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words: Amanda McCracken photography: Jeff Brown & Mark Sims/Superyacht Media

Amels 199

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event

A limited edition, but unlimited in AppeAl, the 60 metre custom

Amels 199 is A triumph of rAdicAl design Allied to A weAlth of

fAscinAting Aesthetic detAils

Sitting on the sundeck of Event, the first Amels 199, amid the spectacular backdrop of Norway’s Surfjorden fjord – its cliffs soaring to over 100

metres and its waterfalls cascading into the sea – is nothing

short of magical. To say that UK yacht designer Tim

Heywood is pleased with the result is an understatement

as he effervesces about the unification that has gone on

during its construction between himself, the Amels team,

Imperial Yachts (who were involved throughout as brokers

and new-build construction managers, and are now the

yacht’s operational managers), project manager Adriaan

Roose, and interior designer Laura Sessa.

The back-story of Amels Limited Editions is cleverly

based on a simple though well-executed formula:

elegant hull lines, aesthetically pleasing, comfortable

living spaces, a proven technical platform, ready interior

design options, room to customise, and a delivery time

of just 24 months. Indeed, it is successful, with 17

Limited Editions yachts delivered and 11 further projects

under construction, a growth of 10 per cent year-on-year

for the past five years.

Adding the 199 to its growing fleet was a calculated

decision explains CEO Rob Luijendijk. ‘The Amels 199 is

a logical development to strategically fit between the

Amels 180 and Amels 212. In length, this corresponds

with 55, 60 and 65 metres and respectively in gross

tonnage 660, 1,119 and 1,504.’

Unsurprisingly, the design task was given to Tim

Heywood, with whom Amels has a very positive

relationship, its success measured by repeat clients

signing up for larger vessels in the Limited Editions

range. Heywood didn’t disappoint, although he bravely

stepped away from a guaranteed successful design

formula for something completely radical.

‘The yard came to me for a boat of 199 feet (60.6 metres)

and I came up with the concept, all the external details and

the features and the shapes,’ says Heywood. The drawings

he presented initially for the Amels 199 showed an elegant

but conservative raked bow with nice lines and knuckles

going aft, a combination of soft, athletic, feminine forms

and sharp angles, which Heywood thought Amels would

like – but then he threw them a curve ball.

‘I said, “If you really want to do something different,

give this design a different bow,” and I unveiled it.

There was a few seconds of silence and then: “Oh, yes,

it’s quite nice”! The camp was divided between those

in favour and those who found it too radical. I am

pleased to say that the management and Damen (parent

company of Amels) decided to do it. This project is

very different from anything Amels has done, although

I am sure you are aware Damen builds a high-speed

support vessels with an axe bow, which I really like. I

thought I would like to do something similar for the

yachting market, so I created the design, a derivative of

the axe bow. I call it the “scimitar bow” because it’s like

a curved sword.’ This design, as outlined by Heywood,

is more attuned to displacement speed.

The design attracted a client in 2011 with a few ideas

of his own, including a touch-and-go helipad on the

foredeck – which can accommodate the twin-turbine

Eurocopter EC135 or Bell 427 – an enclosed lounge and

screening room on the sundeck and major changes to

the internal staircase to connect all levels. Roose notes

how this customisation affected the design time. ‘With

The touch-and-go helipad can bear twin-turbine helicopters (up to a 3,000kg take-off weight). The sundeck offers an enclosed upper lounge next to the spa pool (above), and a broad sun lounging area (opposite right)

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this project is very different from

Anything Amels hAs done,’ sAys tim

heywood. ‘i creAted the design, A

derivAtive of the Axe bow. i cAll it the

“scimitAr bow” becAuse it’s like A

curved sword’

30 people working for the in-house design team, we put

tens of thousands of man-hours into the initial design

and engineering plans. This gave us a strong base to

work from, so when it came to customising the

deckhouse and helideck, it only took us an additional

5,000 hours of design time to make these changes to hull

number one.’

As we cruise along the fjord, Heywood assesses the

significance of this hull shape and how form meets

function from stem to stern. ‘For me, it begins at the bow

with the stainless steel [cutwater and spray rail], which

is a solid piece and above that is a knuckle, a kind of

chine which runs back and becomes the underside of

the wing stations.

