164′ Delta marine M/V Helios 3 gets new marine exhaust shrouds

Dolfab Metal Fabricators and Metcalf Marine Exhaust recently collaborated on 164′ Delta marine M/V Helios 3 to conduct much needed repairs to the exhaust system. It was discovered the Helios 3 was suffering from leaks in the exhaust system. The exhaust system on a super yacht like this is truly an enormous, impressive thing. In … Continue reading “164′ Delta marine M/V Helios 3 gets new marine exhaust shrouds”

Dolfab Metal Fabricators and Metcalf Marine Exhaust recently collaborated on 164′ Delta marine M/V Helios 3 to conduct much needed repairs to the exhaust system.

Before
It was discovered the Helios 3 was suffering from leaks in the exhaust system. The exhaust system on a super yacht like this is truly an enormous, impressive thing. In order to be able to access it for diagnosis and conduct necessary repairs, we had to disassemble the system in stages: one whole day and a half was allocated to dismantling it and three days to put it back together.
Upon dismantling the system, the team from Metcalf Marine Exhaust was able to go in and remove the insulation within the exhaust. With the insulation gone, the Metcalf team then conducted several pressure tests in order to locate the leaks. Once the leaks were located, the Dolfab crew was able to go in and make the necessary repairs to the super yacht’s mufflers. After the repairs were complete, Metcalf reapplied insulation and then Dolfab reassembled the entire shroud system, repolishing all of the exterior components as needed to maintain yacht-quality #8 mirror finish. This stage took three days to complete.
After

The result is a like-new, polished marine exhaust that works and is befitting of the Helios 3. Truly a fantastic collaboration between marine repair professionals.

 

Dolfab Metal Fabricators is an expert in yacht repair, yacht refits, boat repairs, custom metal, Coast Guard certified custom fuel tank and fuel tank repair, T-Tops, RV repair, and an absolute expert professional with all metal fabrication. We are based out of Pompano Beach, Florida and service all of South Florida.

Holding Class in the American yachting industry

Holding Class – what does this mean for the American yachting industry? Dolfab Metal Fabricators, part of Doll Marine, recently performed repair work aboard custom charter yacht Kipany, a Class charter boat. Jim explains what it means to hold “Class” and what it means for the yacht owner and for the American marine industry. Watch … Continue reading “Holding Class in the American yachting industry”

Holding Class – what does this mean for the American yachting industry? Dolfab Metal Fabricators, part of Doll Marine, recently performed repair work aboard custom charter yacht Kipany, a Class charter boat. Jim explains what it means to hold “Class” and what it means for the yacht owner and for the American marine industry. Watch the video or read the transcript below.

Here’s the transcript:

The vessel we’re presently working is interesting setup… the keel was set in […] Savannah, GA […] and they set the keel here, and sent the boat, because of cost reasons, to Europe- to Italy and have it outfitted. So this would enable them o have an American keel, which they were able to hold and keep class.

Class meaning that there’s are different sanctions through the government states that a keel must be set in this country if you’re going to use it for charter in these waters; they want to make sure that it’s an American boat. That way it protects the American industry… you know… “Built in the USA” still has some credence -and it has for a long time- in the marine industry. So it’s a whole different maritime law and sanctions and rules that are governed for the uh, fabrication and the design a lot of the [yacht] repair.

There’s different classifications. Some charter boats are classed out for the Coast Guard, and (like a T-Boat status) there’s different classifications on the amount of people they will allow on the vessel due to the stability of the vessel. So there’s governed and sanctioned and under inspection from the Coast Guard. Another one is American Bureau of Shipping, or ABS, also has a classification. There’s also Lloyds of London, or Lloyd Specs, which is the European class.

With the ABS, the American Bureau of Shipping, they have their own criteria and standards to work from in from the welding. The welders have to be certified by ABS has to be approved and inspected- and as far as the electrical work, all the mechanical work, everybody there has to be ABS certified… and the material they use… the mills that we get the material from… the alloy, the aluminum, and the stainless… anything we use on the boat has to be- have record and classification, it be from a certified mill, from-sanctioned from the American Bureau of Shipping.

So it does cost a little more, in the initial, but in the long run it-it really protect the owner of the vessel; it gives them a good quality product with good common sense fabrication… things that, you know, would normally maybe get overlooked in running a boat building business, this way everybody knows that somebody’s watching over it. It’s like a watchdog.

