United Kingdom

VT Flagship

VT Flagship’s training facility proved one of the highlights on the UK Trade and Industry (UKTI) Superyacht Tour of Excellence. Industry experts from around the world were shown the state-of-the art Fire Fighting Training Unit (FFTU) at HMS Excellent by Sir Tim McClement, who heads up VT Flagship’s superyacht training capability. Similar events have resulted in million of pounds of business being generated for UK marine companies. <img alt="" src="https://syt-store-production.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/photo/127401/image/large-716687ff4073cb51f62018d210dd3889.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/127401">Tour delegates were able to see firsthand how the custom built FFTU facilities are used within the programmes, designed to RN standards and delivered by VT Flagship. These programmes have been developed to encompass the entire spectrum of superyacht crew requirements; from medical care and interior, navigation and engineering to the full range of safety and some specialist training, such as Ship Security Officer (SSO) and Company Security Officer (CSO). Said Sir Tim: “This high profile event provided an ideal opportunity to showcase our training programmes, as well as network with industry experts. Our programmes are specifically tailored to meet the needs of both individual and whole-crew training; this month we launched the Client Representative Masterclass following the great feedback from the pilot course we ran.” The UKTI Superyacht Tour of Excellence took place between March 17th– 20th March 2009, involving site visits, networking events and exhibitions to showcase the UK Marine industry. Tour delegates include yacht management companies, project managers, yards, brokers and designers from countries including Finland, Slovakia, China and Monaco. Said Tom Chant, International Development Manager for the BMF and Superyacht UK: “Now in its sixth year, the Tour is an excellent tool for building international relationships and has allowed Superyacht UK to promote British excellence to an extensive and growing network of delegates.” VT Flagship <a target="_blank" href="http://www.vtplc.com/flagship">www.vtplc.com/flagship</a>

VT Flagship hosts superyacht industry experts

The Flagship Superyacht Academy, which is now known as VT Flagship, has today announced the latest addition to its range of superyacht-specific training programmes. The new eight-day Client Representative Masterclass is designed to equip attendees with the necessary skills to effectively manage a new-build project in a large yacht environment. Says VT Flagship’s Sir Tim McClement; “The new Masterclass has been designed by VT Flagship, building on an idea originally conceived by SYBAss, the Superyacht Builders Association." In February we ran a pilot Masterclass with 16 experienced ‘students’ drawn from the superyacht community (including yacht builders, management companies, maritime lawyers, an experienced Captain/Client's Representative and a representative from SYBAss). For 80% of the day the delegates were 'students' and for the remainder they provided valuable feedback which has helped to further refine the Masterclass to meet the needs of this specialised and demanding role. One of the pilot Masterclass attendees, a seasoned Client Representative with experience of eight new-builds, commented; “If I had done the Masterclass before my first build, I would have saved myself months of effort and my client hundreds of thousands of euros.” Each Masterclass pools the knowledge and expertise of 11 industry specialists, including experienced VT Flagship Instructors, Classification and Flag-State Officials, Yacht Managers, Brokers, Builders, Clients’ Representatives, Lawyers, Project Managers, Captains and Engineers. Delegates will benefit from ‘university style’ tutorials with these experts, plus open forum discussions and structured case studies. Adds Tim McClement; “Whilst we may have a new name - VT Flagship - our training will continue to be delivered to the same high standard that our customers have come to expect. The first Masterclass will take place in May 2009 and with only 15 places available, we’re expecting interest levels to be high.” VT Flagship +44 (0)2392 339149 <a href="mailto:superyacht.enquiries@vtplc.com?subject=Client%20Representative%20Masterclass%20%28SuperYachtTimes.com%29">superyacht.enquiries@vtplc.com</a> <a target="_blank" href="http://www.vtflagship.co.uk/superyachttraining">www.vtflagship.co.uk/superyachttraining</a>

VT Flagship announces Client Representative Masterclass

How many times has a large yacht build project ended in dispute, over budget and under-expectation? One way to help prevent this is for the Client Representative to gain prior knowledge of the essential aspects of the build process. That is exactly what Flagship Superyacht Academy’s new Masterclass will do. “If I had done this course before my first build I would have saved myself months of effort and my client hundreds of thousands of Euros, not to mention saving everyone involved a lot of angst”, says an experienced Client Representative of 8 new-build projects. The Client Representative Masterclass, designed by Flagship Superyacht Academy in conjunction with a group of industry experts (Classification and Flag-State Officials, Yacht Managers, Clients Representatives, Lawyers, Project Managers, Captains and Engineers) was originally conceived by SYBAss (Superyacht Builders Association). There are only 15 places available on each course and following recent interest it’s advised to book early. The Masterclass will prepare delegates, as Client Representatives acting on behalf of the Principal, for the requirement to manage the relationships, trade-offs and conflicts generated within a construction project, together with testing, introduction to service and warranty issues that arise. The Masterclass structure will take a ‘university’ style, with tutorial rather than lecture sessions to encourage interaction and knowledge sharing within the group. There will be structured case studies designed to strengthen and hone candidate’s abilities and thought processes. On completion delegates will have both a reinforced expanded knowledge of the build process with a heightened awareness of their own capabilities, strengths and weaknesses. On a practical note, they will be given a Certificate of Attendance and a Masterclass booklet which will include a matrix of useful references and contacts to enable them to carry out their task successfully, make better decisions and where necessary, seek the right advice. For details of the Masterclass contact Flagship Superyacht Academy. Flagship Superyacht Academy Nick Hart +44 (0) 2392 339285 <a href="mailto:nick.hart@vtplc.com?subject=Client%20Representative%20Course%20%28SuperYachtTimes.com%29">nick.hart@vtplc.com</a> <a target="_blank" href="http://www.fsya.co.uk">www.fsya.co.uk</a>