‘The boat is full of details, little surprises, little

differences. Aft of the wing station the form of the boat

shoots up to the deck above and then I changed the

tumblehome from in to out – from positive to negative

– and it makes such an interesting form. On the sundeck

where the roof sweeps back and thins at the aft end you

have this negative angle. And look at the radars, we have

offset them on either side and that’s another function so

you don’t get a blind spot. We have a lot of curves, but

they are balanced by hard edges. You have got angles,

radii, sharpness – everything is in this boat.’

The scimitar bow, which is very narrow, required a

thorough analysis of seakeeping qualities, achieving the

same motion as a yacht with a greater beam-to-length

ratio. Due to its form the bow also gives less vertical

peak accelerations, and the longer water line gives more

speed for the same amount of installed power. During

tank testing she was quick, reaching speeds of 16.5 knots

with 17 knots within easy reach. When I lean over the

bow to see how the spray rail works in reality, I can see

this is not just a sculpture but a superb piece of

engineering, and obviously moving the water away from

the hull cleanly, rather than allowing it to climb high up

on the bow. At a speed of 10 to 13 knots the ride is

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event

smooth, there is no vibration through her internal areas

and it is apparent that the yard spent time and effort on

the insulation of the vessel from the tank deck up – she

is incredibly quiet. Sound measurements taken on sea

trials were a respectably low 43 to 46dbA at 16.1 knots

throughout the yacht.

Amels and Heywood have pushed the envelope of

customisation further on this vessel than any other

Limited Editions yacht. On all the Limited Editions the

engine rooms and the technical areas such as the air-

conditioning are all centralised and this gives the

flexibility to move other elements around. On this vessel,

the tender garage is forward of the engine room leaving

plenty of space aft for a gym and spa area for guests.

Built into her hull forward are enormous gullwing doors

on port and starboard hiding a vast internal tender

garage. Push a button and the doors open and crew can

deploy the Pascoe tender in under five minutes using an

overhead crane that lifts the tender and slides it out in

one smooth operation. There is plenty of storage in the

garage for an alongside limousine tender, PWCs, diving

equipment and ‘fun in the sun’ toys.

Heywood employed a circular window theme in the

hull that finishes with three round ports in the transom

door. Not only does this match the rest of the hull

styling, but it also does away with that dungeon effect

when guests want to use the gym and spa area while the

yacht is under way. A clever feature on the very generous

bathing platform is an integrated swim step that deploys

into the sea at the press of a button, revealing sturdy

steps with detachable carbon fibre handrails.

There are more surprises to be found along the hull

length. On the main deck level, shapely bulwarks off a

central dining area and lobby can be hinged down on

both sides creating terraces. This changes the entire

ambience of the room, flooding it with light and air and

adding another dining dimension – alfresco. This is a

multifunctional space which, buttoned up, can be used

for conferences or receptions, or, when opened up

delivers a more protected space for alfresco meals than

the sundeck.

The interior has been created by Laura Sessa in close

collaboration with the owner. It is clear immediately that

Sessa and Heywood are in harmony on design with the

inside and outside complementing each other perfectly.

The living spaces are modern and the rooms are a good

size, light, cosy and liveable, but not cavernous. It is a

style of modern living that is well balanced; the guest

areas flow smoothly from one to the other.

Sessa has chosen fresh and brightly coloured natural

linen and cotton fabrics from Designers Guild, Jim

Thompson, Nobilis and Pierre Frey, with Loro Piana in

the master cabin. Luxury under foot is courtesy of silk

rugs by Tai Ping. It all adds up to an avant garde

ambiance. There are two VIP cabins on the bridge deck

and a very spacious bright modern owner’s cabin on the

main deck. Descend the floating treads of the offset

circular staircase and you find three almost identical

guest cabins, all with matching en suites. ‘The look is

modern classic, elegant with a lot of research on

detailing, comfort and practicality of every room,’

comments Sessa.

