This watercraft cannot really deny its origins. The lines of runabouts of Italian origin, but also the strikingly beautiful cabin superstructures of the dinghy cruisers from Fricke & Dannhus (F&D) shine through. Generally speaking, the "bonnets" of jet skis follow an edgy, aggressive design that is often bursting with power and loud - both in terms of colour and acoustics. Timberjet wants to change this and is working on an electrically powered version manufactured in Germany. The name promises a lot of wood and at the same time avoids the term Personal Water Craft, which has become synonymous with Kawasaki's brand name "Jetski".
Ralf Jansen came up with the idea for Timberjet after working in the superyacht industry in the south of France and returning to Essen a few years ago. The concept of a sophisticated, powerful and, above all, quiet fun machine matured in the Ruhr region. A coffee chat with Frank Büchsenschütz, an 87-year-old mechanical engineer, resulted in a sheet of paper with a 2D drawing on it. Jens Dannhus was the next to join the inner circle of developers and partners. The traditional shipyard Fricke & Dannhus from Lake Dümmer wanted to contribute its expertise in wood.
Slipper look, high-tech and craftsmanship
For the elegant look, it was important to the Timberjet team to integrate a curved bar deck. Not an easy task. The "slipper effect", as Jansen calls it, had to be avoided. This was created when the F&D boat builders clad existing jet skis with veneers on a trial basis. The reason for this was the flat underwater hull, which made the "bonnet" appear to stick directly to the surface of the water. Jansen and his team changed the crack and deepened the hull over a raised bow with a pronounced V to show off the glossy varnished mahogany.
The design was a team effort and was finalised after a few months, reports Jansen. There is a 1:5 scale mock-up of the first "Zen One" model, which, like the later original, is of course not made of solid wood. The basis is a CFRP monocoque supplied by a spin-off from two shipyard employees and adorned with a certified fine wood of choice. "The project thrives on contrasts," says Ralf Jansen. "No-one expects a luxury water toy from the Ruhr region."
Free-form batteries and variable impeller
The electric drivetrain comes from Bosch Engineering, which is making inroads into the water sports market with its automotive solutions. The marinised Waterjet version, which has been adapted to Timberjet's requirements, is expected to deliver 90 or 140 kilowatts of power and take "Zen One" to around 40 knots. Ralf Jansen comments: "We can go fast and have power reserves, but are geared more towards cruising like Harley Davidson motorbikes."
Bosch's own drive components such as electric motors, inverters and gearboxes complement batteries from Fiberdraft. The Austrians are pursuing a modular and contrarian approach: instead of having to adhere to rectangular box dimensions for batteries, the cells are scaled to fit Timberjet's slim shape. The Fraunhofer Institute's latest partners are also contributing innovation. Ralf Jansen's application was followed by research into a variable impeller whose pitch changes under AI control and according to the driving conditions.
Timberjet's prototype will still have to do without the hoped-for efficiency gain. It will initially float with a fixed impeller in 2026. Meanwhile, Jansen is looking for investors for his interpretation of "Silent Luxury". The strategy of the Essen-based start-up: "We don't want to compete with the big players and remain in the niche. We see ourselves as a manufacturer and are open to individual requests."
