Power BI Consulting for Fort Lauderdale Boatyards, Yacht Brokers and Port Suppliers
A refit that runs three weeks over can wipe out a yard's margin for the season, and a broker's pipeline can look full while half the listings have gone quiet. Both problems show up in the data long before they show up on the invoice.
Lightray's Power BI consulting in Fort Lauderdale, FL is shaped around the marine trade: boatyards and refit shops, yacht brokers and charter managers, marine-parts distributors and the vendors serving Port Everglades. We connect your yard-management, brokerage or ERP software to accounting in a Power BI model, so work-order hours, parts margin and deal pipeline update on their own.
The first conversation is a free 30-minute strategy call with Edward Pinela, MBA, and he is also the one who builds the model. Nobody comes down to the docks: the work is remote, Lightray's business address is in Fullerton, California, and it keeps no Broward office. Yards and brokers buy Power BI Flex Support hours from $2,500 for 20, at $100 to $125 an hour, or take a fixed quote, and you get your money back if you don't like working with us within the first 4 hours.
“Amazing! Lightray Solutions built us a Power BI dashboard based on my busy restaurant’s quickbooks data that allows me to see my entire business on a daily basis which has been a game-changer! Excellent communication and service!”
— Quinn R., Google review
How big is the marine business around Fort Lauderdale?
Big enough to set the rhythm of the local economy. The Marine Industries Association of South Florida puts the industry's Broward County impact at $9.9 billion, with 121,000 jobs in the county and about 45,000 registered boats. Add Port Everglades, which describes itself as one of the busiest cruise ports in the world and South Florida's main petroleum port, and a large share of local firms sell to boats, ships or the people who run them.
That work is project-based, seasonal and parts-heavy, which is exactly where spreadsheets break down.
What should a boatyard track in Power BI?
Estimated against actual hours by work order, parts and sublet margin, and haul-out or slip occupancy. When a refit is open for months, the model shows labor billed, labor still to bill and change orders not yet approved, so the service manager can raise a cost issue with the owner's captain before the final invoice.
Seasonality matters too. Comparing yard occupancy and technician utilization week by week against last season separates normal summer slowdowns from a real drop in work.
- Work orders over estimate, ranked by dollars
- Billable versus non-billable technician hours
- Parts margin and slow-moving inventory
- Slip and haul-out occupancy against last season
Can brokers and charter managers use the same approach?
Yes, with different measures. A brokerage wants listings by age and price band, showings and offers per listing, and commission pipeline by expected close month. A charter manager wants bookings, utilization by vessel and owner statements that reconcile to the trust account. The table compares the first build for each type of Fort Lauderdale marine business.
For businesses that bill boat owners abroad, Power BI can show amounts in the transaction currency and in dollars, provided the source system stores the exchange rate used.
| Marine business | Systems in use | First build |
|---|---|---|
| Boatyard or refit shop | Yard-management software, QuickBooks or ERP | Estimate versus actual by work order, technician utilization |
| Yacht brokerage | Listing and CRM platform, commission sheets | Listing age, offers per listing, commission pipeline |
| Charter management company | Booking system, trust accounting | Utilization by vessel, owner statements reconciled |
| Marine parts distributor | ERP, e-commerce store | Margin by product line, stock turns, backorders |
| Port Everglades service vendor | Job tickets, invoicing | Jobs by vessel or terminal, days to invoice, margin |
What does Power BI cost a Fort Lauderdale marine business?
Consulting runs on prepaid Flex Support blocks of 20, 40 or 80 hours at $100 to $125 an hour, with no expiry; 20 hours costs $2,500. A yard work-order model from one system usually fits that block. A brokerage and service operation combined, or several yards, receives a fixed quote after the call.
Microsoft licenses are billed by Microsoft. Its Power BI plans and pricing page lists Pro at $14 and Premium Per User at $24 per user per month, paid yearly. A yard with seven managers and service writers sharing reports would spend about $98 a month on Pro.
Where else on Florida's coast does Lightray model marine and trade data?
Nearby, see Power BI for Hollywood's hospitality and aviation firms, Pembroke Pines practices and family businesses and Miami importers and property companies. The Power BI consulting services page covers the full offer, and the Power BI locations page lists every city.
Whether the data is a refit's work orders or a broker's listings, Edward handles it from the first call onward, backed by 20+ years of data and web work, 200+ delivered projects and Lightray's 4.9 rating on Google.
Further reading: Microsoft Learn — Power BI data sources.
See which jobs are drifting before the owner does
Book a free 30-minute call with Edward Pinela, MBA. You get an honest read on what to fix first — and if we are not the right fit, you will hear that on the call.
Frequently asked questions
Do you come to the marina or yard?
No. All work is remote and Lightray has no Fort Lauderdale office or staff. The service manager or controller walks us through the current reports over video, and the model is built and reviewed on screen inside your Microsoft account.
Our yard software is niche. Will it connect?
Most marine yard and brokerage platforms can export work orders, invoices and listings to Excel or CSV on a schedule, and some offer an API. Either works. We confirm what your system supports on the strategy call before quoting the build.
How long until the first report is live?
Two to four weeks for one system and accounting, including checking a closed month against the figures you already report. Seasonal comparisons need at least one prior season of data in the source system.
What if the yard manager isn't happy after the first few sessions?
You get your money back if you don't like working with us within the first 4 hours; that is our Power BI guarantee. Those hours usually cover the review of your yard or brokerage exports and the first working measures, such as estimated against actual hours, so the decision rests on your own boats and invoices.
You Won’t Get Handed Off to Junior Staff.
At most consulting firms, the senior person who sold you shows up for the kickoff — then you get handed to a team of juniors learning on your dime. That’s not how we work.
When you hire Lightray Solutions, you work directly with Edward Pinela, MBA — a principal consultant with 20+ years of experience across Power BI, web development, SEO, and CRM systems. Edward architects every engagement personally, stays involved through delivery, and answers his own phone.
Read Edward’s Full Bio“Mid-market companies deserve senior-level expertise without paying enterprise-agency prices. That’s the gap Lightray fills.”
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