Repair of Aquastar 38 in the Falkland Islands

When a half-tonne coil dropped onto the cockpit area of The John Byron, an Aquastar 38 owned by Sulivan Shipping Services, local Marine Surveyor Captain Ian Wilkinson assessed the damage and deemed the damage repairable - however the repairs totalled a laundry-list of difficult and costly internal and external repairs that the Falklands was ill-equipped to cater for. Sulivan was faced with shipping the Aquastar 38 to Spain for a costly repair, however upon searching the internet for alternatives, he discovered Hamble-based GRP Boat repairs. GRP boat repairs offers a fully mobile service and this was put to the test when Sulivan shipping requested that GRP Boat Repairs Managing Director, Julian Wilmott, travel more than 8000 miles to the Falkland islands to assess the required repairs. Willmott has 25 years' experience in GRP boat building and repair under his belt, and a highly skilled team of craftsmen at his disposal. On the basis of his claim that "you will never see one of our repairs", Sulivan Shipping awarded him the contract, and two members of Willmott's go-anywhere team subsequently spent 18 days in the Falklands in October, working 14 hours a day on the stricken vessel.