Media Tracking
Report
09/18/2008
Article Index
Archive
National Marine
Manufacturers Association Coverage
IBEX To Offer Evaporative Emissions Seminar
[Boating Industry (Online), 09/09/2008]
With the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's evaporative-emissions
rule now final, IBEX 2008 will offer two opportunities to help attending
boat builders gain critical knowledge and solutions specific to this
issue, organizers reported in a recent statement...Featured speakers
will include Michael Samulski (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency),
John Adey (American Boat & Yacht Council) and John McKnight (National
Marine Manufacturers Association). "EPA's evaporative emissions
requirements will result in significant changes to a boat's fuel
system," said McKnight. "This challenge also creates opportunity for
boat builders to now consider reengineering their fuel system or
possible consolidation of fuel system components for similar models. The
program we are offering at IBEX 2008 is one of the first steps in the
EPA mandated industry-wide challenge to design cleaner more advanced
boat fuel systems."...
Cabo Yachts Lays Off 45 Workers
[Victor Valley Daily Press (Online), 09/05/2008]
By Natasha Lindstrom
Cabo Yachts has laid off 45 more employees to cope with a slumping
industry economy, shrinking the boat manufacturing company from nearly
350 to 220 positions since May, according to spokesman Dan Kubera...Boat
unit sales in 2007 dropped to the lowest number the National Marine
Manufacturers Association has recorded since the mid-1960s, he said.
Ellen Hopkins, director of marketing communications for the NMMA,
could not confirm whether boat unit sales are the lowest since the
1960s, but she said the boating industry has taken a hit by the economy.
"Boating sales traditionally follow consumer confidence very closely,"
said Hopkins. "This year with consumer confidence being the lowest it's
been in some time, boat sales have also gone down." Hopkins added that
boat manufacturers across the country have taken similar steps to stay
in business. "Manufacturers and dealers are doing what they need to do
to weather the climate of the economy, whether that is layoffs or
reducing the amount of inventory or just cutting back all together," she
said...
Boating, For The Pure Joy Of It
[Chicago Sun-Times, 09/07/2008]
By Dale Bowman
...So at summer's end, I have come to relish the boat ride with staffers
from the National Marine Manufacturers Association, based in
Chicago. Dana Fennewald, public relations manager for NMMA,
hatched the idea a few years back. At first, I approached each summer's
boat ride with the seriousness of a Woodward and Bernstein
investigation, taking too many notes and asking too many questions to
fully savor the joy of the ride. But I'm learning to sit back and let
the experience roll over me. Every day on the water is different,
especially on a body of water like Lake Michigan. Usually when I am on
Lake Michigan, I am fishing and am focused rather intently. Oh,
Fennewald has a focus too. She is a PR maven, so she always has a
message attached to the boat ride. This summer it was the hot new
product in boating, the joystick docking system (MerCruiser Axius
Docking System), and the NMMA Product
Certification program. The product certification program involves
testing and meeting of standards, then a seal of approval is granted.
More than 90 percent of the recreational boats manufactured in the
United States are now NMMA certified...
First Mate To The Client
[CNN Money (Online), 09/16/2008]
By Ian Mount
...While boosting sales volume is often regarded as the best path to
higher profits, Button and his partners, John Gear and Larry Polster,
instead focus on building their business through quality and customer
service. Since 2000 the three partners have shrunk the number of
trawlers they build each year to 15 from more than 20...And selling
gas-guzzlers isn't easy today: Sales of the boat class that includes
trawlers have plunged from 11,800 boats in 2002 to 6,200 in 2007,
according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association.
Polster admits that intimate customer service and small production are
expensive; the company's profit margin is down, which he attributes in
part to higher raw material and shipping costs. But he says extreme
customer loyalty has allowed the company to increase revenue by selling
more boats at higher prices...
Ethanol-Laced Gasoline Causes Problems For Some Boaters
[Roanoke Times (Online), 09/05/2008]
By Jerry Hale
...Ethanol, a type of alcohol, is a solvent, degreaser, cleanser and
antifreeze that makes up 10 percent of much of the fuel now being sold.