New client representative Masterclass from Flagship Superyacht Academy

A great time was had by all at bar ‘Tender To…’ on the Friday evening of the 2008 Monaco Yacht Show. Flagship Superyacht Academy (FSYA) entertained crew, captains, journalists, managers, brokers and builders to celebrate the launch of their bespoke whole crew STEP training programmes. STEP (short for Safety, Training and Emergency Procedures) programmes have been designed to help train an entire crew or department. <img alt="" src="https://syt-store-production.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/photo/125785/image/large-7b26911182cdd334c7f39c2da226031d.jpg" data-gid="gid://syiq/Photo/125785">Sir Tim McClement, Managing Director of the Academy said; “Our function is to assist a yacht Captain in training his or her crew. We aim to act as a catalyst for change and improvement drawing on many years of Royal Navy safety, planning and lessons learned within the maritime safety sector. This launch is a great opportunity to get people together with the common goal of improving safety and quality of service at sea” The highlight of the launch was the presentation of a Salmanazar of champagne (that’s 9 litres or 16 pints of champagne!) to the party attendee who recorded the highest number of STEPs on their FSYA pedometer, sent to them several months ago. The winner, with an incredible 97,000 plus STEPs was Jenny Shillitoe, Stewardess from S/Y Drumfire. For further information on the right STEP Programme for your yacht, visit <a target="_blank" href="http://www.fsya.co.uk/step">www.fsya.co.uk/step</a>

Flagship Superyacht Academy launches STEP crew training programmes

Flagship Superyacht Academy will officially launch their whole crew training STEP programmes at the 2008 Monaco Boat Show. STEP (short for Safety, Training and Emergency Procedures) programmes enable a yacht in build, refit, already delivered or simply experiencing large crew turnover to enhance crew teamwork in every element of their onboard safety. Programmes allow for training in state of the art Royal Navy simulators based in the UK, or equally may be delivered on board a yacht, anywhere in the world. As a bespoke course every STEP programme is different, taking into account the combined experience of crew members and the layout of each individual yacht. To find out more about a bespoke STEP programme from Flagship Superyacht Academy visit <a target="_blank" href="http://www.fsya.co.uk/step">www.fsya.co.uk/step</a>, or meet them at the Monaco Yacht Show in the Superyacht UK pavilion (T Central Pontoon) September 24th -27th.

STEP on board with Flagship Superyacht Academy

Flagship is delighted to announce the appointment of Sir Tim McClement as Managing Director of their new Superyacht Academy. The Superyacht Academy represents an exciting new venture for Flagship into the Superyacht crew training and placement market. Prior to joining Flagship Tim held a number of senior posts in the Royal Navy. His last appointment before retiring was as Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet, where he was responsible for delivering a £2.1 billion annual budget, with assets of £17 billion and employing 30,000 people. Since leaving the Navy in 2006, he has worked as an independent consultant at Board level, delivering strategic planning, risk management, leadership, and management training and acting as a Professional Coach to Senior Executives. Tim is also a Non Executive Director for Subsea Resources, an AIM listed deep-sea salvage company. Tim’s experience, enthusiasm and drive are ideally suited to this new enterprise. Offering yacht owners, brokers and builders an exciting new service aimed at addressing the gap in the market for well-trained, quality crew to man today’s and tomorrow’s new yachts. Our Superyacht Academy aims to play a significant role in sourcing and training the crews that the Superyachts’ sector needs. This is estimated at 3,000 additional crew this year and even larger numbers in the future. With our successful partnering arrangement with the Royal Navy, and their reputation for maritime training excellence, we are expecting significant interest in our new capability. Accredited training programmes will encompass the entire spectrum of crew requirements; from medical care and stewarding, navigation and engineering, to the full range of safety and specialist training, such as aviation and security. What we offer, that no one else does, is ‘whole crew training’; where we will assist the Captain of a Superyacht to train his people together, making them a more effective and safer crew. Says Dave Mitchard, Flagship’s Managing Director; ‘I am delighted that Tim has joined Flagship to lead this exciting new venture. Adding Tim’s experience, knowledge and contacts to Flagship’s current capabilities means that we will be extremely well placed to service this rapidly expanding market’s personnel needs. ‘Tim’s first task will be to launch our new service in September at the prestigious Monaco Yacht Show.’ <noscript></noscript>