value of having a specialist overseeing the build process and quality is a huge benefit to yachts. With the value often so high on custom tenders getting it right first time is very important, knowing where to push the boundaries and not. Whether purchasing just one or multiple custom tenders, using SYTT is a great way to ensure that all tenders exceed expectations and avoid any pitfalls during the build process, backed up by excellent after sales support and warranty handling.