Our yard in Brest stands on Quai Malbert in the commercial port. The workshop is modern and glazed so the public can see us at work. We can accommodate classic yachts and historic vessels up to 100 tons. Each trade (carpentry, joinery, electrical engineering) has its own specific area in the workshop.
The Lorient yard was set up specifically for the rebuild of the tuna fishing boat Biche. A boat hoist in the adjoining fishing port (port de Lorient–Keroman) allows us to accommodate all types of vessel up to 600 tons.
A team work at our yard on Île-aux-Moines, in the magnificent natural setting of Anse de Penhap.
There we specialize in building and restoring traditional boats and small yachts.
Boats can over-winter at the yard either outside on a large 2,700 square-metre standing-ground or under cover in a 300 square-metre shed.
The Lorient yard was set up specifically for the rebuild of the tuna fishing boat Biche. A boat hoist in the adjoining fishing port (port de Lorient–Keroman) allows us to accommodate all types of vessel up to 600 tons.
A team work at our yard on Île-aux-Moines, in the magnificent natural setting of Anse de Penhap.
There we specialize in building and restoring traditional boats and small yachts.
Boats can over-winter at the yard either outside on a large 2,700 square-metre standing-ground or under cover in a 300 square-metre shed.
“Only a sailor can build seaworthy boats”, says Yann Mauffret, manager of Guip Shipyard. A dedicated shipwright, every day Yann can be found in the workshop or with his team on the deck of some boat. Whenever he can make the time, he takes Seagull his thirty foot gaff cutter out for a sail. So far he has sailed her to Scotland, Galicia and the Azores.
YANN MAUFFRET
History
It all began in 1976 in Anse du Guip, a small cove in the Morbihan. It was there, on a piece of land between the beach and the moors, that Francis Duwez laid the foundations for Guip Shipyard.The Nicolas Benoit
In 1981 Paul Bonnel joined the existing team of Yann Mauffret and Alex Abarrategui and together they took on the yard. That same year Guip Shipyard made a name for itself with the first rebuild of an historic vessel, the Nicolas Benoit, a traditional Morbihan lugger known as a sinagot.La Recouvrance
Passionate about their work and prepared for any challenge, the team were hungry for a major project. They found it in La Recouvrance, a replica of an early nineteenth century schooner, whose construction propelled the yard into a second key phase in its development. The forty-one metre schooner was commissioned by Brest City Council for launch at its traditional boat festival in 1992. Since then La Recouvrance has been a goodwill ambassador for the city. The schooner’s launch attracted huge crowds and media attention, marking a turning point for the shipyard. Thenceforth Yann Mauffret took charge of the Brest yard, which was set up especially for the building of La Recouvrance, while Paul Bonnel remained at the helm on Île-aux-Moines. In 1992, in recognition of its work in the preceding decade, Guip Shipyard was awarded the Trophée du Bois for shipwrighting and first prize in the competition Bateaux des côtes de France.Historic vessels
With two yards at its disposal, “Le Guip” set about adding an impressive list of new builds and rebuilds to its name. These included historic craft such as Morbihan sinagot luggers, Guépard one-designs, two catboats typical of the Bigouden region of Brittany, the lobster boat Corbeau des Mers (listed on France’s register of historic vessels), and the Scottish cutter Seagull. Two notable additions to the list, La Belle Angèle and Grand Norven, the latter a sardine boat from Piriac, were built for a competition organized by French magazine Le Chasse-Marée. After a year of restoration works the dandy-rigged coaster Notre Dame de Rumengol, listed on France’s register of historic vessels, was launched before a large crowd during the boat festival Brest 96. There followed the Lake Geneva lateeners La Savoie and Neptune, the scallop boat Bergère de Domrémi, and many others..Fishing boats
From the very beginning Guip Shipyard has enjoyed the confidence of professional mariners. The Île-aux-Moines yard has built six multi-purpose fishing boats for ports such as Douarnenez and Saint-Brévin. In 2007 the Brest yard launched a state-of-the-art trawler for the port of Saint Guénolé.Classic yachts
In addition to workboats Guip Shipyard has rebuilt and restored a number of vessels from the golden age of yachting. Among the most prestigious of a long list are Hispania IV, an 8-metre class once belonging to King Alfonso XIII of Spain; Pen Coat, a Norwegian boat built by Fife in 1905; Vanity V a 12-metre class Fife from 1936; and more recently Wings, a 12-metre class built by Camper & Nicholson in 1937. In 2004 Guip Shipyard was commissioned to rebuild the deck of another famous Fife, Pen Duick.With a passion for the sea, maritime heritage and wood, Guip Shipyard intends to make traditional shipwrighting a trade of the twenty-first century.