Yacht Armouring

Military grade armour for yachts

Expert system house for yacht armouring

MKU is an experienced and expert system house for yacht armouring which uses patented technologies and techniques developed over 3 decades of R&D efforts. We work with yacht owners, designers, naval architects, and ship yards to offer military grade, advanced light weight armouring solutions for uncompromised protection of critical areas and panic rooms on yachts. We offer end to end solutions and complete project management for design, development, manufacturing and integration of these armour solutions in tailor made configurtions as per the requirement of the client.

Risks - Marine Piracy, personal attacks, thefts and burglary

Yachts are a soft and extremely lucrative target for pirates at sea and, criminals when docked at the port, particularly due to their low freeboard, slower speeds and perceived high value. A yacht is an expensive asset, the crew, the owner and his family & guests, on board are even more valuable. Their security and safety cannot be overlooked or compromised.

At sea, marine piracy, though on the decline, is still quite a potent threat that cannot be, and cannot not be ignored. There are enough notorious areas across the world which are high-risk areas.

When the yacht is docked at the port, the owners, being high net worth individuals, are constantly exposed to abduction threats and other criminal activities for financial rewards. They also often carry valuable art and collections which are exposed to theft and needs to be protected when the yachts are docked at ports and the owners are away for social and business reasons.

Armour solutions for fortification and safety on yachts

Yachts are designed as pleasure craft, they are not designed with an armed threat in mind. Armouring a yacht is a difficult and expensive affair keeping in mind the design of the yacht, the space available and the level of protection required. To protect the yacht and its occupants, it is important to know the most susceptible areas on board and to fortify them. Different areas can be secured differently. Protection can be designed with various levels of threats. While panic rooms can be secured with the highest level of protection, critical areas and their access points might need a different level of protection.

Panic Rooms

Fundamentally, a yacht in the high seas should be equipped with a containment area where self-help and protection can be accessed in emergency situations till help arrives. The demand and use of panic room has grown in the past couple of years. Also known as a safe room or Citadel, they serve as the last resort to escape from pirates on a yacht.

According to the IMO'S reports on merchant vessels attacked by pirates, in the majority of cases where these attacks have been foiled, the crew had retreated to a panic room and called for help. When the pirates realised they can't get to the crew or sail the boat, they give up and fled the scene.

In an unfortunate turn of events, if the pirates do board the yacht in spite of all evasive action, the occupants and the crew can be locked down in the panic room. Panic rooms are ideally made in a water tight, lockable section of the yacht (not the bridge). They should be resistant to firearms and fitted with separate ventilation systems and communication channels to communicate with the outside world. They should have controls to switch off the main and auxiliary engines and should be stocked with extra supplies of food, water, and first aid.

Critical areas on the boat

In the unfortunate event of a security breach on a yacht when at port, there are certain critical zones within the yacht which should remain elusive to criminals including the bridge, the owner's cabin or safes/vaults with valuable cargo, it is in best interests to secure such areas within the yacht with armour so that they cannot be accessed cheaply.

Benefits of light weight composite armour

Composite armour is the most advanced technology being deployed across the world in military and civilian spaces to protect valuable assets and people from firearms and other armed threats.

Efficient design capabilities

It is a challenging task to integrating ballistic armour into critical areas and complex corners of luxury yachts. The combination of soft and rigid composite armour allows us design efficiencies and capabilities to fortify and protect, even the most challenging areas with complex geometries within the yacht for uncompromised protection.

Better structural strength to weight ratio

The use of composite armour allows us to design protection with better strength to weight ratios. Our extensive experience in naval vessel armouring ensures that our armour solutions are developed after careful evaluation of all the all critical parameters including weight, thickness, and structural hindrances. These tailor made solutions are designed after taking into account all details and requirement and are backed with 100% customer satisfaction to date.

Seamless integration with luxury environments

A wide variety of finishing and treatments can be applied on composite armour to ensure that it discreetly merges into the yachts environment. Our design and integration team ensures that the enhanced protection designed for the yacht seamlessly integrates with the luxurious interiors and thematic of the boat.