From Waterline, the official magazine for members of the Marina Industries Association of Australia Limited: 

Gold Coast Marine Centre at Coomera has announced two new appointments to its team.

Tim Sayer has been appointed as General Manager and Grant McMahon has taken up the role of Yard Manager.  Tim was previously Director of Sales and Marketing at luxury boat builder Riviera, and Grant also worked at Riviera where he was in various production management and new product development roles over a 26-year period.  With the addition of new staff, GCMC has boosted its service offering with the purchase of a new self-propelled submersible lift.  Manufactured in the United States, the machine is a revolutionary system suitable for the safe and efficient haul out of boats with almost any hull design and construction.  The machine is expected to be ideal for the haul out of catamarans, houseboats and other multi-hull vessels which the Gold Coast Marine Centre specializes in.  It will be commissioned by February 2010 and become the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sea-Lift bound for warmer destinations at Marina Island Pangkor, Malaysia.

In the midst of a significant global economic downturn, many marina owners are wary of taking on capital projects. However, deteriorating infrastructure will not pause until it is convenient for the owner to pay for repairs and upgrades. Even if a marina owner isn’t ready to reconstruct or expand, he or she can advance planning, feasibility studies (including pro formas), design and begin the permitting process. Facilities that aren’t planning any major changes and have kept up with maintenance could also benefit from an operations audit or pro forma ‘tune up’. In many areas, obtaining approvals for a new marina or a major renovation/expansion can take from six months to two or more years. An owner who postpones a necessary renovation until the economy shows signs of improvement may have to wait two or more years before construction can start! On the other hand, marina owners who have done the legwork for a renovation or new project will be able to move quickly to construction when they are ready. The prepared owner puts himself in a strong competitive position. For projects that are approved and have financing, construction in a depressed economy offers owners the savings of lower fuel costs, surplus materials and contractor availability.

Tim Mason