Delta Marine gave the yachting community a holiday gift, launching Laurel, a 240-foot motor yacht designed by Donald Starkey, the largest custom yacht built in the United States in three-quarters of a century. She is also the first large yacht in the world to have a full steel hull and an entirely composite superstructure from the main deck up.

The owners were looking for a "proper gentleman’s yacht" and specified classic lines and an elegant design. Her profile is long, with a fine entry, and a gracefully shaped stern belies the efficient underbody below the waterline. Her high-gloss, royal blue finish is accentuated by a teak cap rail. Laurel’s interior combines generous public spaces with intimate areas, keeping a homey feel to this large yacht. Mixed exotic woods, textures and glass create a comfortable yet graceful atmosphere.

Twin Caterpillar 3516 engines generate 2,500 horsepower at 1,800 rpm, driving a shafting system that pairs an oil-lubricated stern tube with a water-lubricated strut bearing. This improves hull efficiency by minimizing the external shaft’s drag. Cat also provides Laurel’s electrical power, with three C18 340-kW generators. The 335-hp bow thruster and the 200-hp azimuthing stern thruster are from Jastram. Stabilization is generated by a Quantum QC 1800 four-fin ZeroSpeed system that also controls pitch.

Laurel is Lloyd’s Register Yacht (P) and MCA certified. The owner opted to certify her to International Maritime Organization ISM and ISPS policies and procedures, as well as the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) requirements.

Delta Marine
206-763-2383
www.deltamarine.com