Oertz grew up in his hometown of Neustadt Holstein. At the age of five, he lost both parents and grew up in a foster family in Berlin. After graduation Oertz studied at the Royal Institute of Technology in Berlin-Charlottenburg boat and shipbuilding. Hes love for travel led him into the ship Akademischer Segler-Verein (ASV) in Berlin. Both shipbuilding and sailing became his whole life from that point.
St. Petersburg on a yacht shipyard. There he developed and lead the construction of light racing yachts called Nahtspantenbauweise.
In 1895 Max Oerts returned to Berlin and designed for the Berlin banker Barthold Aron the first all-aluminum built experimental racing yacht “Luna”.
Oertz ‘yachts were famous for their speed and elegance without compromising comfort on board. Oertz was a passionate perfectionist who kept every detail of a yacht designs in mind. So it was logical that he wanted to build the yachts in his own yard. In 1895 Max Oertz took over with his friend Hans Harder on the Reiherstieg Dreyer shipyard in Hamburg, and led them away under the name Max Oertz & Harder. In 1902 the shipyard was continued by him as sole owner.
TOP mast” The yacht was a symbol that the domestic shipbuilding industry finally succeeded, catching up with the then leading industrial nations, especially with England. Except for the masts of American Oregon pine all the material was local, even the cotton sails were purchased from Germany. In 1909 Oertz plans where created, comissioned by the Emperor Wilhelm II, for the 47.14 m racing schooner Meteor IV, followed in 1914 by The Meteor II V, both built at the Krupp Germania shipyard in Kiel.
of Engineering Sciences awarded (hc).
In 1922, moved from the now sold Oertz back yard and worked as a freelance designer.
From 1926 to Max Oertz dealt also with the aerodynamically shaped chimney for large oceangoing vessels. With a drop-shaped in-built chimney Oertz achieved a clean smoke without the usual turbulence at the rear of the fireplace. This enabled the ship’s funnels to be considerably lower.
On November 24 , 1929 Max Oertz died in Hamburg from a heart attack.
The schooner yacht Germania, built at the Germania shipyard for Gustav Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, was completed 1908th It was the first subscribed in Germany and built racing yacht of this size. Since she also sailed successfully Max Oertz received important business.
Racing and cruising yacht “Cheers” (1898) of the Academic Sailing Club in Berlin.
Racing yacht “Little Polly” (1899). Became the first German yacht successfully participated in regattas in France.
the possession of the Schmidt family, Bremen, 1935 converted at A & R for Spreizgaffelketsch.
managed to develop yachts that were equally fast and beautiful. Thus Oertz was the pioneer for a number of other German yacht designers such as William of Geesthacht, Henry Rasmussen, Fritz Naglo.
Neustadt in Holstein is held annually in memory and in memory of him, the Max-Oertz Regatta circle of friends rather than for classic yachts.
Also, the ASV in Berlin organized each year in honor of his deceased member for his foundation a solid “Max Oertz Regatta” from which one of the largest regattas in Berlin.