Hull Number 50 Of The Viking 68
The Viking Yacht Company is the authority on building a better boat every day and they will tell you it requires excellent teamwork and communication. Various production departments must coordinate with each other to keep each build moving down the manufacturing line. Every stage is bustling, and sometimes several departments are working on the boat simultaneously, as illustrated in this Viking View article which focuses on hull No. 50 of the Viking 68, a four-stateroom tournament-proven battlewagon. That’s right – she’s the 50th build in this extremely popular series and she’s an HMY boat that is still available for sale.
Above: Only a day after coming out of Viking's Fiberglass Department (Viglass) a team of boatbuilders has already made significant progress with mechanical, electrical and plumbing installations.
The boat will soon receive its twin 12-cylinder 2002MHP MTU M96X engines, which push the 68 to 40-plus knots. The Mechanical Department will use overhead electric hoists to position the powerplants in the engine room (shown below).
But first, aluminum foundations (“saddles”) will be installed to secure the engines to the 68's stringer and hull. These custom aluminum extrusions are powder-coated white and dry-fitted to ensure proper engine alignment, and then they are permanently affixed to the tops of the stringers using a specialized adhesive for bonding aluminum and fiberglass materials.
As previously mentioned, different departments work cohesively to build the boat as efficiently as possible. In this image, Mechanical Department team members (for a few minutes) have moved away from their work areas so an interior unit – the bunks and hanging locker for the crew quarters – can be safely transported from the production floor into position. “There’s no ‘I’ in team,” says Berlindo Meza (top), shown lowering the unit. “We work closely with each other.” One of the highlights of the Viking 68 is the location of the crew accommodations – just forward of the engine room to provide direct access.
For more information about the Viking 68, specifically HMY's hull no. 50, please contact and HMY Viking Product Specialist: 561-331-5200. [email protected].
