Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/570649
32 | Boating Industry | October 2015 www.BoatingIndustry.com [ 2015 Movers & Shakers / BOLD MOVES ] designs to find that perfect ride. One of the most important factors in building that great boat is developing the right engine. With environmental standards continuing to put pressure on the automakers, marine engine manu- facturers have had to adapt. At the same time, the tow boat segment has transitioned from being ski- dominated to wakesurfing. Those factors combined give Indmar Marine Engines the opportunity to go in a new direction, said company president Chuck Rowe. "Our boats used to be 'how light can we make them,' but with the advent of wakeboarding and surfing, all of the sudden, we've put 7,000, 8,000 pounds in them," Rowe said. "We saw the direction we were going and looked the world over for what power was out there. What was the next logical step for Indmar?" The answer, after more than nine months of research, was a "big displacement" engine, but one that wouldn't break the bank. "Our customers kept talking about value," Rowe said. "They just didn't want the latest and greatest and more cost. "That's when the 6.2 hit the radar. We looked at it and liked what we saw," he added. The Ford F-Series Super Duty block provided the solution for which Indmar was searching – the new ROUSHCharged Raptor 575. The Indmar team spent more than three years and more than 6,000 hours of testing to develop the new engine, which offers better fuel efficiency with more power, Rowe said. It also features a non-traditional catalyst exhaust system designed to deliver the lowest emissions and intelligent moni- toring systems with the goal of making operation easier for boaters. Bringing the Ford block to the market, with its larger size, wasn't easy. "Most other people that looked at it went away from it because of packaging," Rowe said. "Our en- gineering team did a phenomenal job of minimiz- ing the impact. We're basically the same size as any comparable package. It wasn't easy." Since the engine's launch in July 2014, response has been positive from both boaters and OEMs, Rowe said. "It's just doing a phenomenal job, beyond our expectations," he said. "I don't think we can stand still with what we've done, but right now it's going to be really hard [for other engine companies] to compete. … It's like the old hot rod saying that there's no replacement for displacement." RECLAIMING HISTORY THE WILLIAMS FAMILY Owners, Lamb's Yacht Center / Jacksonville, Fla. For years, Peggy Sue Williams had seen the marina her father, Bronson Lamb, started in 1960 sink further and further into decline. A well-known landmark in Jacksonville, Lamb's Yacht Center was sold in 2003 to owners who were never able to make a go of it, especially as the recession hit. With a slowing boat- ing industry, maintenance and upkeep was deferred. The situation only got worse as boaters took their business elsewhere. "I'm a huge boater and I just hated to see it in such bad shape and I hated to see it going downhill," Williams said. In March, Williams and her husband decided to do something about it – buying the busi- ness back with the goal of restoring it to its past glory. It became a family affair as the couple's three daughters came back to help with the business as well. Nadia Williams left a corporate career in Dallas when her father asked her to come back and help run the yacht center. "We'd been thinking about it for years," she said. "It was hard to see something with your family name on it being neglected." From landscaping to roofing to paving to rebuilding the docks, there's plenty to be done to bring it up to where the family wants it. "We knew the facility itself and the employees had been neglected, but we didn't realize to what extent," Nadia Williams said. "We keep uncovering things. You work on one project and realize there's three other things involved." The work won't be fast or easy, but in a few months it has already paid dividends, with community members and boaters coming back to the marina. People from throughout the community have pitched in to help restore the facility, Peggy Sue Williams said. "We're all working toward getting it back and making it a good spot that you'll want to bring your boat and store it," she said. The situation had gotten so bad that employees were embarrassed to wear Lamb Yacht Center shirts in the community, Nadia Williams said. "We want to bring back the pride that the family name used to have," she said. "The goal right now is to fix it back up and let the community know the family is back in it, the heart is back in it."