Italian Yachts Restoration. Possible tools for the ‘new’ business of nautical heritage

In Italy, the 80s saw the beginning of a re- born interest in nautical heritage. Year after year, ` old' activities such as traditional shipwright skills and boatyards working with wooden boats started to be reintroduced to the Italian entrepreneurship reality. Their new scope was no longer the construction of new wooden boats, but the restoration of those considered historical or with cultural importance. Restoration is a practice aiming to secure the future of objects of cultural importance. Until today, wooden boats have been restored according to the project designer's sensitivities. Rules or general indications do not exist. Thanks to the tool of ` design thinking' this research arrives at the proposal of ` guidelines for boat restoration', with a multiple purpose: being a tool for any designer working on the restoration of boats; adding value to those designers' work; activating opportunities for new entrepreneurship; and developing old entrepreneurship realities according to present needs.