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Viareggio has had an important place in the history of shipbuilding since the middle of the nineteenth century. The first boats were made of wood because of the wealth of tall trees growing along the low, sandy coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea. In the mid-1920s, according to detailed research carried out by V. Fiore, Viareggio had a larger fleet of sailing ships than even Genoa had. The transition from wood to iron and, at the same time, from sail to reciprocating engine, led not only to this steep increase but also to the growth of a highly skilled workforce. This was the first major impact of technological evolution. In later years, Viareggio shipbuilders again attracted attention when the shipping industry demanded vessels of a particularly high specification. The early 1950s saw the beginning of fierce competition for sophisticated orders looking for a specific response to very different requirements. |
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Specialised workshops worked hand-in-hand with the most important shipyards, including S.E.C., Benetti, Codecasa and Picchiotti, with the task of solving all the secondary problems which arise during the building of a new vessel. |
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Nowadays the most modern yachts in the world sail out of the shipyards in Viareggio. Two names will suffice to support this claim &endash; the NABILA, designed by the Australian Jon Bannemberg and built in the 1980s for the Saudi businessman, Adnan Kasshoggi, and the REVERIE, built in late 1990s for the Norwegian cod-king, Inge Rokke, and designed by the creative Stefano Natucci. |
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These, however, are only the most important examples. Before, during and after them, there have been others, too numerous to mention, smaller both in length and width, but each one built with the most avant-garde technology. |
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The shipbuilders in Viareggio also produce the so-called "working" vessels &endash; deep sea fishing boats, gas carriers, factory ships, oil tankers, floating docks, passenger ships and so on … they are all part of the normal production range in Viareggio. |
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The transition from wood to steel and sail to engine took a long time. There were many difficulties on the way, but most of all, there was great satisfaction. It is no empty boast to say that Viareggio made an important contribution in terms of its workmen, their many skills and their will to work to a successful outcome. |
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The development of shipbuilding has produced names which attract the highest respect &endash; Benetti, Codecasa, Picchiotti and Celli, for example. They laid the foundations on which man can build his relationship with the sea, in which the guiding principle is the utmost respect for the sea itself. |
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