Lürssen (or Lürssen Werft) is a German shipbuilding company based in Bremen-Vegesack.
Lürssen designs and constructs yachts, naval ships and special vessels. Trading as Lürssen Yachts, it is one of the leading builders of custom superyachts such as Paul Allen's Octopus, David Geffen's Rising Sun, and Azzam, the largest private yacht in the world at 180 m in length.
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History
The beginning
On June 27, 1875, the 24 year-old Friedrich Lürssen sets up a boatbuilding workshop in Aumund, a suburb of Bremen, Germany. His first vessel demonstrates his trademark: originality and high-quality. Friedrich Lürssen´s shipyard grows and thrives, and at one point he even begins placing orders with his father.
11 years later, in 1886, Lürssen builds the world's first motorboat. The 6-meter REMS is commissioned by the inventor and engine manufacturer Gottlieb Daimler, who needs a boat to put his new engine through its paces. Friedrich Lürssen, always open to new ideas, designs and builds it without delay. The Daimler engine that powers it has a cylinder capacity of 0.462 liters, weighs 60 kilograms, and has an output 1.5 hp at 700 rpm. In 1907, Friedrich Lürssen´s only son, Otto, joins the firm as a partner, contributing far-reaching practical and theoretical knowledge. As a shipbuilding engineer, he combines tried and trusted craftsmanship with new technical expertise, improving on past techniques. This approach, handed down over the decades, remains to this day the essence of Lürssen´s unique quality and innovative spirit.
Four years later the Lürssen-Daimler speedboat with its 102 hp engine becomes the sensation of the racing season. In the Mediterranean off Monaco, it wins the unofficial world championship, the Championship of the Sea. The speedboat goes on to win the Prix de la Cote d´Azur and the Grand Prix des Nations later in the same year.
1916: The company that is his life´s work has grown into a leading German shipyard, when Friedrich Lürssen dies at the age of 65. He could not have wished for the firm he had founded 41 years earlier to develop more successfully. A year after Friedrich Lürssen's death, the German navy started using remote-controlled boats to enter occupied ports or attacking heavily armored ships. These boats were co-developed and built by Lürssen.
A new start
1925 is a special year for Lürssen. They launched their 10,000th vessel, a 14-meter wooden motoryacht, a sister ship of the Onkel Fidi, and in addition, the company celebrates its 50th anniversary. Two years later they set another standard. With Oheka II, equipped with three Maybach engines that propel her to a top speed of 34 knots, Lürssen builds the world´s fastest commuter yacht. Later the same year, the company also builds the world's longest and heaviest motoryacht: the 36-meter AAR IV weighs 130 metric tons.
1932: The abrupt death of 52 year-old Otto Lürssen, who directed the company in a spirit of open-mindedness and passion for innovation, is a bitter loss for the shipyard and the entire industry. His wife, Frieda Lürssen, the strong-willed daughter of a captain of a large cruise ship, fills the gap and takes over the reins of the Lürssen yard.
Six years later, the third generation takes on more and more responsibility at Lürssen: Gert Lürssen comes on board - bringing along the passion of motorboats he inherited from his father. In 1939, he sets an impressive world speed record on the lower reaches of the Weser River in a Lürssen diesel-powered speedboat. It achieves a speed of exactly 68.2 km/h. The same year, torpedo boats are delivered to Bulgaria The 35-meter vessels carry the forward-mounted torpedo tubes better and no longer have the tendency to dive in heavy seas, as was the case with previous models.
Business is difficult in the wake of the war. Everyone has to start from scratch and the Lürssen shipyard is no exception. During this time of change, the brothers Gert and Fritz-Otto Lürssen agree on the division of shares in the company, which they hold from then on jointly with their mother Frieda Lürssen. In the postwar period Lürssen sets a new standard for fast patrol boats. They launched the Jaguar in 1959, especially developed for the German Navy. At 42 meters, the ships are larger than those built during WWII. They serve as a model for future fast patrol boat designs.
In 1962 Frieda Lürssen, who has led the company with greater perseverance and technical expertise, decides to hand over the responsibility of the firm to her sons Gert & Fritz-Otto. That same year, the 55-meter yacht Pegasus II is delivered, like her predecessor, to a London shipowner.
