Keeping it in the Family

Naval architect Ed Beckett has joined the Technical Services division of super yacht specialist Burgess where his father Jonathan is CEO.
Ed moves from Lloyd’s Register, where he initially completed a graduate programme covering topics such as ship structures, stability, load line and tonnage, fire and safety, and emergency response. This was followed by a permanent role at Lloyd’s as a plan approval specialist focusing on fire and safety aspects of large yachts and passenger ships.
His first class master’s degree in Marine Technology with honours in Naval Architecture, combined with his experience at Lloyd’s, make Ed well qualified to take on the challenges of large, complex construction projects at Burgess Technical Services.
The sea runs through young Beckett’s veins. Not only has he excellent academic credentials and a strong career foundation at Lloyd’s Register, he is also a qualified Yachtmaster and windsurfing instructor who has crossed the Atlantic twice in sailing yachts of about 12 metres and has competed in the Newport to Bermuda Race.
Beckett senior says: “Burgess has always felt like a family company since it was founded in 1975 by Nigel Burgess. I’ve been here for more than 30 years and although we’ve grown into a global organisation across ten offices, the team spirit and that feeling of camaraderie and fellowship is still very much alive. I feel especially proud at seeing another generation Beckett come into the business, this gives me an immense sense of pleasure and satisfaction. The reality is that Ed joins as just one of our 140 experts covering all aspects of the superyacht experience and I’m proud of them all.”
Burgess currently has yachts of a collective length of more than 1,000 metres under construction and development, including several Passenger Yacht Code-compliant yachts. Two projects each over 100 metres were signed by Burgess last year, one of which will be the largest yacht ever built in The Netherlands.