MDL Marinas invests £5m on infrastructure in 2021

MDL Marinas has revealed details of its investments made in the UK market over the past 12 months. The marina group says it invested £5m on infrastructural maintenance and development this year across its 19 UK marinas and boatyards, “improving facilities both on and off the water, for berth holders, visitors and tenants”.

The investment includes £1.2m on replacing and re-decking pontoons, providing marina users with modern, stable and anti-slip access to their boats throughout the year.

All-tides access to MDL’s marinas is guaranteed for another 12 months, following over £750,000 of expenditure in dredging, with a further £500,000 devoted to refurbishing the on-site toilet and shower facilities, and £400,000 being allocated to the new plant, including forklifts, hoists and boat movers.

MDL is investing £350,000 in IT systems, including upgrading the Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi 6 across all its marinas, providing berth holders and visitors with a faster internet connection to their boats.

Developments to MDL’s website, and a new CRM system, mean berth holders can renew their berthing agreements online, making the process quicker and easier. Additional services, such as visitor berthing and boatyard services, can now also be requested online. Changes have also been made to the systems and processes which allow MDL’s marina managers to manage the quality of the marinas and make visible improvements on an ongoing basis.

Kerry Marriott, head of operations at MDL Marinas says: “The investment in IT is not visible like the investment we’ve made elsewhere, for example, in the new green initiatives, such as solar panels, waste management and electric charging points but it is laying a foundation for the marinas to thrive and become even more customer-centric. Everything we do is focused on enhancing the experience of our marinas for all.”

In November, MDL announced a partnership with Aqua superPower to install electric boat chargers at five of its marinas, becoming the first UK marina group to offer an electric boat charging solution. The new electric charging points to be installed at its Cobb’s Quay, Hamble Point, Sparkes, Windsor and Ocean Village marinas are a major step forward on MDL’s mission to become the UK’s most sustainable marina group.

MDL has also spent £119,000 this year on staff training, from safety training and plant-specific training to first aid at work, Powerboat Level 2 and VHF courses.

The ongoing investment in staff also comes via bespoke leadership and management training courses, as well as globally recognised marina management qualifications, for those wishing to progress within the company. The company highlights five out of the six new marina managers in the last year were from internal promotions.

“Our staff are our biggest asset. It’s the team that makes a difference as to whether we just provide a service or we provide an exceptional service, offering an amazing experience for berth holders, visitors and tenants,” says Marriott.