RIGGING

46 Quai Francois Miterrand 13600 La Ciotat

This year again, the team of Rig Pro, the service arm of New Zealand based Southern Spars in La Ciotat, came extremely highly recommended by many high profile Captains. The past months have been very busy for the whole team, who have successfully worked on very large yacht projects, including several of the world’s largest sloops.

This highly professional and passionate team is managed by the ever friendly Vincent Patricelli (Vinny), an American gentleman, who speaks French as well as English, after many years spent in the country. Once a professional sailor on Maxis and a trained mast builder and rigger, Vinny is a real expert in his field. Indeed, the investment here is not only in the first class facility but also in the staff, as their eleven employees are all highly qualified, including one onsite mast engineer who worked for ten years at their factory in New Zealand. One of the best assets and strengths of the group - who recently merged with the other highly acclaimed Superyacht rigging company Marten Spars - is the strategic location of their four individual service outlets… based in France, South Africa, New Zealand and Newport. They all share their database / communications to ensure the maximum technical expertise at all times.

Southern Spars has developed strategic alliances with the main suppliers found on today's Superyachts and therefore offer the full range of professional rig maintenance and repair services, whether the yachts carry Southern Spars rigs or any other brands. As an OYS authorized service agent Rig Pro / Southern Spars La Ciotat is fully equipped to take on jobs of any size thanks to its impressive facilities. They are one of the only places to have a 500 ton + rod heading press, in addition to their paint facility and hydraulic cylinder service capabilities. La Ciotat is an ideal base, with the quays along the workshop providing 7 metres of draft and Rig Pro then has access to the shipyard equipment and cranes on site, therefore limiting costs to their clients. They have a large workshop, fully equipped with the latest machines, inside and overhead cranes (up to 8 tons) where can store masts and also have 2000sq m of land space for outside work and storage. They also have a rope and rigging shop with a choice of dock lines up 34 mm in diameter and a nice chandlery providing all kinds of consumables. Crew can use a room on the upper level of their building for office work, with internet access. They collaborate with the other shipyards when their expertise is needed and will install masts shipped from NZ for a new build, thus starting a beneficial working relationship with the Captain. Indeed, the team of Rig Pro La Ciotat is so popular that yachts come from the whole Med to leave their rig here and then motor back to their winter berth! As one Captain told us… “They provide the perfect one stop shop, they even took care of our sails!” “They are extremely professional and competent”.

Contacts:
Tel: +33 442 981 010
Fax: +33 442 981 011

LIVE LINKS
Email: fr.info@southernspars.com
Website: www.southernspars.com