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Four Seasons Yachts assembles on-site newbuild team

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From left, Mark Green, Eleonora Brugnolotto, Richard Karlsson, Ernest Katnic and Lenny Ågren
CEO Larry Pimentel calls Four Seasons Yachts' on-site newbuild team 'the quality-control mechanism and the eyes and ears of the owners.'

Jan Sorensen, head of site team operations, is 'a great guy building an exceptional team,' Pimentel said. 'This is a project of passion with a specific vision. They're interpreting the vision.'

$4.2m per suite

At a cost of $4.2m-plus per suite, 'We will be delivering something unique,' he continued. 'The hull and machinery will be a cruise ship. The hotel will be 100 percent a yacht.'

Currently based at Fincantieri headquarters in Trieste, when construction starts, the site team will be domiciled at the Ancona shipyard, where luxury vessels are built. Ultimately there will be 16 to 18 people in the group.

Since Pimentel's Marc-Henry Cruise Holdings, owner and joint operator of Four Seasons Yachts, is creating a product for ultra-high-net-worth individuals from around the world, he's pleased the newbuild team is diverse, too. Sorensen is Danish, and the five leaders recently onboarded hail from the UK, Italy, Finland, Croatia and Sweden.

Mark Green

Senior Hotel Technical & Outfitting Superintendent Mark Green has a deep shipbuilding history. He began his career at Kvaerner Masa-Yards in Helsinki in 1995 and Aker Finnyards in Turku, responsible for outfitting the hotel areas for Carnival and Royal Caribbean newbuilds. In 2002, he joined Carnival’s on-site newbuild team and spent the next 20 years facilitating deliveries at shipyards around the world.

Green has represented a wide array of brands including Costa Cruises, Princess, AIDA, P&O, Cunard, Norwegian Cruise Line, Crystal Cruises, Holland America Line and, most recently, The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection.

Eleonora Brugnolotto

Eleonora Brugnolotto, senior interior & accommodation superintendent, brings more than 20 years of experience in passenger shipping. Educated in architecture and construction technique, initially she specialized in building materials and technologies for large-scale, land-based infrastructure projects, then applied her skills and expertise to ships.

Brugnolotto led the outfitting of Costa and Carnival ships and the maintenance in operation of the Costa fleet. She also served as design director for Crystal Cruises, playing a key role in newbuild development and refurbishment.

Richard Karlsson

Richard Karlsson, senior electrical superintendent, began his career nearly three decades ago onboard cruise ships, working his way up to chief electrical engineer. He sailed for Star Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line.

Karlsson honed his skills on NCL’s newbuild team and has since worked on major projects for Crystal Cruises and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection.

Ernest Katnic

Ernest Katnic, senior machinery superintendent, served as a chief engineer at Crystal Cruises and Genting Hong Kong, where he spent most of his career. He helped lead engineering efforts in the construction of expedition ship Crystal Endeavor (now Silver Endeavour), with involvement from the beginning of construction to its first sailing in Antarctica.

In addition to being a professional diver, Katnic has been a yacht master and skipper on motor and sailing ships. His engineering interest took him first to cargo vessels, then to passenger ships.

Lennart Ågren

Lenny Ågren, senior HVAC superintendent, joined Four Seasons Yachts with 22 years of experience in heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. He has worked aboard a number of cruise ships and managed HVAC projects for a diverse range of clients around the world.

Most recently, Ågren was involved in the construction of Crystal Endeavor, Global Dream, Genting Dream and World Dream as HVAC superintendent. Earlier he served as HVAC inspector during Norwegian Epic's construction. His first role was refrigeration engineer with Star Cruises more than two decades ago.

See also 'Four Seasons Yachts bulks up its shoreside team'