As the superyacht control systems company approaches its 10th anniversary, The Islander visits their recently expanded HQ and Superyacht Experience Centre at STP to discover what is next in E-Touch Systems’ evolution.
INTRO /BACKGROUND
From the company’s inception in 2013, E-Touch systems has grown exponentially under the leadership of Managing Director Jamie Brown and his business partner Systems Engineer, David Lambert. Headquartered in the STP Shipyard, E-Touch has grown into a full-service, large yacht systems specialist with across-the-board capabilities and an ever-growing client book. The vision from the outset was to build a company with complete in-house ability to service the ‘four corners of the puzzle’; Electrics; Electronics; AV/IT; and Lighting solutions. As a result, E-Touch Systems, E-Touch Navcom and E-Touch lighting divisions were born. Although slow to start, lighting now makes up 30% of their business. With a knack for smart acquisitions and successful strategic partnerships, they have expanded their remit even further with ‘BigData’. This is a Cisco-certified arm that brings networking, remote monitoring, VOLY accounting and IT support into the E-Touch systems fold.
This year has also seen the launch of the much-awaited E-Touch Academy. This offers in-person, expert-led courses, the first of which took place in January. These cover all aspects of electrical and electronics testing, maintenance and fault finding, to PLC programming & NMEA2000 systems. They have been adeptly designed by two senior engineers with many years of collective experience in building, installing and maintaining superyacht control systems. Held on site at the state-of-the-art E-Touch Superyacht Experience Centre in STP’s Global building, courses are designed primarily for yacht ETO’s, Engineers and 2nd Engineers. They can learn to hone their practical skills and build the confidence needed to accurately fault find on systems aboard large yachts, as well as learning best practices for planned, routine and non-routine tasks. The course content compliments the SV Yacht Engineer syllabus, underpinning and elevating knowledge and skillset in preparation for the next level of SV tickets.
The newly opened E-Touch Superyacht Experience Centre is a one-of-a-kind space. It is, in essence, a superyacht in a room and houses a vast array of demo-ready and working AV/IT, electronic, electric, lighting and voice-controlled systems. It includes a full Boening bridge console and simulator, an E-Touch Systems PMS & Switchboard, Totallux LED flexline lighting system, Mimo Connect 5G dome, Magnus Marine SP1500 200 shore power converter to name just a few. Access to these systems in a learning environment allows the E-Touch Academy students to gain hands-on experience and practical insights from the diverse line-up of systems. This, coupled with expertly designed courses and experienced tutors, enables the Academy to impart vital knowledge that will prove invaluable to yacht engineers of all levels.
The company has gone through rapid, organic expansion in recent years, bringing the E-Touch team numbers to more than 40. They are looking forward to raising a toast to the company’s landmark birthday on Friday 10th of February. The last decade has proven that there is no stopping E-Touch Systems. With more innovation on the horizon in 2023, a bumper order book and Academy places filling up fast, more success is sure to follow for Jamie Brown and his team!
By Lucie Gardiner
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