“Continuous revolutions in shipbuilding” / INTERVIEW
Genoa - Marco de Jorio, with his father, Giuseppe and his brother, Vittorio, is at the head of one of the most important global pools for naval architecture.
“THE DIMENSIONS are changing, the taste of our clientele is changing. But design will remain the strongest aspect of the personality of a ship.” Marco de Jorio, with his father, Giuseppe and his brother, Vittorio, is at the head of one of the most important global pools for naval architecture. The shipowner Gianluigi Aponte (MSC) has called on them for years, but also over the years de Jorio’s Genoese office has designed over 200 projects, creating everything from ferries for Tirrenia, Grimaldi and Minoan, to Costa fleet ships and mega yachts.
In the last 15 years you have been the most important player in an authentic revolution. How do you deal with all of these changes?
“The cruise ship market has really changed quite a lot. Mainly it has broadened its user segment: all one has to do is think of the entrance of its Asian clientele. Then there was the competitiveness factor, which obliged the shipowners to provide a wealth of services that were unimaginable until a few years ago. Today on board a ship there are areas, but I would call them ‘neighbourhoods’ for each age group: no one is excluded, children from zero to three years to slightly older clients. The entertainment areas have increased in size, the gastronomic offerings have been refined in terms of personal health. At one point we called cruise ships ‘floating cities’ and everyone knew that the expression was a bit rhetorical. Look: today we could truly talk about ships that look less and less like hotels and more like cities.”