ABOUT NEW BOAT BUILDERS HOME PAGE
Disclaimer:
Throughout this site, I try to provide contact information for the US
Coast Guard, ABYC and other organizations. The information on this
website, unless it is a direct quote from the US Coast Guard, the
American Boat And Yacht Council or other entity, or the United States
Code, Code of Federal Regulations, or from a published standard, is my
own interpretation of the rules and regulations. I try to keep this as
accurate as possible, but laws change, standards are revised, and
personnel administering them change. Some standards are controversial.
Other persons may have different interpretations or methods of
achieving an equivalent level of safety to comply with the regulations
and standards. This is a personal web site and not affiliated with the
U. S. Coast Guard. Any mistakes are mine.
If you have a comment
or question, contact me here.
1. This site is free to all users. Membership is not required. I
do not collect user data on persons visiting this site.
2. The ads on this site are through Google Adsense.
If you find an ad offensive
or inappropriate, contact me here.
Google Analytics does collect demographic data on visitors
to this site, but no personal data.
I do have to pay for the domain name and for
the web site. The ads earn me a few dollars to
help defray the costs.
Also due to the rising cost of
managing the site I have an e-junkie Store where I sell
compiled versions of the electrical pages, the pages on Capacity/Loading and Flotation,
and the pages on Gasoline Fuel Systems into e-books
which are for sale through my store. The price of purchases you
make will be used to fund this website. From the
books, I earn approximately $300.00 USD
which is barely enough to pay for the site.
The entire Electrical Pages,
Capacity and Flotation Course, Gasoline Fuel Systems: Engines and Related Systems, and
supporting spreadsheets, of this website may be purchased and downloaded. They are in
ebook PDF format and the spreadsheets are in excel. Payment is through PAYPAL
Please visit the store here.
3. This site is aimed specifically at persons entering the
boatbuilding business but the information is also useful for repairers
and boat owners.
4. I will always try to keep the information simple, in plain
english, free of legal jargon, and understandable to anyone. If
I must use a legal or nautical term I will try to provide a defintion
or explanation of the term. I also make sure to differentiate
Regulations (laws) from Standards (voluntary industry accepted
standards).
5. I will always try to keep the information up to date. Any
omissions or corrections will be gladly accepted.
6. I will try to keep the design up to date using current coding
methods, but simple enough to load quickly on most computers, tablets
or smart phones. This site was not specifically designed for use with
phones but testing has shown it does fit the screen size of most smart
phones although I do not recommend it. I have added a site formatted
specifically for phones or tablets. See above where it says
Mobile Site
About me: I am the sole creator and
owner of this site. I am a retired Coast Guard
Officer, and later a civilian Coast Guard employee, who
spent over 25 years overseeing and helping the recreational
boating industry comply with Federal Regulations for
recreational boats. My experiences with boats began
when I was a child and I have been around them all my life,
both sail and power. I spent a brief few years working
in the Naval Architecture division of a ship yard before
making the Coast Guard my career. During that career I
spent seven years as enlisted working on electronics for Gun
Fire Control Systems (so I have an electrical background)
and after obtaining a commision as an officer I worked in
boating accident investigation, worked with the Coast Guard
Auxiliary, managed a large Coast Guard repair facility, and
then spent the rest of my career in standards for
recreational boats as both an Officer and a civilian
employee. I have worked with ABYC, UL, NFPA, SAE and
other organizations involved with standards.
About this site:
This site was created primarily for the prospective or newly established boat builder
but has proven to be useful to boat owners. It is intended to be a reference for the
beginning boat builder who has decided to build boats and sell them. It does not tell you how to build boats, although it has many
links to such sites on Ike's List.
It does tell you what things you need to know if you are building or planning to build boats and sell them.
This is not just for wood boats, or fiberglass
boats, but for all boats. The rules, regulations and standards
here apply to all recreational boats. They apply primarily to small
craft under 60 feet but that is not a hard and fast rule. For
instance, all recreational boats are required to have a
Hull
Identification Number regardless of size. Another instance is
gasoline
fuel systems. The rules apply to all recreational boats with permanently
installed gasoline engines. I will state at the beginning of each
subject what it applies to because Federal Regulations define what
vessels each regulation applies to and ABYC standards do so as well.
The rules stated here apply primarily to boats
manufactured and sold in the United States, and boats imported into the
United States for the purpose of sale. Boats imported into the USA
by a private party for their own use may also have to meet these rules.
However, I will refer to Canadian and European Economic Community rules
and the Recreational Craft Directive. Boats made in the USA for export
to other countries must meet the rules for those countries.
It is the boat
manufacturer's responsibility to ensure that their products comply with
the regulations or laws in the country where they manufacture and/or
sell their products. They should get copies of the laws or standards that apply to their products
and become thoroughly familiar with their contents. This web site can aide in doing that but boat manufacturers should
consult with the US Coast Guard or the authority in their country to be
sure that their products meet all of the regulations or standards that
apply.
Contrary to what you have been told many times
over, regulations are not necessarily a bad thing. Regulations
protect both the consuming public and you, the manufacturer. They
insure the public is getting a safe product and at the same time protect
you the builder from frivolous lawsuits. They are not absolute
protection, because they do not cover everything that can go wrong. But
they provide the public assurance that you are offering a safe product.
There are also other people who can help you.
The Coast Guard people that
can help you are at Headquarters in Washington, DC. They are all dedicated professionals, very knowledgeable, and will help you any way
they can. You can contact them at 202-372-1077.
They also
have a contract factory visit program and new builders are given priority on visits,
usually within the first year. Their Web site is
https://safeafloat.com/
The
American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) is the standards
organization for the boat building industry. They have standards that go way beyond what the Coast Guard
requires. I am a long time member, have served on committees, and know the people who work there and
they are all very helpful and dedicated to boating safety. Call them at
410-990-4460 or fax 410-990-4466. or go to
https://www.abycinc.org
The
National
Marine Manufacturers Association is the largest industry association for boat manufacturers.
https://www.nmma.org
There are many other organizations for boat builders.
American Boat Builders
and Repairers Association: https://www.abbra.org/
American Boatbuilders Association (ABA) http://www.ababoats.com/
Independent Boat Builders,
Inc. (IBBI): https://ibbi.com/
United Marine Manufacturers Association https://www.ummaonline.com/
Boat
Design.net: https://www.boatdesign.net/net/
Wooden Boat
Foundation: https://woodenboat.org/
Metal Boat Society: https://metalboatsociety.wildapricot.org/
Professional Boat
Builder: https://www.proboat.com/
There are more on
Ike's List
Also, most states or regions have a Marine Trade
Association that represents its members in the state legislature or on
Federal issues. See ABYC's list of State Trade Associations
https://abycinc.org/BlankCustom.asp?page=MTA
If you have feedback on any subject on this web site please
contact me. My e-mail
link is on every page at the bottom of the Home menu. Quite a few other people have
contributed to the content and when possible I have given them an
attribution and a link if they have a website or business.
Enjoy the web site and I sincerely hope it helps you succeed with
your boat building plans!
Revised 01/05/2022 © 2007 newboatbuilders.com All Rights Reserved
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