Boat Building

Tthe success of the Cape Town International Boat Show, in its ninth edition in 2009, is a useful barometer of the growing confidence of the boatbuilding industry in the province. In 2008, the show attracted more than 16 000 visitors to view the wares of 160 exhibitors.

Most companies in the sector operate in Cape Town, with some production taking place in Knysna and St Helena Bay. Some analysts are proposing that the town of Atlantis, north of Cape Town, becomes a hub for boatbuilding. As one of the principal difficulties faced by the industry is finding enough moorings in Cape Town harbour, such a move might allow for the Port of Saldanha to become the new maritime hub.

There are 75 boatbuilding concerns in South Africa, 42 of which are located in the Western Cape. Barriers to entry are low and industry turnover has grown tremendously in recent years, with the focus being almost exclusively on the foreign market. Export revenue for the leisure-boat sector was calculated at R1.25‑billion in 2007.

Smaller vessels such as ski-boats are sold locally, but for the most part Western Cape companies are catering for the traditional export markets of the US, the Caribbean and the Mediterranean. While these markets remain healthy, manufacturers are always exploring new waters – currently China, India, South Korea, Dubai, Thailand and Africa. The Middle East, in particular, has been identified as a possible market for workboats, light commercial vessels and patrol boats, as well as top-end yachts.

The catalyst for this growth, as reported in research done by Abgo Consulting for Cofisa (the Cooperation Framework on Innovation Systems between Finland and South Africa), was the decision by an influential Caribbean charter company to accept the catamaran design of South African firm Robertson and Caine. Multihull manufacturer Gunboat has a production facility in Cape Town harbour, but its head office is in Rhode Island, in the US.

The provincial trade and investment agency, Wesgro, has embraced boatbuilding as one of its six priority sectors. The sector also has two committed industry bodies supporting it in the South African Boatbuilders Export Council (Sabbex) and the Cape Town Boatbuilding and Technology Initiative (CTBi) – both based in Cape Town. Sabbex focuses exclusively on South African boatbuilding companies that are, or would like to be, involved in export trade. CTBi is a provincial special-purpose vehicle (SPV) established to deal with all local issues pertaining to the sector. Institutions such as the CTBi’s Boatbuilding Academy and the Whisper Boat Building Academy for the Deaf ensure that skills development keeps pace with demand and technology.

ONLINE RESOURCES
Cape Town Boatbuilding and Technology Initiative (CTBi): www.ctbi.co.za
Cape Town International Boat Show: www.boatshow.co.za
Cofisa: www.cofisa.org.za
South African Boatbuilders Export Council (Sabbex): www.sabbex.co.za
Wesgro: www.wesgro.co.za