|
|
Built in Argentina
 In 2008 Antares Yachts moved the manufacturing facility from Whitby, Canada to Argentina. There were a number of factors that directed this move to Buenos Aires.
|
Link here to view video of Buenos Aires & the Antares factory
|
|
| |
Key People
There is no question - we would have moved the facility anywhere in the world for the right key individuals, and we found them in Argentina. The first and foremost deciding factor was the caliber of these individuals who were more than competent in managing the facility and the building process. These people would coordinate with us to resume building the Antares to the same degree of fit and finish as in Canada.
|
|
| |
 Guillermo “Memo” Castro has managed his own established boatyard in the past and by the age of 50 has spent a lifetime as a professional sailor, both as crewmember and skipper. Memo’s career includes intensive training with North Sails Argentina, where he later set up a new Rigging and Deck Handling Management division. In this role he advised on and set up ideal rigging and deck hardware, working with leading brands such as Lewmar, Sparkraft and others.
Memo gained building experience by managing the refurbishment and construction projects of a number of cruising and racing yachts and has worked with all available materials including carbon fibre, FRP, wood and steel. Today, Memo oversees the operations and has to date managed the production of the Open 30 sailboat with an innovative moving keel, the Milonga 35 – a tender designed by German Frers, and a 42-foot classic Marco Polo trawler.
Some of the other custom boats Memo built were:
 Nabuco 40’, PRFV, racing yacht by G. Frers, 1991- Salvador 44’, PRFV, cruising yacht, In house design, 1991
- Galatese 49’, PRFV, cruising yacht by H. Domato, 1994
- Mambo XL 49’, PRFV, cruising yacht by H. Domato, 1994
- San Gregorio 36’, PRFV, racing yacht by B. Farr, 1994
- Pionero 57’, Aluminum, fast cruising H. Ezcurra, 1995
- San Gregorio II 44’, Carbon Fibre, racing yacht by J. Soto Acebal, 2000
- Wu-Wei 40’, Steel, cruising by Santiago Herrera, 2001
Memo’s sailing experience is as impressive as his portfolio - two trips to Cape Horn, several South Atlantic crossings, and he was amongst the crew to sail to Antarctica aboard a 24 foot Pequod – surprisingly, the first Argentine yacht to sail to Antarctica in 1987. A book written by Hernan Alvarez Forn titled “Antarktikos” relates the trip to Antarctica:
“…we were sailing a course to leave Deceit Island clear to the West, and no less than seven whales started blowing, that way of breathing that almost drove the species extinct as it can be detected from a great distance. It was not long before we overtook the obelisks or enormous vertical stones of Cape Deceit, when at one a.m. of December 4th we guessed- more than saw- barely profiled by an elegant touch of greyish blue, our old friend, Cape Horn, and the flashes of its lighthouse. By this stage we could say that Veronica, as well as Memo and myself were intimate with the renowned confine of America…” |
|
| |
 Santiago Alvarez Forn’s father is the author of “Antarktikos” – and was on a portion of the monumental voyage to Cape Horn by the first Argentinean sailboat. It is no surprise that today, Santiago remains involved in the yacht industry.
Santiago’s professional development of more than 25 years in marketing and communications places him in a unique position to participate in this venture. Santiago oversees the building processes at the facility.
Santiago’s sailing experience includes crewing in international races such as S.O.R.C. and Sardinia Cup, and skipper on Caudillo, Frers designed One Tonner, winner of its class in the Buenos Aires – Rio de Janeiro race of ’79. Another impressive note in his sailing resume is a delivery from Buenos Aires to Cape Town in 1975 aboard a 55-foot yacht that took 38 days (only 2 of which were sunny and 6 without rain!) using only a sextant to navigate. |
|
| |
Pedro Daniel Antonio Ramos Ochoa is an electrical engineer who started his professional career working for the Argentine Shipyard MM Domeqc Garcia. After 10 years of working on submarines, Pedro joined Trimer S.A., one of Argentina’s largest marine suppliers and was in charge of their Sailing Division.
Prior to taking on this latest project, Pedro worked with King Marine, builders of many highly regarded world-class racing yachts, and was involved in the following projects:
- Don Juan 73’, Soto Acebal Design
- Aiken 62’ (2), Soto Acebal Design
- King 73’, Dixon Design
- Racing Boats
- GP 42’ (5) - Al Capone, Grand Soleil
- TP 52’ - Mui Mui, Judel/Vrolijk
- IRC 66’ - Blue Yankee, Reichel/Pugh
- 46’ - Matador, Botin/Carkeek
- 46’ - Almacenero
- 62’ - Prana Catamaran
|
|
| |
Qualified Workforce
 A real advantage to building in Argentina is the dedication and commitment of the qualified workforce. One of the challenges builders meet is the constant turnover of workers. This could translate to many hours spent training a new workforce without any guarantees that they would be there long enough to follow through on the construction of one boat, let alone a succession of them.
The Argentinean workforce comes from a legacy of boat builders who have carried this trade from one generation to another and consider themselves professional boat builders and not merely plumbers, electricians and cabinet makers who happen to be applying their craft to building a boat. With less time spent on training new employees, more time can be spent on honing their skills in building the Antares. |
|
| |
 Regional Boat Building Legacy
Argentina’s extensive coastline frames a nautical tradition that spans nearly two centuries and makes the country not only the birthplace of expert yachtsmen, but it also produces some of the world’s prominent naval architects building some top competitive racing yachts – most recently, the 2007 Spanish America’s Cup challenger Desafio Español.
 There is a long history of building custom boats in Argentina as evidenced by Buenos Aires’ busy shoreline on the Rio de la Plata. There is no doubt this has influenced some of the world class naval architects such as Javier Soto Acebal, Juan Kouyumdjian, and perhaps most notably German Frers.
Frers’ experience includes working with Sparkman & Stephens design group in New York, and collaborating with Finish luxury yacht builder Nautor Swan. Frers has more than 600 yacht designs to his credit and include the design of numerous America’s Cup class vessels such as Il Moro di Venezia III and more recently, Luna Rossa. |
|
| |
 Building Facility
The criteria for choosing a building were specific: close proximity to the water and capacity to accommodate a catamaran’s wide beam. That location was selected in San Fernando, a suburb on the outskirts of Buenos Aires on a tributary of the Rio de la Plata.
The facility is within 500 meters from the water and has wide opening doors that span the side of the whole building – allowing easier maneuvering of hulls and decks.
|
|
| |
Recent Activity
The last Antares 44 was launched in Whitby in the Spring of 2008. That summer was spent packing and containerizing all the tooling for the Antares which was shipped to Argentina. The containers arrived in Buenos Aires in August and nearly 2 months later, the tooling was assembled and ready for spraying the first hull in late October.
Owners of hull 31, Craig and Laurie, were recently in Argentina for a factory visit. Craig writes:
 “Our trip to BA and the boatyard was very productive. BA is a very interesting and enjoyable place to visit, and our trip to the boatyard made it readily apparent that the quality of workmanship is excellent...In addition, the quality of goods available in Argentina is top notch and we would not have any concerns about items that are acquired for the boat from local shops or chandleries. Having visited the local marine outfitters, I am sure we can outfit our boat with RIB, outboard, dishes, bedding, etc. locally, without having to ship anything from the States or Canada.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
