The much awaited marine carnival organized by Marine BizTV took its form at Le Meridian on 14 December 2008 with the inaugural International Boating Awards 08’, Kochi witnessed the launch of this one of its kind awards in the subcontinent. This first time boating awards are constituted to honor the outstanding contributions and craftsmanship of the boating and yachting industry. Awards pertaining to seventeen most important categories of the boating sector were included in this first edition of awards that included two special awards for the ‘Best Boating and Yachting Personality of the Year’ and ‘Safeguarding the Environment’. IBA ’08 also witnessed the ‘Blog Launch’ (http://www.sailorsdiary.com) of our Hollywood venture "DAM" directed By Mr. Sohan Roy and the Maritime Film Festival "Ocean Blue", scheduled to be held from Dec 17-22. Mr. Sohan Roy, CEO, Marine BizTV and Aries Group of Companies delivered the presidential address. The award nite offered a mesmerizing visual treat for all the eyes gathered with dazzling performances including various cultural programs and traditional art forms of Kerala.
The event was graced by the presence of prominent figures both in the boat and film industry. Gulu Lalvani, founder and chairman of Binatone, the world’s second largest manufacturer of digital cordless phones added an extra dimension to the event, who also walked away with the ‘Best Boating and Yachting Personality of the Year’ award bestowed for his exceptional interest in Boating and Yachting. Mr. Gulu Lalvani is the 4th richest man from UK. His assets also include the £32m Royal Phuket Marina in Thailand and have completed its first phase. He was also recently featured in the article of Millionaire Asia. The other special jury award for ‘Safeguarding the Environment’ was carried away by HELMEPA. Dr. Peter Jansen, International Marina Committee (IMC), Germany, who is also a prominent name in the boating industry was the Chief Guest for IBA ’08.
Other winners included Gulf Craft awarded for the category of Best Yachting Video; Asia Pacific Boating for Best Boating media, Volvo for Best Marine Engine Manufacturer, Choguku Marine Paints for Best Yacht Paint, Club Privada for Yacht Club Of The Year, Royal Langawaki for Marina of the Year, Asia Marine for Best Charter Company, Marine Solutions for Best Yacht Management Services, Pershing for Most Innovative Interior, Azimuth for Most Innovative Yacht Design of the Year, Marcopolo, Fincantieri Yachts for Innovative Product, Princess Yachts for Best Motor Yacht (30-80 Ft), Oceanco for Best Mega Yacht Builder (over 100 Ft) and Ferreti Yachts (Marine Solutions) for Best Yacht Manufacturer,
The jury for IBA ’08 included distinguished personalities from the Boating and the Yachting industry like Till F. Braun, Dipl.-Ing., M.IME(I), C/E, Germanischer Lloyd AG, Hamburg/Germany; Dr. Peter Jansen, Architects-Consultants, JANSEN MENN AC; Chris Hughes, Chief Operating Officer, Boattest,US and Simon J Arrol, Director Technical, Marina India. The nominees were selected through online voting and the winners were selected from the shortlisted final nominees by the jury. Boat India ’08- international conference on Boating and Yachting was inaugurated at Hotel Taj Residency on 15 December 2008. The conference was inaugurated by Mr. Gulu Lalvani at 9.00 am and Boat India Expo, the premier boating and lifestyle exhibition was inaugurated at 9.15 am by Mr. Eel Kent, Managing Director, Oceanco. Mr. Sohan Roy, CEO, Marine BizTV and Aries Group of Companies delivered the presidential address. Nearly 150 delegates from various part of the world gathered for the boating conference. There were two sessions included for the first day of the conference. The topic for the first session was Marine and Leisure Infra structure and the second session was Advanced Technologies in Boating. The papers presented for the first day included Marinas are Fundamental, Quality requirement for Marinas, Cruise Tourism In India-Is there any Prospects, RTA marine and its future prospects, New Technologies in Marine Electronics, An Update on the current Antifouling Paint Technology, Evaluating the performance and Cost of Infusion and Boat Propulsion solutions By Suzuki. The first session was chaired by Capt. T. J. Mathew, MFS India, and the second by Till Braun, Senior Executive Manager of Sales projects from Germanischer Lloyd, Germany. The mega event was sponsored by Phoenix Marine. Delegate Kit was sponsored by Mech Marine Engineers Pvt. Ltd. And the badges were sponsored by Marine Solutions.
The second day of Boat India ’08 resumed at 9.00am. The two sessions of the conference was enlightened with papers such as Leisure Boating-Emerging Market & market trends In India, Marketing and International Opportunities for Boat Manufacturers-The Indian context, The Business of Yacht Racing - In India, Leading a marketing revolution in India and Emerging market & market trends in Inland & River-Sea vessels under the topic Marketing Opportunities & Trends in Boating & Yachting Industry and papers like Yacht Insurance, The importance of Safety & Training in India’s Leisure Boating Industry, Unveiled : The Market Potential of Snake Boats under general topic. Like the previous day, all the exhibition stalls were open till 6.00pm to the public. Mr. Sohan Roy, CEO, Marine BizTV and Aries Group of Companies presided over the conference .The morning session was chaired by Ashim Mongia, Managing Director, West Coast Marine Yacht Services Pvt. Ltd. and the afternoon session by Gamini Herath, Managing Director, Boat Technology Improvement Institute Lanka Ltd.
Delegates representing all part of the world confirmed their attendance for the conference and exhibition. Asia’s largest solar boat, Bay liner of Navnit Marine etc. that lined up in the marina of Hotel Taj was some of the major attraction for the exhibition. The introduction of Digi Booth for the first time in the subcontinent was another remarkable achievement of Boat India ’08. Digital booth is a cutting edge technological concept to offer simplified business solutions right on the show floor. Boat India ‘08 was supported by Aries International Interiors LLC along with Germanischer Lloyd, HELMEPA – Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association, NIWS and Malabar Yacht Club. Idea was associated as Official Communication Partner for the event and Club FM as Official Radio Partner. Other official media partners associated with the event were Asia Pacific Boating, India Boating, China Boating, DVV Media Group, The Marine World, Yachting Times, Logistics Management, Swiss Boat Yachting, Boote Exclusiv, Yacht, Boote and Boat Exclusive. Boat India 08 also had Yachts India and Trade India as E Media Partners and Going to Meet as E Event Partner. The live telecast of all the events was available on http://live.marinebiztv.com/.
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Email: boatindia@marinebiztv.com
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