Wooden Boats creates tender with moving deckhouse

Wooden Boats has created a new WB 10.70m LimoTender which features a movable deckhouse – specifically so it can be comfortably stowed in the garage of a superyacht.

The American owner commissioned the WB 10.70m LimoTender after spotting the WB14 built for Benetti. But the size of the 100m yacht’s garage presented the builders in Viareggio with a challenge.

“We didn’t just stick to the mandatory dimensions in height and, of course, length,” says engineer Marco Arnaboldi. “In addition to the four electromechanical actuators that allow the deckhouse to be raised and lowered, complemented by a safety catch to ensure safe navigation, the WB 10.70m LimoTender is also equipped with internal jacks to raise it during hauling operations, thus avoiding the classic cables and heavy external hooks that are very dangerous in rough sea conditions. The aesthetics of the garage, with two simple arms, improve as a result, and operations are safer and more practical.”

The new tender measures 10.7m by 3m wide with the lowered deckhouse height at 1.8m. It can hold 14 people and four crew members.

“The owner asked for an enclosed tender to avoid problems in case of bad weather or rough seas,” says Arnaboldi. “The designer Giorgio Cassetta has therefore studied a very tapered profile which guarantees 360° internal visibility thanks to the vertical windows all around the perimeter of the square, the same windows that descend along the side when the tender is closed; all this is completed by a large skylight.

“Inside, there are sofas around the perimeter to accommodate up to 14 people, equipped with foldaway armrests as on the most exclusive cars. There are no tables in the centre and all functions can be controlled through the domotics system, from air conditioning to lighting. The choice of furnishing materials and the hull and deck colours match those of the mothership, with extensive use of solid teak on the exterior.”

The outfitting includes the construction of the carbon composite/PVC foam sandwich that characterises all the tenders made by Wooden Boats. Delivery is scheduled for spring 2022.