About
History
“Our design work is backed by our solid racing and cruising tradition at sea and a clear understanding of the enjoyment and peace of mind that life on board yields, which can be taken to a higher degree by the beauty and functionality of the design.”
German Frers
Frers Naval Architecture & Engineering design office life spans for almost a century, since 1925, when Germán Frers Sr. started his career in Buenos Aires and proceeded to design nearly 600 yachts of all types for the South American clientele. Frers designs gained fame during forays to Europe and North America, winning prizes in the RORC races in Europe and Bermuda Race in the USA.
Germán, his son, took charge of the office in 1970, after returning from a training period in the USA working with Olin and Rod Stephens at their office in New York, and expanded the business and racing successes to the rest of the world.
More than 1300 designs have been produced to date by the company based in Buenos Aires.
Frers yachts have won every major trophy around the world including the Admiral´s Cup, Bermuda Race, Transpac, Whitbread Round the World Race, SORC, Kenwood Cup, San Francisco Big Boat Series, the Two Ton Cup, Maxi World Championships, ILC championships, Louis Vuitton Cup on two occasions, among others.
The third generation, Germán “Mani” Frers joined the studio in Milan in 1992, after graduating from the Southampton Institute and today continues with the tradition working from Milan independently.
Frers has been at the cutting technological edge of the sport during all this time. The latest computer solutions are used at the studio, like Siemens NX 3D CAD, FEA and CFD while extensive tank-testing programs are developed to further optimize power and sail hull forms.
The technology supports the knowledge and deep understanding of boats which are only present after decades of sailing and design experience.
Team
Germán Frers
CEO and principal designer
Germán took charge of the office in 1970. He’s involved on all the aspects of each design, from hull lines, to appendages, aesthetics, sail and structure. Germán is frequently traveling to meet clients and sail our design around the world.
Juan Gadea
Marine Engineer
Juan entered the office in 1994, after graduating as a Marine Engineer from Universidade de São Paulo in Brazil. He’s responsible for 2D and 3D integral design, VPP, team organization and client support. Juan also assists Germán on meetings with clients, social events, boatshows and tank testings. He’s frequently cruising and racing on Náutico II, a recently Frers designed 60’ ketch. Juan holds an MBA from UTDT University.
Martin Busch
Naval Architect
Martin grew up racing in different dinghies from a young age. He participated in several offshore racing as well as inshore racing keelboats as helmsman/tactician around the world. He finished first at several International Soling Class national and south-american championships together with 4 podiums at World Championships. After studying marine engineering at Universidad de Buenos Aires, Martin was hired by FNA in 2001. He was involved with America’s Cup Victory Challenge 2007 campaign as a Frers office member. He’s responsible for 2D and 3D integral design.
Luca Greca
Naval Architect
He graduated from Universidad de Quilmes as Naval Architect and joined the studio in 2021, where he’s responsible for 2D and 3D integral design, structural and stability calculations