The custom-built Yachtwerft Meyer limousine tender reflects the styling of the mothership, right down to the bow detail and the circular ports in the hull

on the mAin deck level, shApely bulwArks cAn be hinged down on both sides creAting terrAces

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‘the look is modern clAssic, elegAnt

with A lot of reseArch on

detAiling, comfort And prActicAlity of

every room,’ sAys lAurA sessA

The aft platform (below) serves as both a swim platform and an extension to the beach club

One area that the owner redesigned was the sundeck.

Here is a delightful central lounge that can now be

reached by the spiral indoor staircase instead of from an

external stairway from the upper deck. This is a

delightful room with large side windows and comfortable

sofas that can be repositioned to face a drop down

movie screen. Floor to ceiling teak and glass doors that

concertina at both ends can be opened to the sunbathing

area or large spa pool.

The advantage of having a longer waterline is to be

found in the crew accommodation, galley, stowage and

mess forward on the lower deck. While we are on

board, there are 15 crew and the flow around the mess

and galley areas works very well. The extra space has

allowed the crew to have a completely self-contained

deck with good size cabins and internal corridors to

service the yacht, and the added benefit of a direct

stairway to the bridge.

Off the crew corridor is the entrance to a control

room for the two engineers. Three windows look

directly down onto the two Caterpillar 3512 engines and

the majority of yacht systems, apart from the generators

and stabilisers, which have their own dedicated rooms.

Although most of the operations have to be done in the

engine room, the generators can be started from the

control area and, of course, all systems can be monitored

and operated from the bridge.

Event ’s captain is more than complimentary about

the systems on board the yacht and after encountering

heavy seas on passage to Bergen, he reports: ‘She is

lovely to drive, she handles very well and she handles

the seas very well. I was impressed. The Raytheon

[integrated] bridge system is fantastic and I can’t

speak highly enough of that. With the digital radars

and the conning screen, all the information is at

your fingertips.’

Before leaving the yacht I take a ride in the limousine

tender. Almost identical in shape to Event, she is just

fabulous. The top cover lifts up hydraulically to admit

passengers and when they are seated, lowers for

protection for the elements. As we take a spin around the

yacht it is clear that the engineering in both the

mothership and the limousine tender, built by Yachtwerft

Meyer, is outstanding, from the design through to the

paintwork and the furniture installation; both simply look

superb close up.

Amels have really broken the mould and created the

next generation of customisable yacht, one that has

enabled an owner to achieve his dream. It’s a brave

move, but one that should pay off for the Limited Editions

and Amels and for one lucky family and those who

charter her.

‘After receiving the first very positive responses on

Event, we realise that the Amels 199 is a true benchmark

for our company,’ says Luijendijk. ‘Event has been a very

successful project for both the owners and Amels. We

proved that within this 60 metre avant garde design,

Amels is able to offer our clients an exceptionally high

level of customisation. The design is beautiful and

inspiring from all angles – Tim (Heywood) has added a

new chapter in superyacht styling.’

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event AmelsLOA 60mLWL 59.7mBeam 10.32mDraught 3.45mDisplacement 1,116 tonnesGross tonnage 1,119GT

Engines 2 x Caterpillar 3512C, 1,500kW @ 1,600rpmSpeed (max/cruise) 16.5 knots/15 knots Range at 13 knots 5,000nmBowthruster 150ekW

Stabilisers Quantum Zero Speed XTGenerators 3 x Caterpillar C9, 150ekWFuel capacity 139,000 litresFreshwater capacity 37,600 litresOwner and guests 12 +2Crew 15

Tenders 1 x 8m Yachtwerft Meyer; 1 x 6.2mConstruction Steel hull; aluminium superstructure

Classification Lloyd’s Register 100A1, SSC, Yacht Mono G6 [@] LMC, UMS, SCM Green Passport

Naval architecture AmelsExterior styling Tim Heywood DesignInterior design Laura SessaManagement Imperial Yachts Julia Stewart t: +37 7 97 98 38 80 e: j.stewart@imperial-

yachts.com w: imperial-yachts.comBuilder/year Amels/2013 Vlissingen, The Netherlands t: +31 118 485 002 e: info@amels-holland.com w: amels-holland.com