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Expansion in Itajaí expands Fibrafort’s industrial structure and reinforces the Santa Catarina brand’s commitment to large-scale nautical production, with new finishing areas, heavy-duty handling equipment, and internal tests focused on technical control of the vessels.
Fibrafort expanded its industrial unit in Itajaí, Santa Catarina, in 2026, doubling the factory’s built area from approximately 10,000 m² to 20,000 m².
With this change, the shipyard aims to increase its production capacity for boats between 18 and 42 feet, in an operation that gained new technical areas and more structure for internal tests.
Known for the Focker line, the Santa Catarina manufacturer incorporated specific cabins for painting and sanding the Yacht line, as well as two overhead cranes with capacities of 10 and 20 tons.
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Within the same complex, the company also began to concentrate a testing area integrated into the production process, created to monitor the vessels before final release to customers.
Fibrafort Factory Doubles in Size in Santa Catarina
In the new manufacturing park, two internal pools and a third structure directly connected to the river allow the vessels to be evaluated within the industrial unit itself.
This configuration reduces the need for external displacements and provides more predictability to stages that depend on technical verification, final adjustments, and monitoring of the boats’ behavior in the water.
According to Revista Náutica, Fibrafort has 35 years of experience and over 19,000 vessels delivered to the market, numbers that help contextualize the expansion in Itajaí.
After surpassing 600 boats produced in 2025, the company aims to reach a production of a thousand vessels per year by 2032, supported by the physical and operational expansion of the plant.
Gazeta do Povo reported that the manufacturing park remains concentrated in the port city, with over 400 workers involved in the operation dedicated to models of different sizes.
Test Pools Change the Shipyard’s Routine
To reduce deadlines and better organize the delivery flow, the expansion reinforces stages that, in the nautical sector, involve finishing, assembly, motorization, and testing before final release.
Part of these checks now takes place within the factory itself, as electrical systems, motorization, and the boat’s behavior in water can be evaluated in a controlled environment and under real navigation conditions.
Barbara Martendal, Fibrafort’s business director, told Revista Náutica that the expansion provides more agility to deliveries, strengthens productive efficiency, and elevates the standard of excellence of the brand’s manufactured vessels.
According to the executive, each boat undergoes about 20 hours of technical tests in the new area, a stage created to enhance the precision of evaluations before the vessel leaves the factory.
“This avoids external displacements, accelerates the delivery schedule, and enhances the traceability of processes,” said Barbara Martendal, explaining the effect of the testing structure on internal production control.
The director also classified the expansion as an important milestone for Fibrafort’s trajectory, in reference to industrial growth and the scaling plan designed for the coming years.
Overhead cranes reinforce production of larger boats
With larger vessels in production, the investment in higher capacity overhead cranes meets a direct demand from the shipyard, which needs to move hulls and heavy components safely within the factory.
The exclusive painting and sanding cabins relate to finishing stages that influence the production pace and quality control, especially in the Yacht line models.
By incorporating tests into the plant, Fibrafort now gathers more construction phases in the same complex, which can reduce rework and facilitate the traceability of each vessel throughout the assembly.
The permanence of the expansion in Itajaí keeps the manufacturer in a city linked to port and nautical activities, reinforcing Santa Catarina’s presence on the Brazilian map of leisure boat production.
Itajaí gains weight in the Brazilian nautical sector
Although the jump from 600 to a thousand boats per year is only expected by 2032, the physical expansion already offers a larger industrial base to support the goal without relocating the operation.
In this movement, the factory also reorganizes around scale, specialized labor, and technical control, decisive factors in a sector that depends on precision during various production stages.
By gathering expanded area, heavy lifting equipment, dedicated cabins, and test pools, Fibrafort attempts to transform the expansion into concrete operational gain, and not just an increase in physical space.
With a 20,000 m² factory, internal tests, and a goal of a thousand boats per year, can Itajaí further consolidate its role as one of the main nautical hubs in Brazil?
