Cruise & Ferry Interiors 2020

8 4 MSC Cruises’ newbuild team is currently working on a project to build MSC Europa, the first of the line’s five new LNG-fuelled World-class ships DES IGN PERSPECTI VE Taking ships from paper to the seas Developing new ships for MSC Cruises is challenging, but it can be achieved with a strong design vision, careful consideration of operational requirements and plenty of collaboration D esigning and building a new cruise ship for MSC Cruises is always a formidable, but exciting, challenge. Not only must every ship be innovative, elegant and offer a unique and memorable guest experience, but each one must also be built and designed to meet specific safety, technical and budget requirements. MSC Cruises’ newbuild department, which is based in the UK, is responsible for managing the projects to design, develop and construct all new vessels in the company’s order book – and for maintaining and revitalising the whole fleet. To do this, we must liaise with our headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland to understand the vessel’s operational needs and what type of onboard experience we want to deliver to our future guests. We also work very closely with other technical departments and coordinate the development of the project with the relevant shipyard. Initially, our newbuild department oversees what we call ‘The Platform’ of the vessel, working with the shipyard to outline the major operational needs, such as the required number of cabins, restaurants and other main features. As part of this, we analyse the floor plans to ensure that the guest flow between the different venues will work perfectly throughout a 24-hour period. We must do the same for the crew members to ensure they can easily carry out their tasks and operate the ship. At this stage, we also outline safety, technical and material restrictions. Once the design for the main body of the ship has been agreed, we engage third-party designers to create the public By Antonio Di Nenno, MSC Cruises