September Newsletter
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After a busier than expected summer a long overdue newsletter.
Yard News
The summer has seen us continuing the ground works and preparing for the new houseboat moorings as per the original planning. We have received a lot of interest from people wishing to relocate on a houseboat to Gweek and we are determined to ensure that we have the right people and the right boats. As part of our ongoing commitment we have also acquired neighbouring land which will help as we improve parking. We have also acquired new toilet blocks: these will be arriving over the autumn, with new showers and laundry facilities being planned for Spring next year.
The Boatyard Café has been a great success over the summer and we are delighted at how it has created a new vibrancy in the yard. Well done to Susie Goodwill and her team. Thank you for your support.
Gweek Classic Boat Yard continues to plan to support traditional boat building and repair. More classic boats are returning this year and we have two French boat building interns joining us for the autumn.
We are in full swing preparing for the autumn lift out with both old and new customers returning. The new US fork lift is being reassembled and is planned to be here for October. This will improve the process for smaller boat dramatically. The crane has been re-certified and we have taken delivery of new spreader bars. Please contact the office to reserve your space if you have not already done so.
Staff News
Gemma Gilbert recently got married to Alex Morris at the Greenbank Hotel. Gemma is known to many as the helpful first point of contact with the yard. Gemma is currently on honeymoon and we wish her and Alex many congratulations.
Amber Tresahar has joined to help the admin team on a part time basis. Amber, a wooden boat owner and sailor, brings a depth of experience. She is a former ballerina with the Kirov and a qualified lawyer, and we are delighted she has come to join us.
Luke Jones has joined us as Senior Yard Man and Crane Driver. Luke has joined us form Fugro Seacore where he was the Nearshore Plant Superintendent. Luke also has extensive craning experience having also worked for Macsalvors, the established national craning company. Luke will take a big role in health and safety and improving the overall technical operation of the yard.
Jerome Pickles has joined us from Somerset where he worked with AM Beaton. Jerome has had a number of years working with Malcolm and brings significant skill as a mechanic. Jerome lives on site and brings a calm and can-do attitude to his work.
Boatyards are about people, and I am now confident we have the right team to go forward with the yard. Please do make a point of introducing yourselves if you are visiting. Anne continues to make a difference managing the operation and we are enormously grateful for the work she does in what can be a challenging role. It is always difficult managing the many competing priorities.
Craning In Feedback
Thank you to the customers who took the time to complete the craning survey. The feedback has been,for the most part extremely positive, however there are areas where we could have done better. These include stomping onto someone's pride and joy, recently repainted, in muddy boots. We now have overshoes so I hope this will be improved. The other big issue was not running to time and not being accurate with crane out times. This will improve with new administrative procedures in place, but as always, the best laid plans can sometimes go awry when trying to cater for everyone.
Some of the positive feedback we have had from the survey:
"Very responsive to timing and use of crane while boat was pressure washed and antifouled."
"On time, considerate and helpful."
"Very quick and efficient service. Considerate and caring for boat too."
We scored an average of 4.3 out of 5 based on feedback from everyone who took the survey. Well done to the team for their hard work craning everyone in.
Helford Voluntary Marine Conservation Group
Mark and Anne have kindly been invited to join this committee that has been in existence since the 1980s with scientific experts in many areas. The work of this group in supporting the wildlife and future of the Helford River is remarkable and we have now become sponsors of the organisation. You can find more information on their website here.
Chandlery
The chandlery has seen steady growth over the year. English Braids have been in to expand our range of ropes and webbing to cater for running rigging, docklines and mooring lines. We are also in consultation with Seaware to bring the chandlery stock up to what you would expect to find in a boatyard like Gweek.
New stock will include everything from sanding materials to antifoul and hopefully everything else in-between. If you can’t find what you are looking for on the shelves, please let us know as in most cases we can get next day delivery.
Brokerage
At the end of the summer some owners, for various reasons, wish to sell their vessels; please have a look at our online brokerage which includes a lovely 16’ Salcombe Launch, Hillyard 5 tonner, Hillyard 12 ton ketch, Hurley 22, Moody 27 and Campion motor launch.
Other News
Along with other services, we now have a local man, Paul Read, who is available to valet your vessel, inside and out. If you require his services, please contact the yard for more details.
As we continue to tidy the yard, we would respectfully ask that all boat owners keep the area under and around their vessel clean, tidy and litter-free. We want to be good to the planet so boat owners please do not scrape off you boats without laying down sheets to collect the antifoul.
We seem to have dog fouling under control but please keep dogs on leads at all times.
It is World Clean Up Day on 15th September - Clean Ocean Sailing are organising an event where boat owners collect a bag of rubbish/plastic from the sea and send in a picture of them with their boat and the rubbish they've collected (creating a kind of virtual flotilla). Find more information about the event on Facebook here. Check out their website or follow them on Facebook.