News has reached us detailing the death of Guy Couach on January 6th at the age of 88.
With his departure goes a personality that has profoundly influenced the history of French yachting over the last 40 years.
Born in 1926, he became an icon in French nautical history. The grandson of Albert Couach, founder of the famous Couach marine engines in 1897.
Guy joined the family business and was the first to initiate industrial-scale production of boats, laying the foundations for mass production of motorboats in 1946.
In 1962 he founded the Guy Couach shipyard, for the manufacture of boats using composite materials.
In 1970, the shipyard built the first ever yacht made from Aramat, a kevlar-based composite material.
From this moment on, the shipyard based in Gujan-Mestras on the Arcachon bay has given its name to several hundred yachts known worldwide for their high performance hulls.
Guy Couach continued to head the company and design models until 1986.
The Couach shipyard, purchased in 2011 by Nepteam, a regional investment group, remains specialised in the manufacture of 20 to 50 metre luxury yachts made with composite materials including patrol and rescue boats for:
- National navies
- Customs
- Coastguard services