 

Yacht repair highlight: New transmission mounts for Troy

Superyacht Repair highlight: 90′ Maiora S/Y Troy is getting new transmission mounts courtesy of Dolfab, Inc. In this video, Jim Doll explains the importance of a properly aligned transmission in superyacht applications. Troy’s transmission was misaligned after a series of events, and the shafts snapped. Listen to how it all happened:     S/Y Troy … Continue reading “Yacht repair highlight: New transmission mounts for Troy”

Superyacht Repair highlight: 90′ Maiora S/Y Troy is getting new transmission mounts courtesy of Dolfab, Inc.

In this video, Jim Doll explains the importance of a properly aligned transmission in superyacht applications. Troy’s transmission was misaligned after a series of events, and the shafts snapped. Listen to how it all happened:

 

 

S/Y Troy has been undergoing these yacht repairs for a few weeks now, as repairs conducted on superyachts are usually extensive and require vast amounts of knowledge and refined expertise.

 

Dolfab Metal Fabricators (part of Doll Marine) is well experienced in performing and managing super yacht refit projects from start to finish servicing all of Fort Lauderdale and parts of Palm Beach, Florida. Follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn to see updates from this and all our other projects.

 

 

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Are you in love with your yacht? When a yacht refit makes sense and how to choose a refitter

Yacht owners: If you’ve owned your yacht for any length of time you may find yourself at a crossroads of whether or not it’s time to start shopping for a new yacht or make necessary repairs to your existing vessel. It’s likely you have been on many memorable trips with friends and family that have … Continue reading “Are you in love with your yacht? When a yacht refit makes sense and how to choose a refitter”

Yacht owners: If you’ve owned your yacht for any length of time you may find yourself at a crossroads of whether or not it’s time to start shopping for a new yacht or make necessary repairs to your existing vessel. It’s likely you have been on many memorable trips with friends and family that have built lasting memories. When does it make sense to do a yacht refit? How do you go about choosing the right yacht refitter to do the job?

 

There are many things to take into consideration. Most newer yachts are loaded with new technology and systems. While these are great selling points, are these new systems in your best interests? The answer is not so simple. Most of the time a yacht owner or crew members know every inch of you vessel. When presented with a new yacht with new technologies they will find new issues will not be as easily rectified because of lack of knowledge, which can be costly and can certainly rack up lay days at the shipyard while your crew and or contractors learn on your dollar. This is where keeping and refitting you older vessel will be more cost effective in the long run.

 

When weighing the pros and cons of purchasing a new vessel or moving forward with a refit you’ll have to do the math. Here is an outline to help you get started.

 

1. Cost: Is your vessel beyond repair? If not, can you afford a refit? A yacht refit can consist of many different variables that may be hidden beneath the superstructure of your yacht.

There may be things happening below the surface that may be missed or will pop up while in the middle of a large refit, so it’s important to choose the right refitter. That leads to part two…

2. Estimates:  When choosing the right yacht refitter, it doesn’t hurt to scour the internet looking for reviews of contractors. But your search will not end there! It’s important to get several estimates. The best estimate is not always the cheapest or most cost-effective. A bad refit can certainly cost more in the long run.

3. Planning: Choose a company that can build an estimate by planning the refit from prior refits along with experience. This is a crucial step in the process.

4. Skills:  The right yacht refitter will specialize in what they do. Many refit yards hire different sub-contractors that bid on the job, and not to anyone’s surprise the job will go to the lowest bidder. That being said, YOU as the owner of you vessel should have some influence on who is performing your yacht refit. You should be able to feel comfortable with the refitter and not wonder about the final outcome.

5. Job Timeline: Having a good estimated timeline of when your refit will be finished is a good indicator of the quality of the contractor you’re hired. if your contractor cannot give you a timeline, this might be an indicator that they are not the right contractor for the job.

Choosing a company such as Dolfab will ensure that all the steps above are covered. We will walk you through your job from the very inception and do our very best to ensure all issues (obvious and hidden) will be taken into consideration.  From the very beginning, we can even video document the entire refit job so there will be no questions that cannot be answered at the time of Commissioning.

Since 1984 Dolfab, Inc.  has provided quality work held to the highest standards ensuring your beloved yacht will continue to make memories for you and your family.