The tropical weather and pristine waters of the Lower Keys play a big part in Walter Schurtenberger’s business, Multilhull Technologies Inc., builders of Constellation Yachts, 6811 Shrimp Road, on Stock Island. It is one of the few businesses in the Keys that is not greatly affected by the ups-and-downs in tourism trends.

As the worldwide economic crisis threatens tourism, Schurtenberger said his Keys business expects a small decline in business as even the luxury boat owners are tightening their belts and taking a wait-and-see approach to the future.

“We don’t get many tourists buying our boats,” Schurtenberger laughed during a recent tour of his Shrimp Road construction site. “But we do put a few heads in beds, when customers come to contract with us and then follow with visits during construction of their yachts.”

Construction of the large boats can take a year or longer to complete, he said.

Schurtenberger, a native of Switzerland came to the United States via shipbuilding apprenticeships in England and Canada, and will become a naturalized American citizen later this year.

In 1993 Schurtenberger began his local business by building two boats from space he rented at Robbie’s Marina, a few blocks down Shrimp Road from where he works now.

“I found a better location on No Name Key and worked there from 1996 – ’97,” he said from the aft section of one of his two current yachts. “After Hurricane Georges, in 1998, I bought this lot and basically worked in a temporary building under a tarp.”

Today, Constellation Yachts builds multi-hulled sailboats within a cavernous million-dollar building that was constructed in 2006 to withstand 150-mile winds. Its size, 105-feet-by-120-feet by 35-feet high, allows the crew to construct two yachts at a time.

“No Name Key was a good yard, but it was out of the way for my employees and difficult for the crane to get into,” Schurtenberger said, as he stepped down into a large catamaran pontoon that will hold an office, head and bedroom when completed. “This location is zoned for marine, so it works better all around for the staff and me.”

And, cranes are important because Schurtenbeger’s company builds multimillion dollar, hi-tech yachts, exceeding 50-feet in length. Size and weight require a crane to lift the completed yacht and move it the few hundred feet to the Safe Harbor basin where masts and rigging are installed.

Schurtenberger designs many of the yachts he builds, but will work with other marine architect’s designs.

We build large, ocean-going yachts and our specialty is using a mixture of resin, carbon fiber, and Fiber Glass,” he said. “It makes a boat that is both light and strong. We always build to strength to withstand the elements of the open water. Lightweight equals performance, which means it will be fast and economical.”

Schurtenberger pointed out that the power-to-weight ratio gives performance to cars and planes, as well as boats, and it brings fuel economy, which is a growing concern for everyone today.

“We also use a foam core sandwiched in between the other layers to help with rigidity as well as for flotation purposes,” he said, holding a small square sample of the honeycombed product. “It helps make the boat unsinkable.”

The specialized construction also explains why yachts Schurtenberger builds go into the million-dollar range. Fiber Glass costs an average of $3 per pound, while carbon fiber is $30 per pound, he said.

“Our boats are made at a much higher standard that production line boats,” he said, rapping his fist against a pontoon. “Our average price, recently, has been about $3.5 million and the length has been 70-feet.”

While production line boats are made using one mold repeatedly, each of Schurtenberger’s boats has its own mold, helping make the yacht unique.

Schurtenberger said his usual customer has had two or more production yachts before coming to him. Since he works from the plans, often designing them himself, he learns the owner’s quirks and, in most cases, is able to complement them into the design.

“These people know what they want,” he said, “and can pay for it. It might be where they want the heads located or the galley or a large-screen TV.”

Schurtenberger has put 40-inch TVs, washer, and driers on his yachts, per the whims of owners.

“More recently, we have been building our yachts as green as possible,” he said. “And the owners all want it too, because along with being politically correct, it saves money in the long run.”

Schurtenberger pointed at an empty space on one of the yachts under construction and said an air-conditioning unit would go there and it and other appliances on the yacht would run off solar and wind power.

“We install two small diesels to help get the yacht in and out of the harbor and for the doldrums,” he said, referring to when the winds die, leaving sailboat listless without a motor.

Also included in the greening of Constellation Yachts is a water desalinization system that turns saltwater into freshwater and onboard sewage treatment.“ We started the greening a couple of years ago, because the technology became available,” Schurtenberger said. “Everyone wants it and it’s good for all of us.”

Mike O’Dell, from Oakton, Va., recently brought his 57-foot Pilot Cruiser back to Constellation Yachts for an inspection and upgrades.

“I wanted a boat with all the comforts available,” O’Dell said. “I interviewed a few builders before meeting Walter at the boat builder’s trade show in Fort Lauderdale.”

A friend introduced Schurtenberger to O’Dell and he remembers Schurtenberger was wearing a Multihull T-shirt promoting multihulled sailboats.

“My plans were for a powerboat, designed by naval architect Capt. Iver Franzen, so I wasn’t sure where this would go,” he laughed. “Because of all the bells and whistles I wanted, I also wanted a light boat, for fuel efficiency.”

Schurtenberger took a copy of O’Dell’s plans back to Stock Island and talked to his crew, and they decided the challenge of a powerboat was appealing and different. He went back to O’Dell with building ideas that included construction using Kevlar, carbon fiber, foam core and epoxy resins, which resulted in the lightweight, seaworthy, and fuel-efficient boat O’Dell wanted.

“I was impressed with how much Walter did and with such limited space,” O’Dell said.

The 57-foot Pilot Cruiser ended up with 15,000-feet of cable by the time all of O’Dell’s bells and whistles were installed, Schurtenberger said.

Schurtenberger runs his business with the help of office manager Diane Savicky and an average of 20 workers, all with specialty talents in boat building.

“I’ve built a lot of boats,” he said from beneath one of the 70-foot catamarans under construction at his site, “but I’m looking forward to the day I can design and build a hundred-footer. That would be a dream come true.”

For relaxation, Schurtenberger races his motorcycles.

www.constellationyachts.com