Beginning later this year, it will be a federally mandated additive in
all gasoline, including what is sold at marina pumps...Research at the
National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) has found
that some older gasoline blends contained a compound called MTBE that,
when mixed with ethanol, produced a black sludge. NMMA suggests
not mixing old and new gasoline...
EPA Sets Rules For Lawn, Boat Engines
[Detroit News, 09/05/2008]
By David Shepardson
The Environmental Protection Agency unveiled sweeping regulations
limiting emissions from small engines in lawn mowers and boats Thursday
-- requiring that most small engines have catalytic converters. The new
regulation applies to lawn mowers with a 25-horsepower engine or smaller
and will reduce smog-forming emissions by 35 percent. Recreational boats
will see a 70 percent reduction in evaporated fuel and NOx
emissions...The EPA said the new regulations would prevent 300 premature
deaths and 1,700 hospitalizations annually. Americans spend 2 billion
hours annually using lawn and garden equipment and 500 million hours in
recreational boating, according to the EPA. Michigan has more than
11,000 inland lakes and is surrounded by the Great Lakes. The state has
950,000 registered recreational boats and ranked third in the nation
behind Florida and California, according to a 2006 report from
National Marine Manufacturers Association...
Discover Boating Coverage
Certification In An Uncertain Time
[Soundings (Trade Only), 09/01/2008]
By Reagan Haynes
...Wayzata, and others who have gotten on board with the three-year-old
Marine Industry Certification Program, say they now have a clear focus
on day-today operations, first dibs on regional leads, advertising
rights and, equally important, a competitive edge...The full cost for
certification is $3,995 per dealer; Grow Boating absorbs $1,500,
reducing the cost for dealers, according to the National Marine
Manufacturer's Association web site. "It is one of the very best
things that has happened to the retail dealer network in the last 10 to
15 years," says Keeter. Second, the dealership can advertise its
certification status, which gives consumers confidence knowing they are
doing business with a reputable retailer. Also, certification gives
retailers an edge over their competition. Finally, certified dealerships
get first dibs on leads that come through Discover Boating...
Industry Using CS To Build Buyer Loyalty
[Soundings (Trade Only), 09/01/2008]
By Gary Beckett
Recreational marine manufacturers, distributors and dealers remain
committed to improving customer service, while marketing and advertising
budgets are being cut to the bone and stalling is being reduced to near
subsistence levels. The reason, say the experts, is simple. Satisfied
customers remain loyal. And especially during difficult times,
businesses need a core base of repeat customers to drive the business
and simply help them survive...As of mid-August, more than 620 marine
dealerships had enrolled in Grow Boating's Marine Industry
Dealership Certification Program. A little more than a year after its
official launch, 414 dealerships had completed the certification
process. Dealers in the program receive numerous benefits, including
access to leads of prospective boat buyers generated through the
Discover Boating effort...
Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show Coverage
Dropping the ball on Hester
[Chicago Sun-Times, 09/13/2008]
By Stephanie Zimmerman
Dear Fixer: We went to the Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show at
McCormick Place on Jan. 17 and had our photo taken with Devin Hester of
the Chicago Bears. The staff gave us a card that had the number 81 when
taking the first picture and no card for the second
picture...Unfortunately, we never received an e-mail from them, so we
never got our photo. We tried to contact the boat show people to no
avail. We would like The Fixer to contact a boat show representative and
attempt to get that photo...
Boat Show Coverage
Liberty Boat Show postponed a year
[Salt Water Sportsman (Online), 09/13/2008]
By Al Ristori
The economic downturn produced another victim as the National Marine
Manufacturers Association (NMMA) postponed its 2008
Liberty Boat Show from Sept. 25-28 for over a year to Oct. 1-4,
2009. Ben Wold, NMMA executive vice president, said "The decision
to postpone Liberty was born out of the challenging economic climate our
industry is currently facing and our desire to provide a solid and
worthwhile show for our exhibitors." The NMMA expects to be back
at the site in Liberty Landing Marina at Liberty State Park, Jersey
City, N.J. next year "in a more suitable economic environment."...
