Press Releases

For Immediate Release 04-11

Contacts: Caroline Chetelat, (410) 956-1050, x22 cchetelat@abycinc.org

By upgrading to ABYC Corporate Benefactor member, both Brunswick and Genmar will help provide the financial support needed for ABYC to continue developing industry standards and workforce training and professional development programs.

Skip Burdon, ABYC President said, "Both Brunswick and Genmar have been long-time supporters of ABYC." "We are delighted that they decided to step up to the benefactor level," continued Burdon. "The support of all members, especially our benefactors enables ABYC to move much more rapidly on projects that are critical to the marine industry and boating safety," concluded Burdon.

Brunswick Boat Group has been an ABYC member since 1978 and Genmar has been an ABYC member since 1993. Both organizations participate on numerous project technical committees (PTC's), consistently support and even host on-site ABYC educational seminars and workshops for their employees and encourage the use of consensus-based standards throughout the marine industry.

Dave Marlow, Director of Product Integrity for Brunswick Boat Group said, "Ensuring safety and a positive boating experience is a way of life for everyone in the Brunswick family." "By participating in the NMMA Boat & Yacht Certification program, using the ABYC standards in the development and production of all our boats, and having our workforce take advantage of all of ABYC's educational offerings, we are demonstrating our commitment to providing a safe end-product for our customers," continued Marlow. "ABYC provides the industry with invaluable tools to make boating safer, and that is why we have continued our support of ABYC and its programs for so long," concluded Marlow.

Marcia Kull, Senior VP of Operations for Genmar Holdings, Inc. said, "Our ultimate concern at Genmar is for the safety and satisfaction of our customers. We can attain this goal by delivering boats to our customers that are designed in accordance with safety standards that address the current state of the art for safe boat design and construction." Many buyers have differing priorities when choosing a new boat. However, when it comes to safety, we want consumers to be assured that all Genmar boats are 'NMMA Certified using ABYC Standards." continued Kull. "Using ABYC standards in the design and manufacture of our boats is our first step in providing a safe and enjoyable boating experience for the boating public," concluded Kull.

About Brunswick Boat Group
Headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., the Brunswick Boat Group is a manufacturer and marketer of Sea Ray, Bayliner, Maxum, Hatteras, Meridian and Sealine pleasure boats; Baja high-performance boats; Boston Whaler and Trophy offshore fishing boats; Crestliner, Lowe, Lund and Princecraft aluminum fishing deck and pontoon boats; Attwood marine parts and accessories and Land 'N' Sea marine parts and accessories distributor. For more information, visit www.brunswick.com.

About Genmar Holdings, Inc.
Genmar is the marine industry's technological leader with the development of VEC^™ Technology and the VEC-Shield^™ finish, the Roplene® process, the Genmar FirstMate^™ customer care service and the Genmar Integrated Vessel System. Genmar boat brands include Aquasport®, Carver®, Champion®, Four Winns®, Glastron®, Hydra-Sports®, Larson®, Ranger®, Seaswirl®, Stratos®, Triumph®, Wellcraft®, and Windsor Craft^™. For more information visit www.genmar.com.

About ABYC
ABYC has been developing, writing and updating the safety standards for boat building and repair in the United States for 50 years. ABYC is actively involved with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as well as certification programs for marine technicians. These standards are available on CD-ROM and in printed form. Membership and general information can be requested by calling (410) 956-1050 or by visiting the ABYC web site at www.abyinc.org.