It is with great sadness that we have learned of the disappearance of a great figure in French nautical industries.
 

Yves Roucher, who founded Alubat Chantier Naval, and was President of the Grand Pavois La Rochelle - International Boat Show afloat - and of the Fédération des Industries Nautiques, died on Wednesday, January 8, 2020, at the age of 74. 

Yves Roucher founded the Alubat shipyard in 1974, with the launch of Vodka, the prototype of the very first Ovni, the Ovni 25, an aluminium-keeled sailing yacht. Then, the OVNI 31 soon enlarged the range, but as a weighted lifting keel boat. After that, the OVNI 28, launched in 1978, was the first aluminium lifting keel boat and although it had a bilge keel, it did set the tone for the next designs.

Later, in 1994, the yard started to build keel yachts, represented today by the Cigale range.

In parallel to aluminium, Yves Roucher was also interested in composite technologies, by joining forces with Didier le Moal to market the American J Boats in France, before buying the Kirié shipyard, builder of the Feeling, then bankrupt.

In parallel to his involvement in boating, a sector that he left in the mid-2000s when he sold his shipyards, Yves Roucher was also an elected official committed to his town, Les Sables d'Olonne, where he was deputy mayor in Louis Guédon's team, in charge of... boating industries... before being elected mayor in 2014, by 82 votes!