Created in collaboration with designers from Studio De Voogt, the Hive explores a completely different approach to life on board, centred not around the space but the people on board
For the developers, it was initially important to bring the concept to life: to shape it around an understanding of how owners and their guests would spend their time on board, and what would or wouldn't matter to them. A fictional family of four was developed to give the concept a human context.
At the heart of the Hive, there is a vast open space extending across four decks. The main deck can be a spacious saloon or a stage or auditorium, with terraces opening to port and starboard. Curved staircases connect balconies and more intimate spaces above, while service pantries and furniture storage allow the central space to accommodate anything from family life to performances, lectures and large gatherings.
Other areas have also been meticulously designed with functionality in mind, resulting in a striking variety of spaces and such unconventional approaches as the aft section featuring a split-level beach club and a water-level dining area for 24 guests, or a circular, glass-enclosed foredeck library opening onto a secluded garden.
The owner’s deck features a 20-metre pool with Feadship’s patented ContraWave technology, extending indoors as a suspended, glass-bottomed infinity pool.
An underwater lounge provides an expansive view below the surface, while the observation lounge above has a retractable glass roof for unobstructed views of the night sky.
The long low profile develops the clean and streamlined style found on previous Feadship concept designs, Pure and C.
One of the Hive’s less obvious but important features is the absence of a conventional helm station. The forward sections of the superstructure are dedicated to the owner’s accommodation and observation lounge, while the virtual command centre allows the captain to get the information required for navigation from the cameras and sensors, or use retractable glass wing stations that offer a direct view outside during close-quarters manoeuvring.
The technical aspects have been thoroughly worked out, too. The superyacht with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure will have a length of 115 m, a beam of 17.5 m and a draft of 4.05 m. Thanks to fuel cell technology and an advanced power system featuring a substantial battery bank, the vessel will be able to operate on both methanol and HVO, minimizing or even entirely eliminating harmful emissions. According to Feadship, the range will be 5,000 nautical miles on methanol, and 9,500 nautical miles on HVO at the speed of 12 knots. The provisional top speed is 16 knots.
The Hive will feature Voith Schneider Propellers, which have already been tried and tested on ferries and research vessels. They are well suited to dynamic positioning, ensure exceptional manoeuvrability and exceptionally low noise levels.
“Hive is designed around the idea that experiences can change people,” says Jan Schaffers, Senior Designer at Studio De Voogt. “We wanted to explore what becomes possible when you start not with what a yacht has always been, but with how people might want to live on board in the near future.”
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