Photo 1:Aft view of our completed console and seat covers. They taper to fit, and both covers have a zipper aft extending to the very top of the cover. These zippers are necessary with tapered covers so they can open like a clam shell to install. As many of our students and readers [...]

Safety Components of Greenville, S.C., has named Kevin Maine to work with marine, awning and other outdoor fabricators. Maine was previously a market research intern for Uniforms Express, an exclusive partner of Reebok, where he investigated the needs of university and high-school coaches. A graduate of North Carolina State University, he has a BS in [...]

In July, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to allow companies to write off more than half the cost of investments in the first year, providing a tax boost to businesses. The plan, passed 258-160, over the next decade, would reduce federal tax revenue by $287 billion, helping companies that regularly make capital investments. All but [...]

Bloomberg reports United Steelworkers President Leo Gerard and United States Steel Corp. Chief Executive Officer Mario Longhi have “lobbied” the Obama administration to impose duties on imports of Korean steel products that are “hurting” the U.S. industry. The pair allege steel from Korea is being sold below cost in the United States. The Commerce Department was [...]

A bipartisan group of lawmakers has asked the Obama administration to rethink plans to lower biofuel requirements in the Renewable Fuel Standard. Fifty-two members of the U.S. House of Representatives from 22 mostly rural states signed the June 26 letter. The legislators represent mostly farm states that benefit from the use of corn and other [...]

On-water repairs aren’t for everyone, but some fabricators are finding business to be lucrative. Question: Do you respond to your customers’ repair needs by hopping in your boat and going to their boats to do the work? Range of answers: “Sounds like fun” to “Nope” to “Oh my God!” Charles Klein, owner of Dorsal LLC [...]

The 2014 Progressive Insurance San Diego International Boat Show attracted more than 7,600 visitors throughout the four-day event, up 24 percent compared to 2013; the show also featured 20 percent more exhibit space. Nearly 125 local, national and international companies exhibited at the boat show, and many are reporting it was the most successful show on the [...]

President Barack Obama has signed the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) into law, marking the first water resources policy update in seven years. In addition to wetlands restoration, WRRDA authorizes $12.3 billion for harbor deepening and inland waterways projects nationwide.

A legal requirement that marine manufacturers have their warranty repair rates approved by the state’s oversight board was removed recently when Gov. Bobby Jindal signed SB 605 into law. The state Motor Vehicle Commission supported the change. The commission said it had not and did not want to enforce the cumbersome and redundant dealer-by-dealer approval process. The requirement [...]

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports Palm Beach County, Florida, saw an increase in new boat registrations of 14 percent for the year ending in March, according to Info-Link Technologies. An improving economy, attractive financing and people who are tired of waiting to buy are all cited as spurring new sales. New-boat registrations in Palm Beach County [...]