Article by Chris Clifford
Masters of time
Building on over a century of knowledge of yacht and shipbuilding, ONBOARD talks to Rose Damen about Amels looking to the future. The Amels brand has recently re-emerged, refreshed, inspired and ready to face the future in a new generation that is deeply and powerfully connected to time and the seas
Amels’ new logo is the visual representation of the master yacht builder’s refreshed brand.
It represents waves, the bow, and the multiple decks of an Amels superyacht, always moving forwards – like Amels itself – through past, present, and future.
Like Amels’ iconic superyachts, the logo is inspired by the organic adaptability of nature; to a capacity to respond to new challenges in the environment.
It’s an appropriate statement from a brand whose success is based on the combination of its heritage with innovation to ensure a stable process of continual evolution, adaptation, and progress. Amels prides itself on building on the strong foundation of generations of hard-won knowledge, while simultaneously navigating the ever-changing world in which it exists, in order to thrive. It is this culture, developed and matured over time – and time, Amels says, is a key factor – that has led the brand to where – and what – it is today.
In recent years, there has been a degree of soul-searching taking place at Amels. Changes within the industry, and within the world in general, stimulated the brand to take a look at itself and define its identity, ready to face the future with a renewed confidence.
No stranger to changes
The iconic Dutch superyacht builder, established over a century ago in 1918 as a builder of wooden fishing vessels and steel workboats, is no stranger to changes and has repeatedly demonstrated its ability to move with the times.
Over the years, the company has undertaken numerous significant developments – including its 1970s transition to producing superyachts. Building a name for itself in the international world of luxury yachting, the company went through another important transformation in 1991, when it became a part of the Damen Shipyards Group. This marked a crucial turning point for the yacht builder; from this point on Amels yachts would be built according to Kommer Damen’s revolutionary platform-based shipbuilding philosophy. This gave rise to one of the icons of modern yachting: the Amels Limited Edition.
Since then, the company has gone from strength to strength, designing, building and delivering some of the most renowned superyachts of our times. It’s not in the Amels culture to sit back and settle into a comfortable stability, however. The brand is constantly on the move, evolving, adapting, progressing.
Yachting for the next generation
This restlessness means Amels keeps on searching, relentlessly pursuing excellence. Combining the vision of the world’s best designers, in-house naval engineers, architects, and craftspeople to evolve and develop the next generation of yachts and redefine modern yachting.
With a new generation at the helm, it seemed like a good time to reflect, take stock and position Amels ready for tomorrow’s world, as third generation family member and Managing Director Rose Damen explains. “Our dad took us all over the world. To the most inspiring places. Today, I am proud to follow in his footsteps and continue the journey with Amels, moving from one generation to the next, flowing forward.”
A listening ear
Setting out on its mission to define its place in the yachting world of today and ensure its continued relevancy for tomorrow, Amels took an open approach that typifies its approach and turned a listening ear to those onboard its yachts, gathering their experiences and using the resultant knowledge to power its own evolution. Talking to owners, captains and crews and listening to their insights allows Amels to understand the experience that inspires them. This pushes the brand forwards, helping it to improve and refine its yachts into the perfect escape.
Time is of the essence
What Amels heard when listening to those who sail aboard its luxury yachts, was that time is of the essence. “We live at a moment in history when people have rediscovered the importance of time. Time is a gift, and every moment is precious. People want to share their time with family and friends in the best possible way, making memories that will last a lifetime,” says Rose.
At the most practical level, time is the product of Amels’ building philosophy. Amels Limited Editions yachts are the perfect example. Built on proven platforms, the need for maintenance is reduced to a minimum. And, with yachts built on speculation, delivery is swift. Essentially, the result of this is time gifted to the owner.
Amels’s concept of gifting time to its clients goes beyond rapid delivery of optimal uptime, “We want to offer our clients the opportunity to take time into their own hands and use it in whichever way they want, on their own terms, so that they can enjoy unique experiences that they create themselves. Discovering their yacht, the world and, ultimately, themselves.”
In the spirit of the times
As a family-owned brand, Amels is always looking to the long-term, to securing the future for the next generations. In this, the Amels culture chimes with the spirit of the moment, which places increasing importance on preserving the vitality and beauty of our seas for those who come after us.
Here, Amels’ approach of continually aiming to build better comes to the fore. Amels is committed to evolving its portfolio towards increasing levels of efficiency, exploring new ways to make processes cleaner and yachts greener.
Amels’ research is guided by the principles of the United National Sustainable Development Goals. Additionally, Amels is a partner of the Sea Index, an initiative of the Yacht Club de Monaco and Credit Suisse that is taking on the challenge of transparently measuring the environmental impact of superyachts.
“I am thankful to be able to follow in the footsteps of our predecessors. Of the founders and builders of the first Amels shipyards and yachts. Of my grandfather who founded the Damen Shipyards Group, and of my father who added his own approach and philosophy to further grow Amels’ reputation,” states Rose. “This is the third generation whose turn it is to continue building and to bring our DNA into the future, adding sustainability to our solid basis to ensure the next generation are able to keep on enjoying our beautiful Earth and sustainably sail protected and clean oceans.”
Gazing on the future
This is the thinking behind the latest Amels 60 and 80 metre Limited Editions. These new yachts embody the values of
the renewed Amels brand and have raised the bar, setting new standards, not only in terms of sustainability, but also in style and sophistication. With designs from the renowned Espen Øino, the yachts display a modern elegance fit for the future. Additionally and most importantly, ensuring their ability to stand the tests of time, is the yachts’ use of sustainable hybrid propulsion.
Hybrid by Amels technology enables the yachts to cruise at speeds of up to 7 knots on electrical propulsion. The system draws on multiple sources of energy working together seamlessly throughout a wide operating profile. Onboard this results in exceptionally low noise and vibration, lower fuel, and maintenance costs – and reduced harmful emissions.
This is Amels evolution at work. The new yachts have taken the best of the previous generations, proven on the seas, and handed down through the generations, and added to it the latest in technological advancement – evolving, adapting, progressing.
“Soon I will take my children to explore the oceans and the islands, where they will leave their own footprints in the sand, creating new memories, knowing that the sea will connect us across generations and that the next generation will keep our memories, moving forward in the same way,” Rose concludes.
