SALTenders

15/10/2026

For a charter operator, a tender that is unavailable isn’t just inconvenient.
It’s an operational problem.

A tender can be used repeatedly throughout the day:

↳ Guest transfers
↳ Crew movements
↳ Provisioning
↳ Equipment transport
↳ Beach access
↳ Watersports

So when it needs attention, repair, or replacement, the impact goes beyond the tender itself.
Reliability matters differently when you manage a fleet.

At SALTenders, we build rigid aluminum tenders around three priorities that matter to professional operators:

↳ Durability
↳ Repairability
↳ Availability
↳ Brand visibility through your logo, livery, and company colors on the tender

No inflatable tubes to puncture. A structure designed for hard, repetitive use.
And aluminum that can be repaired all around the world.

Less time managing the tender.
More time using it.

13/10/2026

Sometimes, “custom-built” starts with something as simple as:
“How do we get the tender across the beach?”

That was one of the questions behind the SALT320 we built for the owners of a Mumbai 48.

↳ They’re American
↳ Their aluminum catamaran was built in the Philippines and sails under the Australian flag
↳ They discovered SALTENDERS through Instagram

After their first email, we spent about a month working together remotely through WhatsApp and video calls.

They wanted a tender that matched their boat:

↳ Aluminum construction
↳ Cork decking
↳ Removable side-mounted balloon wheels for beach handling
↳ Easy access back on board from the water

The original idea included a rigid, integrated swim ladder.
After discussing how they would actually use the tender, we moved to a simple removable ladder.

That’s an important part of custom design:

It isn’t about adding everything the customer initially asks for.
It’s about finding the solution that makes the most sense in real-world use.

The result is a SALT320 built around their boat, their cruising plans, and the way they intend to use it.

Interestingly, they already have their own name for it: their “forever tender”!

10/10/2026

258 liters of built-in buoyancy for a 155 kg tender, engine, and fuel setup.
Let’s look at the numbers behind a SALT320.

Its built-in buoyancy comes from:
↳ 3 watertight volumes of 60 L each
↳ 78 L of closed-cell foam in the peripheral protection

Total buoyancy volume: 258 L.

Now let’s look at the weight:

↳ SALT320 with accessories: 85 kg
↳ Engine: 40 kg
↳ Fuel tank: 30 kg

Total: 155 kg.
That leaves a significant buoyancy reserve built into the tender itself.

On SALTenders, that reserve can be increased depending on the owner’s needs and intended use, with:

↳ Inflatable bladders inside the watertight volumes
↳ Foam filling inside those volumes
↳ Additional foam under the deck

Different configurations for different use cases.
Customization also extends to buoyancy: the setup can be adapted to the owner’s priorities and how the tender will actually be used.

08/10/2026

If you damage your tender far from home, can it actually be repaired?
With aluminum, the answer is one of its biggest advantages: yes!

↳ Aluminum fabrication and welding skills can be found all around the world, especially in professional ports and commercial harbors

↳ Depending on the damage, temporary repairs can also help get the tender somewhere a proper repair can be carried out

That matters when you cruise far from the yard that built your boat.

When I started developing SALTENDERS, I didn’t want our tenders to depend on a highly specialized repair network.

I wanted them to be built from a material people already know how to work with worldwide.
I wanted them to be repairable when things go wrong.

06/10/2026

Does a rigid tender really take up more space than a RIB?
Not necessarily.

Because there’s one important question: how is your RIB actually stored on board?

In most cases, it stays inflated.
When fully inflated, its external dimensions are comparable to those of a rigid tender of a similar size.

Inside, however, there’s a major difference: inflatable tubes take up part of the overall width.

Remove them, and that space becomes usable again.

↳ More room to move
↳ More storage
↳ More space for oars, fins, bags, and equipment
↳ Less clutter under your feet

That’s the thinking behind SALTENDERS:

The external footprint can remain comparable. But without inflatable tubes, more of that space becomes usable space.

30/09/2026

Grand Pavois La Rochelle: what we expected vs. what we got.

Last week, SALTenders was in La Rochelle for the renowned Grand Pavois boat show.

It was an opportunity to introduce our tenders, discuss our approach, and find out what visitors and marine professionals thought of them.
So, what did we expect, and what did we actually get?

What we expected:

↳ Enthusiastic visitors asking for order forms right away!

What we got:

↳ 99% positive feedback on the design of the SALTender we had on display

↳ Conversations with boatbuilders, naval architects, and future owners

↳ Interest from prospective customers whose boats are currently under construction, as well as others still looking for the right boat

↳ Visitors who saw the SALTender as a boat in its own right: one they could use for fishing, exploring, and enjoying time on the water

↳ Well-known naval architects telling us that we had done “interesting work”

We came back with something highly valuable at this stage:
Confirmation that our approach resonates with the market.

A tender can be dry, lightweight, safe, durable, and custom-built.
Beyond carrying owners between their yacht and the shore, a tender can be a versatile boat they genuinely enjoy using.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by, shared their thoughts, and asked the team so many thoughtful questions!

26/09/2026

La Rochelle Grand Pavois boat show on going till Sunday! Come and visit us stand A19

26/09/2026

26/09/2026

One question I often get is “How can an aluminum tender stay lightweight?”
My answer: “By not treating every part of the boat the same way.”

↳ SALT270: 65 kg
↳ SALT320: 75 kg
↳ SALT340: 85 kg
↳ SALT370: 100 kg

To achieve these weights, SALTenders uses different aluminum constructions depending on what each area needs to do:

1. Below the waterline and on the exposed hull sides, we use marine-grade aluminum sheet
That’s where resistance to impacts and abrasion matters.

2. For the seat, deck, floor, and transom, we use aluminum sandwich panels
Sandwich construction gives us high rigidity for relatively low weight.

The result is a tender that remains lightweight for a rigid aluminum construction.

We’re not claiming aluminum is lighter than every RIB or carbon tender.
It isn’t.

Our objective is to combine manageable weight with the durability, rigidity, and repairability that make aluminum attractive for serious cruising.
When something does happen, aluminum can be repaired all around the world.

With SALTenders, I wanted to put the weight where it actually adds value.
That was the goal from the start.