How much do yacht designers make?

Maybe if you're the son of the company president. Otherwise you might want to pay some dues, learn the craft and work your way up.

Congratulations, you've just promoted yourself to Design Director.
I've never seen a career move so fast. Try to avoid Seagull Managers (they flap in squawking their heads off, steal your lunch, crap on you and then flap off again). Also beware Sixth-Sigma experts, ("why waste time printing drawings off for the shop floor....just e-mail them the cad file !".... But the shop floor doesn't have e-mail, or cad, or even a computer..."really ? Oh, I'll have to do a report on that").
Worst of all are The Schedulizers...armed with a formidable array of luminous highlighters and a magnetic wall planner, they can take your monthly achievements, and with one squeak of a magic marker turn you from a lean mean draughting machine into a disorientated chain smoking paranoid wreck.
Keep smiling, turn deaf, kick your computer off your desk every now and again and you will be fine.

Good one CODOG. Now how do I qualify for a Seagull Manager position, I could use a free lunch!

Kelly

You could make a start on your designs now by learning a CAD program yourself. You will then be able to express your own ideas in your own time, without reliance on others interpreting your thoughts- this is a distinct advantage to have as there is much time been wasted having Cad people misinterpret what the designer wanted. This may also fast track things along to get your ideas to your builder contact who you made the impression on. I believe the opposition will need you as buyers are all needing clearer points of difference in these difficult times.

RU rich enough to buy a company and hire the right people to run it? If not you're probably looking at the wrong business. Concentrate on doing something that will make you enough money to have a yacht custom built for you with everything done the way you'd like it.
Most people follow their talent. If you're good at something and work hard success often follows. Look at an Olympic gymnast. They make it look soooo easy. Try it and watch your body turn into a pretzel. I could want to be one all I'd like and it just isn't going to happen. Often our talents surprise us though. I fell into a career many years ago I'd have never considered. I even started on April Fools day. I figured I might make it to my first paycheck if I were lucky. That career lasted 17 years and for 10 of those I owned the company.
Follow your talent and concentrate on being the best you can be. It will all fall into place. Good luck.

Hi,

NYCAP- There is nothing wrong with starting something on April Fools Day I joined a new build on 01 April and finished the project then went around the world on it. Had a great time. I only left after the arrival of my first born and the need for more time at home.

I also have a close friend who started life on April Fools Day and seem to be enjoying the ride last time I spoke to him

Personally, I've always found it to be good luck to break superstitions. So far so good. P.S. I've also found that the harder I worked the better my luck.

So...you have no relevant qualifications, no experience, no idea whatsoever what is involved in the design process, cant use cad and cant draw. Yet you seem convinced that the owner of a yacht building company is going to employ you to design the next seasons range of boats ?
And achieve this in a world where obvious talent, excellent degrees and enviable drawing skills are no guarantee of a job ?
Anyway, its not the likes of us you need to convince, its the yacht builder.

I pity that unfortunate CAD design team.

I can't think of a less efficient or less rewarding way to work for anyone involved.

If I thought that it was my destiny to be a musician, I wouldn't put down my Wacom pen, march to the nearest recording studio and hover behind a guitarist telling him which notes to play.

It sounds like you just want a short cut into the profession - if the yard owner had not made you the offer and you had to sit through several years of university training like everyone else, would you still consider it your "destiny"?

Without the training or experience, it sounds as if you would only be able to fulfil your destiny within the strict confines of this set-up anyway.

If you or the yard decided to end the relationship, I can't see that you would really be in a position to carry on designing boats as an independent "designer", or be an attractive candidate to work as part of a conventional design team - without the software skills to do it yourself, you'd need to employ two people to do the job of one.

Right. I had to get up in the morning at ten o'clock at night half an hour before I went to bed, drink a cup of sulphuric acid, work twenty-nine hours a day down design office, and pay the boss for permission to come to work.

Absolutely. Cant argue with that.

You were lucky...

If you are so sure he was scintillated and thrilled with thoughts of hiring you, then might I recommend you take a break from this thread, get your CV to him and put in a call.

Be prepared to be grounded by reality.

As a bystander, I'm trying to give you the benefit of every doubt for credibility through each of your replies to this thread, but I gotta be honest with you, the dog just doesn't hunt.

Good luck in your new job.

I am an architect earning my living designing and producintg construction documents for land based structures. My comment is based on your earlier statement:
"My vision is to basically tell the CAD design team what's in my mind... ...till the designer has modeled exactly what's in my mind."
Design is a combination of a creative idea that is transferred into an understandable medium through rigor, passion, dedication, knowlegde of systems and materials and openmindedness to discovery and development, among other qualities. The idea that a CAD operator can be verbally guided to exactly what is in the mind of another is absurd. It just isnt possible. If you don't believe me, attempt to sketch (freehand) what is in your head, making sure that the sketch takes into acount working floorplans, systems, elevations, ect... design is not something you just do without a respect for process and a considerable amount of talent. Trust me here; You are greatly over-simplifying the process of design and really marginallizing the ability and position of the architect. Perhaps you should research repuatable design/architecture schools. Here in the states one must study for five years in an acredited architecture program (including fulfillment of a highly developed and supported thesis), to achieve the minimum creditials necessary to begin working in the profession. Upon entering the profession one must achieve the equivalent of 5,600 work hours under the supervision of a licensed architect, in assorted proficiencies before becomming elegable to begin the six section testing procedure (which usually takes no less than one calender year, if all goes well), to become a registered architect. At this point, which is usually eight to ten years from the first day of architecture school, you are ready to begin your career as a licensed architect. I will tell you from experience that becomming a proficient designer is a mighty journey that I fear you are greatly over-simplifying. As for the poor wretch CAD operator you speak of...He dosen't exist. An old quote I am fond of: Many do not recognize opportunity because it is dressed in work clothes.

I've heard it stated many ways, but I like that. Hope you don't mind if I quote you now and then.

be my guest. a good quote can do in one line what many teachers can't do in a year! Personally, I find styling an idea into my own words to be inevitable, (no feadship pun intended). Salute!

Hi,

BIGBOATBILL- That is a very well written and informative piece of work there at Post No 34.

Thank you for sharing the details of what is involved in a section of your profession.

Unfortunately the same licensing requirements do not apply to the yachting world.

"Unfortunately the same licensing requirements do not apply to the yachting world."

If you hadn't said that I would have.

Just imagine walking down the streets of a city with buildings designed by MCA certified architects and structural engineers. Wear a hardhat.

That's called "glad-handing" and it's worthless. Worse than that it's destructive because it makes one think they needn't progress further. You'll often find that these people have something to gain from making you smile (maybe trying to sell you something), but sometimes they do it just for the joy of watching you fail. Take it with a grain of salt. The one you want to hear from is the one who says your work is sub-standard, especially if they offer suggestions on ways to improve. Years ago I started a business. Everybody in the area kept telling me what a great idea I had. A year or so later (after many changes to my original idea) the business was doing pretty well. Those same people told me they were surprised how well it was doing because they wouldn't have given it a snowball's chance in hell. I continued to give their words the same weight and thanked them.
You'll know that you're on the right track when you're struck by how little you know.