Royal Huisman Uses PHI and Special One to Define Its Motoryacht Approach

PHI demonstrates the value of unconventional engineering

Royal Huisman is highlighting the 58.5-metre PHI as an example of how a sailing-yacht builder can approach a highly constrained motor-yacht brief. The yacht’s low profile and sub-500 GT target demanded unusually disciplined packaging of machinery and technical systems.

The yard says its experience building lightweight aluminium sailing yachts was particularly relevant. Those projects routinely require engineers to solve complex problems inside narrow weight and volume limits.

Special One extends the argument

The 52-metre Special One provides a second example through an entirely different type of yacht. Designed as the world’s largest true sportfisher, the project required speed, fishability, long-range capability and custom systems to coexist in one platform.

Royal Huisman uses both yachts to show that its motor-yacht work is not based on adapting a standard range. The common thread is willingness to begin with a difficult owner brief and then engineer outward from that requirement.

Sailing heritage becomes a technical asset

The yard’s motor-yacht message is therefore less about entering a conventional production segment and more about transferring skills between categories. Weight control, aluminium fabrication and one-off systems integration can matter equally whether propulsion comes from sails or engines.

For owners pursuing unusual concepts, that crossover can widen the range of shipyards capable of delivering the project. Royal Huisman is positioning its sailing heritage as an engineering advantage rather than a limitation on the type of yacht it can build.