1971: Its exterior design sets new worldwide standards: the yacht Carinthia VI is designed by Jon Bannenberg - his first major yacht project. To this day, the 71-meter vessel remains contemporary in styling, and she can be seen as the precursor of today's Lürssen yachts.
At the age of only 63 years Fritz-Otto Lürssen dies unexpectedly, abruptly ending the successful collaboration between the brothers Gert and Fritz-Otto Lürssen. A quote from one of the eulogies at his funeral reflects his popularity: "For us employees, he was an entrepreneur and a boss, someone you could talk to and negotiate with, a friend and advisor". A couple of years later his brother, Gert Lürssen, decides to withdraw from active company leadership. He hands over the management responsibilities to his son, Friedrich.In that same year, 1977, Lürssen delivers the first vessel in the series to the Turkish navy. Three other ships are built at a partner shipyard in Turkey using material packages. A total of ten 57-meter Dogan-type ships are built.
In 1987 Peter Lürssen joins the company - after studying shipbuilding and industrial engineering in Germany and business administration in the United States as well as gathering considerable professional experience. In previous positions, he spent a year as a building inspector at different Japanese shipyards, and already familiarized himself with various Lürssen departments.
In 1988 Lürssen decides to add a new division. Currently the shipyards are operating at 90% capacity with navy contracts but the company decides to split the production between the naval ships and the luxury yachts. From now on, the company devotes half of its production capacity to the building of large yachts. In 1991 the yacht Be Mine is completed, one of the first yachts to be designed and built entirely under the direction of the newly established independent Lürssen yachtbuilding division. She goes on to win the prestigious International Superyacht Society Design Award as well as the Superyacht of the Year Award. At this time the corvette Victory is delivered to the Singaporean Navy as the leading ship in a class of six corvettes. Due to its stealth design, the ship is difficult for enemy vessels to detect. It is also characterized by low underwater noise emissions.
After playing a defining role in the company's progress for half a century, senior partner Gert Lürssen dies on January 2 at the age of 77. This comes at a time when Germany is cutting back its defence spending in response to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The new yachtbuilding division becomes more important for the company.
In 1990, the United Arab Emirates receive two complex naval vessels from the Murray JIB class equipped with helicopter landing pads and with an extensive array of weapon systems and sensor technology, not usual for ships of this size.
Eight years later, the Kilic, with a total length of 62 meters is delivered to the Turkish Navy. This swift boat has modern weapons and fire control systems integrated. The seafaring qualities of the new enlarged ship have been considerably improved. Also the Indonesian customs authorities have ordered five patrol boats with a top speed of 40 knots and ten with a top speed of 50 knots.
2000: One-and-a-quarter centuries after its founding by Friedrich Lürssen, the company celebrates an important anniversary. The small boatbuilding company on the Weser River has grown into a large shipyard that builds military vessels as well as modern megayachts. Lürssen delivered the Berlin, one of the key task force vessels, to the German Navy. This highly importabt vessel type ensures the ability of the entire fleet to perform in action.
In 2002: thirty years after Carinthia VI set new standards, Carinthia VII, at a length overall of 97 meters, is delivered. A year later, the superyacht Pelorus, designed by Tim Heywood is delivered. With its overall length of 115 meters it is one of the world's largest private yachts.
In 2005 the 90 meter yacht ICE is delivered. It is the first yacht to be equipped with a compact Azipod drive system. This ultralow noise- and vibration propulsion system is especially effective in fulfilling the owner´s demands in terms of ecological operations.
A couple of years later, the last of a total of six minehunters are handed over to the Turkish Navy in cooperation with the consortium partner Abeking & Rasmussen. From 2010 on, also Brunei started sending orders to Lürssen for patrol boats and offshore vessels.
Current situation
In 2012, two of the world´s top designers get involved in the construction of the 147.25 meter yacht Topaz: Tim Heywood gave Topaz a very elegant appearance despite her sheer size, and Terence Disdale was responsible for her very exclusive interior.
