Written by Reagan Haynes Trade Only Today
September 18th, 2015 – Gunboat International, a North Carolina builder of luxury carbon fiber sailing catamarans, is suing a yard in China that it had contracted to build its largest models, saying some work was never done and that the yard refused to pay warranty claims on other poorly constructed yachts it had built — allegedly costing the company about $10 million.
Following shoddy or incomplete work, Gunboat sought to terminate the contract with Taiwan-based Hudson Yachts and Marine Industries, or HYM, but the builder refused to return molds and tooling, Gunboat founder Peter Johnstone told Trade Only Today.
In addition, the company and its owner, Hudson Wang, launched a “knockoff brand” of carbon fiber catamarans despite having signed a non-compete contract, Johnstone said.
Not having the molds and tooling has caused Gunboat to lose the ability to manufacture one of its models, causing the company to lose contracts and profits in excess of $4 million, said documents filed in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island.
“I’m guessing it has probably cost us in the neighborhood of $10 million in the past five years, if not more,” Johnstone said, considering the warranty work Gunboat has performed. That total did not include damage to the company’s reputation.
Hudson Wang and HYM did not respond to emailed requests for comment.