One of the pleasures that a buyer of a new Nordhavn can enjoy is a visit to the factory which builds their boat. While most of the Nordhavn buyers see their new boat for the first time when it arrives for commissioning, some do elect to make the trip to our Taiwan or China factories. There, they can see and meet the dedicated craftsmen, engineers, managers and staff who put in the thousands of hours of labor required to build these lovely vessels. The sights, sounds and smells of the busy factory environment are pure delight to a true boat lover. Nothing is more satisfying than watching a skilled carpenter at his craft or observing the FRP lamination of a massive Nordhavn hull and realizing that it will probably be in existence for the next 100 years or more.
The week of November 15-19, 2004 has been hectic, fun, exciting and productive, as a steady stream of Nordhavn buyers have been visiting our Ta Shing factory in Tainan, Taiwan. PAE staff members were scheduled to be here for the launching and sea trials of Nordhavn 72, hull #2. This prompted several of the N72 buyers to visit for an inspection which then prompted several more PAE staff to come to meet them which resulted in…. well before we knew it, we had a party!
VIP Nordhavn buyers visiting this week are: Ken and Toni Coffer. Ken and Toni are Captains and represent the owners of N72 #2, Dudley and Adie Coy. This is the Coys’ second Nordhavn. Their first was a Nordhavn 50 that eventually participated in the NAR with its new owners.
Canadians Bob and Diane Conconi, buyers of N72 #3. Bob and Diane’s previous boat was Nordhavn 62 #16 Aurora.
Dave and Meta McDowell, buyers of N72 #4. Dave and Meta have had two previous Nordhavns (both Nordhavn 62s).
Australians Michael and Mariam Lasky, buyers of N72 #5 together with their captain Paul McBean. The Laskys previous boat was Nordhavn 57 #12.
Australian Geoff McGeary, buyer of N72 #8. Geoff’s previous (actually his present boat) is Nordhavn 57 #17.
PAE employees present are:
Project manager Trever Smith
Project manager Justin Zumwalt
Electrical engineer Mickey Smith
Naval architect and PAE owner Jeff Leishman
Jeff’s lovely wife of 20 years, Nancy Leishman
PAE president and owner Dan Streech