In 2013 Lürssen delivers Azzam, the longest yacht in the world. She not only sets a record with regards to her length of 180 meters and speed of more than 30 knots but also her building time of less than three years is record-breaking. In 2016 Lürssen launched the 156 meter long yacht Dilbar. The yacht, with a width of more than 23 meters is the biggest yacht in the world in terms of gross tonnage (over 15,900 GT).
On September 28, 2016, it was announced that Lürssen will acquire shipbuilding company Blohm + Voss in a long-term partnership.
Lurssen Yacht Video
The company
Locations
- Vegesack: Lürssen Vegeack has been the hub of operations since 1918. The offices of the Managing Directors are located there, as well as project management and all the administrative functions. Vegesack is also home to the subsidiary Lürssen Logistics.
- Lemwerder: Lürssen has been building ships at Lemwerder since 1935. With a total area of 127,000 square meters, Lürssen Lemwerder features the full spectrum of construction, production, and assembly facilities. It is also home to their main warehouse and their Refit and Repair department. Lürssen Lemwerder specializes in yachts 80 to 110 meters in length.
- Aumund: The shipbuilder Bremer Vulkan Marineshiffbau, with a 170-meter dry dock, was integrated in the Lürssen Group in 1997. Lürssen soon added a floating dock with a length of 220 meters making Lürssen Aumund ideal for the largest yachts (+ 100m).
- Rendsburg: The Lürssen-Kröger Werft shipyard near Rendsburg was acquired in 1987. Located directly on the Kiel Canal, which links the North and Baltic Seas, Lürssen Rendsburg specializes in 60- to 90- meter yachts. In addition, Navy ship maintenance and yacht refit work is carried out there.
- Wilhelmshaven: In 2006, Lürssen integrated the Neue Jadewerft shipyard in Wilhelmshaven into their group to further enlarge their yacht capacity. At Lürssen Wilhelmshaven, maintenance, repair and refit work on yachts and other vessels up to 150 meters in length are carried out. Major clients including the German Navy rely on Lürssen for their maintenance needs.
- Berne: The facility in Berne belongs to the Lürssen shipyard since 2010. It is located on the left bank of the river Weser, not far away from the main Lürssen Shipyard in Lemwerder. With a total area of 400,000 sqm the shipyard is equipped with highly modern production and assembling buildings as well as a floating dock. A synchro lift can elevate ships that are up to 150 meters in length and 4,800 t weight. This facility is specialized in refit, repair, and conversion of yachts and naval vessels.
- Hamburg: The Hamburg Norderwerft was included in the Lürssen Group on October 1, 2012. The core business of the yard is the repair and conversion of ships and swimming unities for the commercial shipping industry, but also the maintenance of naval vessels. 3 docks with a lifting capacity up to 12,500 t, 3 berths with a length of 450 meters and a crane capacity up to 95 t are available. The portfolio is rounded up by class renewals, intermediate surveys, and mobile operations worldwide.
- Wolgast: The Peene-Werft, located in Wolgast, belongs to the Lürssen Group since May 2013. This facility is specialized in new built and repairs of naval vessels and special ships, but is also supporting the yacht shipbuilding. The company area has a full size of 253,570 sqm with a 46,500 sqm heated hall space, a dry dock with a crane of 175 meter length, as well as a lift for ships up to 110 meters in length, and a 950 meters long outfitting quay.
Yachts
Take a look of all the yachts built by Lürssen in the following list:
Naval ships built by Lürssen include:
- Many E boats of World War II, based on Lürssen's design for Otto Hermann Kahn's private yacht Oheka II
- World War II R boat minesweepers, including the first minesweeper (1929) fitted with a Voith Schneider propeller (R8)
- Jaguar class fast attack craft
- Seeadler class fast attack craft
- Zobel class fast attack craft
- Intrepida class fast attack craft
- Tiger class fast attack craft
- Frankenthal class mine hunter
- K?l?ç class fast attack missile corvette
Lürssen is currently also involved with the building of Braunschweig class corvettes and is part of the ARGE F125 joint-venture designing the F125 class frigate.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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