Norwalk Boat Show Takes A 'Green' Tack
[The Hour (Online), 09/15/2008]
By Amanda Norris
The time has come to talk of ships and sailing wax, if not of cabbages
and kings. Boats begin docking today at Norwalk Cove Marina for the 33rd
annual Norwalk International In-Water Boat Show, New England's
largest and most popular event of its kind. Last year, 29,000 people
attended the boating manufacturer's extravaganza, according to show
manager Jon Pritko, and this year the turnout is expected to be as
strong...As in the automobile industry, Pritko said, boat manufacturers
have caught onto the go-green consumer tailwind, and a big feature of
this year's show will be WestMarine's green boating showcase where
boaters can learn to minimize the impact of their seafaring on the
coastal environment. Boat cleaners carrying the EPA label will be on
display, as well as a product called the Torqeedo, a portable electric
outboard that fits inside a backpack...
N.C. Company Goes 'Green' With New Boat
[Norfolk Virginian Pilot, 09/11/2008]
By Lee Tolliver
Although many in the boating industry claim high fuel
prices aren't stopping people from fishing, it's no secret that paying
for gas is getting tougher and tougher. Those at Egret Boats of
Washington, N.C., say they have a solution. After extensive testing, the
company has come up with what it says might just be the most
fuel-efficient fishing machine on the market...Egret's fuel-sipping
fishing machine will be unveiled today at the fourth annual Virginia
In-Water Boat Expo and Sailfest along the downtown Norfolk
waterfront. This year's show has an emphasis on going green. There will
be an entire "Boat Green" section. Included will be a hydrogen generator
and an exhibition on green boating tips...
Boat Sellers Riding Out Stormy Times
[St. Petersburg Times,
09/06/2008]
By Kim Wilmath
In times good and bad, Tobias Pardue will be on the water. But standing
inside the Tampa Convention Center on Friday morning beside dozens of
vessels priced to sell quickly and polished to perfection, Pardue calls
himself lucky. The Clearwater criminal defense lawyer, who already owns
a boat, was at this week's Tampa Boat Show to scout out the
newest models for one of his boating buddies, also a lawyer. Though a
sluggish economy and soaring gas prices have quelled demand for
watercraft, sending some boat vendors out of business and more into the
red, Pardue said he'd remain a loyal mariner...
Boat Show's A Buyer's Market
[Seattle-Post Intelligencer (Online), 09/09/2008]
By Dan Richman
With tightened credit and high oil and gas prices, these are hard times
for some makers and sellers of boats -- an item that few people, despite
the Northwest waters' allure, really need. But that makes these good
times for would-be boat buyers who can afford to plunge ahead,
particularly when shows like the 2008 South Lake Union Boats
Afloat Show, which opens Wednesday morning, often offer large
discounts over regular prices, said several area manufacturers and
brokers. "It is a buyer's market, no question," said show producer
Bonnie Bergquist, who also is manager of the Northwest Yacht Brokers
Association, a Seattle trade association. The 31st annual Boats Afloat
Show, which claims to be the largest on-water boat display on the West
Coast, will offer more than 200 power boats and 50 sailboats, worth more
than $132 million...
Atlantic City In-Water Power Boat Show
[Press (NJ), 09/06/2008]
What Is It: If you want to buy a boat (or just look at
boats) you might want to stop by the [Atlantic City] In-Water Power
Boat Show. The show is in its 24th year and features more than 700
boats, including sports and motor yachts, sports fishing yachts and
performance boats. At the docks will be the top of-the-line models;
smaller boats will be on land. This event is one of the largest of its
kind in the country. What To Expect: Boats, boats, and more boats. In
addition, this year's show features a marine industry tent devoted to
marine electronics, engines, docks, life rafts and repair facilities...