Customer service for luxury yachts - new shipyard is fishing for boats with the assistance of lubricants made by Klüber

Even the rich and famous have their problems - maybe just on a bigger scale. If the humble family car starts making strange noises, its owner will take it to the next garage. The better-off will do the same with their luxury yacht. Intended for the latter purpose is the impressive shipyard that is currently being built at La Ciotat in France on a 35,000 m2 site. It is to include a lifting dock requiring 30 sets of gears for operation. These gears in turn require suitable lubricants, for which purpose the biodegradable products Klübersynth GEM 2-320 and Klüberbio M 72-82 made by Klüber Lubrication were chosen by the yard operators.

The construction of this major shipyard started in June last year and is making good progress. When the shipyard becomes operational early in 2007, it will offer space for up to 13 yachts of 40 to 80 meters length, which will be hoisted out of the water by the mentioned lifting dock. The lifting platform is powered by ten motors and can move up to 2,000 tons. Once on firm ground, the vessels are moved to their "parking position" on rails, where the requested service or repair works are carried out.

The other facilities of the shipyard are impressive, too: the huge, air-conditioned painting shed, for example, has a gate that is 27 meters high, making it unique around the Mediterranean. Repair shops, stores and offices are located in a large building at the Southern end of the site. Furthermore, there is a 150 m anchorage for service works, a 600 t overhead crane, a 200 m and a 500 m dry dock, as well as 250 16 t cranes.

Of course not everybody is in the enviable position of needing the services of this highly impressive facility. But Klüber Lubrication has also suitable lubricants for more "normal" applications. Just ask us.