“I only went back for the graduation ceremony”

All Marcus ever wanted to do, was to design sports cars, even as a child. "It was my passion," he says. "But toward the end of my education, I got an eye for yacht building. And that," he laughs, "changed everything."

Marcus decided to study yacht design and manufacturing at Solent University in England. "In my final year - 2018 - a Dutch recruitment agency visited the university, for interviews with students. After an initial interview with them, I was allowed to come and talk at De Voogt Naval Architects. It felt like I had won the jackpot: I could go work in another country, with all kinds of opportunities. But above all, I could go to work for the best naval architects in the world of superyachts."

"If you like solving problems, where the result - a superyacht! - can be awarded internationally, there is no better place than this," Marcus believes. Two weeks after turning in his thesis, he began his first day of work at De Voogt. "I only went back for the graduation ceremony," he says.

"The team I'm a part of works primarily on items in the contract and basic design process. I think it's super cool to be part of that process. In that design phase, we look for the best possible solutions. They have to do justice to the design on the one hand, and meet the regulations of Lloyd's, for example, on the other. Really: working on a superyacht of over a hundred metres presents a lot of challenges. To come up with inventive solutions with your team, it just makes my day."

Sharing information in the process is crucial. "We do that continuously," Marcus assures. "With our design studio, the yards and the classification societies involved in a specific yacht. And among ourselves, of course."

"My work day? I start with coffee and picking out my (flexible) workspace. Then I check what items need to be designed or modeled, and what I think should be prioritised. The next step: checking how my colleagues' work is developing. I also visit my project engineer; it's a regular occurrence. He maintains contact with other departments and has the bigger picture. Only when I have all the necessary information do I get to work. Within that, I determine my own approach.

Marcus is part of a new initiative within De Voogt. A small team of engineers is guided by a mentor; a senior engineer. "There is room for personal growth," Marcus says. "Also, it's a good way to seamlessly pass Feadship knowledge on to the next generation. It's my goal for the foreseeable future."

“What I'm most proud of? The fact that I organised a multidisciplinary open forum where we discussed interesting ideas, processes and innovations.”