Pendennis Worldclass Superyachts
Company History
Over the last 20 years we have established a reputation as a leading manufacturer and refitter of superyachts.
1988 – Start of the company
Pendennis Shipyard was born of a buy out of a local yacht building company by Peter de Savary, which was relocated to Falmouth Docks in 1988. Of the workforce brought over with the company, David Bentley and Peter Wood were to become part of the management team that would ultimately take control of Pendennis, along with Henk Wiekens and Mike Carr, who joined soon after Pendennis began.
1991 – Launch of Taramber and first Adix refit
Pendennis' first contract in 1988 was to build the 125' ketch Taramber. A major refit of the 228' three masted schooner Adix soon followed, establishing Pendennis as a world class yard. Both of these jobs gained awards on their launch in 1991 from ShowBoats magazine, Adix as "Best Refit" and Taramber as "Best Sailing Yacht over 35 metres".
1993 – Management buy out
On May 3rd 1993, the new management team formally took control of the yard and were off to a good start with the contract to rebuild Adela, the classic 170' schooner, which was to become another award-winning job. The addition of a slipway was a turning point for Pendennis, and ultimately made life much simpler.
1998 – Apprenticeship scheme launched
In 1998 the first ten apprentices were taken on by Pendennis in a new scheme developed to produce specialised skilled labourers. The scheme was recently voted Best Large Company Apprenticeships in 2008 by the Learning Skills Council.
1999 – First motor yacht Ilona launched
One significant new build project for the company in 1999 was Ilona, the first luxury motor yacht to be built at Pendennis. The 45m displacement cruising yacht featured a helicopter landing pad with refuelling capability, a fitness centre and a top deck spa bath.
1999 – Lords Media Centre
Our expertise in working aluminium in to curved, non linear forms led Pendennis to be commissioned to create the revolutionary NatWest Media Centre at Lord's cricket ground in London. Winner of numerous awards, the media centre attracted enormous interest in both the national and architectural press.
2004 – Opening of the refit complex
In order to increase the yard's refit capacity, plans were developed to transform the substantial 150m long dock in to two 75m dry docks. In 2004, the new facilities - named "The Terry Vernon Refit Complex" were opened.
2006 – Installation of the travel hoist
In October 2006, the refit complex was completed with the addition of a 400 tonne travel hoist - allowing the yard to physically lift yachts up to 40m in length out of the water and vastly increasing our refit capabilities.
2009 – Launch of MY STEEL
March 2009 saw the launch of the largest privately owned vessel to be built in Cornwall to date. The 55m bespoke exploration yacht STEEL had been in planning at Pendennis for several years, and departed for her maiden voyage escorted by the local RNLI lifeboat and a search and rescue helicopter.
