Precision Shipwright Services is an interna- tionally renowned yacht refit and repair specialist formed in 1997 in Phuket Boat

Lagoon. Since its inception, the company has worked with over 1,000 yacht owners to realize the highest quality exterior, interior and structural improve- ments to their yachts.

Starting with a team of four young Thai nationals, owner and founder Scott Bradley built a yacht refit business which became the most reputable in S/E Asia.

With yachts coming to the PSS yard from around the world for major refits and repairs, Scott needed to train local Thais to support a new type of business evolving in Phuket, “yacht refits”.

A factory was built in Boat Lagoon and soon the business grew along with Scott and his small team of hard-working Thais. PSS continues to excel in quality refits. Its efficient working methods, experi- enced well-trained staff and prime quality materials ensure results envisioned by every yacht owner.

Scott explains that the boat repair business is much more different and competitive today than when he started out 25 years ago. Back then, it was mostly cruising yachties looking to fix-up their boat, and they knew their vessel backwards, forwards and

sideways. They knew what was wrong and they knew how much it would cost to fix it, and how much time it would take to fix it.

But it’s different today, as many of Scott’s cus- tomers are first-time boat owners or simply new to the sea, so they may come in one day with an idea of what they want repaired and give the go ahead to start work. Then two days later, they may seem a new prod- uct or methodology on the Internet and will want the whole repair scheme changed. As such, a project that may have taken two weeks back in the day, now takes a month due to ever-change repair requests.

This is where Jiraporn Na Pankaew, or Khun Phorn, comes in. Precision’s longest-serving employ- ee, her main job is liaising between the customer and the repair crew, whether it’s Precision’s own, or a firm they have contracted the work too (most of whom are made up of ex-Precision staff). She tries to keep the customer on point—a challenge she actually enjoys—making sure the customer understands the costs involved in making the changes while trying to follow the repair schedule as closely as possible.

As Scott says, “People are using the Internet to try and find something better or different, but they don’t understand that sometimes better or different can’t be done in some areas of the world.”