Interview with 360a3 Сhief Tecnology Officer Pedro Ponce Ballesteros

Good Afternoon, Pedro. First, let's talk a little about your experience and connection to the shipyard world and yachting.

I have almost 30 years of experience in the maritime sector. I’ve collaborated with the naval engineering office. Afterwards I’ve worked with several shipyards and engineering offices. For the last 8-10 years I have been working in the field of yacht repair. We are talking about yachts up to 30-40 meters in length. And I work in this field to this day. For 30 years I have been connected to the world of yachts.

How did you come to the company “360ª3”? Why have you decided to work with Mikhael and Rostislav?

I was working in the field of yacht repair and reform. I met Rostislav for the first time when he was my client. After speaking with him, we both understood that we have to make a new shipyard business. We understood the need to do it in a different, unorthodox way – focusing on customer service and quality. Then I met Mikhael, and we launched the business.

Let's talk about the development of the company. 360ª3 has changed a lot. What exactly has changed?

Initially 360º3 did repair work only. But after some time we noticed that the market was inclining towards another sector. So we moved a little more towards construction. From there arose the construction of the 360ª3 sailmaker. Now we are thinking about starting construction projects for passenger catamarans. And there are other ships that we plan to work on in the future. It is much more interesting for us to do construction work rather than to dedicate ourselves to only repairs and maintenance. This sector has a lot of competition, and want to differentiate ourselves from other companies. We will continue with the repairs and maintenance, but our main goal is to construct medium sized sailboats of outstanding quality.

And speaking about differences between 360ª3 and its competitors - what are these differences?

The quality. We are now preparing the facilities to operate focusing on quality.

What do you consider to be the most outstanding projects that 360ª3 already has in its portfolio?

We've done some interesting renovation works. We have done some exceptional woodwork on a ship built in 1986. We have done some painting works. We also worked on “Esmeralda”, a sailboat that competed in the 2018 Golden Globe Race. Right now our main focus is to modernize several catamarans, but we have many more side projects we are currently working on.

What are the company’s targets for the future?

We are finishing the organization of all of the company’s departments to achieve the highest quality standards. We standardize the quality control of the works, and we are collaborating with several quality control companies. I am talking about the painting systems and carpentry. 360a3 is and will be offering high-quality services without much extra cost.

We are also constructing the sailboat "Zefir", one of our most interesting projects in my opinion. After finishing the construction of this boat, we will bring it to the fairs and regatas to offer the project to our potential clients.

We are planning to collaborate with universities, boat fairs, refit companies and suppliers. We will open a research department to discover new ways of building as well as new materials.

Well, is there anything you would like to say to the potential clients who might read this interview?

Come and test us! You will find that 360ª3 will meet your expectations and offer the highest quality of construction and maintenance.

Goodbye, it was a pleasure speaking with you. Thank you very much.