Had it been up to the mother of Harry “Hark” Dubbelman (born 1945), he would have graduated from a Dutch university. But passion runs deep: he became a ship model builder, just like his father Antonie and grandfather Cornelis before him. In doing so, he continued a family tradition that began in the early 20th century in Slikkerveer, near Rotterdam.
In 1905, Cornelis Dubbelman won a seat on the Ridderkerk city council. His employer gave him an ultimatum: give up the seat or resign. Cornelis chose his ideals and started his own ship carpentry business. Demand for casting models and teak steering wheels was high, and his client base quickly grew. In 1916, a small shipyard asked him to build a model of a tugboat. Reluctantly, but out of customer loyalty, he crafted his first half-model—with great success.
A major breakthrough came when shipyard “De Maas” asked him to build a model of a coal transport vessel for Spitsbergen. When the shipping company went bankrupt, the model ended up in the hands of Rotterdam Lloyd. Shipowner Bernhard Ruys, himself an avid model builder, was impressed and commissioned models of ships including the Indrapoera and Sibajak. Until then, most models were ordered from England and Germany—Dubbelman changed that.
The quality of the work was exceptional from the start. In 1913, the model workshop won a gold medal at the World Exhibition in Ghent. In 1925, the then-owner compiled a list of prestigious models, including the m.v. Indrapoera, the Dempo from Ruys & Co./Royal Rotterdam Lloyd, and the Geopotis from J. & K. Smit (now Smit International).
The company became a preferred supplier to major shipping lines such as H.A.L., Mij Nederland, and K.N.S.M. During the golden age of ocean liners, Dubbelman delivered an 11.40-meter-long model of De Rotterdam as a showpiece in New York. Series of over 100 models were not uncommon.
Until 1950, Dubbelman operated as a mixed business, after which it focused entirely on ship model building. Models of the Oranje, Willem Ruys, and Jacob Verolme in Madurodam were built at the Slikkerveer yard. A 1952 photo shows proud employees posing with the model of the Willem Ruys—a true icon of Dutch shipbuilding.
The decline of Dutch shipbuilding also affected Dubbelman. The number of employees dropped, and today the team consists of one part-time and four full-time staff. Yet the quality remains unmatched. Today, 70% of the work involves models of luxury motor yachts. In some cases, the model even influences the design of the actual vessel, with owners instructing the shipyard to build the yacht exactly as modeled.
Harry Dubbelman explains:
“People think you have to be rich to order from us, but the earnings are modest. It’s a way of life—and we love it.”
The company passed directly from father to son:
More than a century of craftsmanship, passion, and precision has made Dubbelman one of the last bastions of traditional ship model building in the Netherlands—and far beyond.
The bankruptcy was caused by increasing competition from China, which could produce more cheaply, and was worsened by the COVID-19 crisis, which left the order book empty. The bankruptcy report is dated September 18, 2020.
Now located more centrally in the Netherlands, Dubbelman Design focuses on designer furniture and objects. With an online webshop, the legacy continues in a new form. Visit https://www.dubbelmandesign.nl/