The Avigliana production site is the world’s biggest shipyard to be certified

Avigliana (Turin), 13 December 2007 – Azimut Yatchs, the world-leading
company in luxury yachting, has achieved the environmental certification
UNI EN ISO 14001 from RINA, the certifying body of reference, for its
Avigliana production site, where yachts from 39 to 68 feet in length are
built.

The company has in fact implemented an Environmental Management System (EMS) for its manufacturing processes that keeps pace with its growth objectives and intends to pursue an environmental policy that represents the state of the art in its industrial sector and that befits its position of leadership in the international luxury yacht market.

Azimut is one of the first shipyards in the world, as a manufacturer of
fiberglass luxury yachts, to be ISO 14001 certified and is the most
important in terms of the size of the facilities concerned and its turnover
figures in the world yachting market of reference.

The certified Azimut Yachts site (Avigliana, King plant), which extends
over some 90,000 m2, of which 52,000 m2 roofed, has been put under an Environmental Management System that involves over 1200 people and includes complex production processes in the area of the design and fabrication of fiberglass luxury yachts through the phases of lamination, bodywork, fit out and testing.

The complexity of the manufacturing processes involved is the indicator for boat
that best illustrates the company’s determination to produce according to
criteria of high quality and respect for the environment while preventing
pollution, defining roles and ways of operating, and sharing environmental
culture with its collaborators and partners.

Careful management of the following environmental impact factors has been implemented: utilization of energy resources, air emissions, waste sorting, water cycle management, and inventory and selection of products and raw materials according to criteria of environmental sustainability and compatibility.

In the area of air emissions, Azimut was the first yacht company in the
world to adopt the infusion system in yacht-making, that is, laying the
fiberglass in a vacuum and absorption and disposal of the emissions with an appropriate system. A guarantee of respect for the work environment and better quality of the end product.

“Our company is aware of its world leadership role in luxury yachting and
wants to be the standard-bearer in the yacht industry in terms of product
excellence,” said Azimut Yachts CEO Federico Martini, “but also a concrete example of strong attention to the environment we work in. With this objective, the company is committed to adopting a sustainable industrial development policy, managing its production processes with advanced criteria of environmental protection and disseminating it both inside and outside the company.”

Azimut Yachts has shared its environmental policy with all its
collaborators through dedicated courses to heighten awareness and make everyone an active protagonist in this process through the small measures of waste sorting or use of energy resources (turning off lights for boats and boat computers during breaks or at the end of the work activity) up to the more complex ones linked to production.

An attention that does not stop with production but is also aimed at the
end users of the company’s luxury yachts. Tests are currently being
conducted on the Azimut 50 K, the laboratory boat boat for onboard power
generation using hydrogen-powered marine fuel cells. Reduction of onboard energy consumption, the use of antifouling boat paints and marine varnishes that respect the marine environment, the study of engines for hybrid propulsion.

“ISO 14001 environmental certification is an important goal to have
achieved,” Ing. Martini added, “which points to Azimut Yachts’ continuous
striving for excellence and positions our company as a benchmark and
forerunner in research in the world yachting sector.”

Azimut Yachts, the world leading brand in luxury yachting, is part of the
Azimut-Benetti Group, the world’s foremost builder of mega-yachts. The
prestigious Atlantis and Benetti Yachts brands also belong to the Group.
Each member company targets a distinct sector of the marine market:
Azimut Yachts: Open and Flybridge yachts from 39 to 116 feet
Atlantis: 35 to 55 foot Open yachts
Benetti Yachts: mega-yachts from 24 to 70 meters