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Life−saving

Surviving cold water

Can a new class of Personal Floatation Devices with integrated

personal life raft reduce fatalities from in-water incidents?
B

eing in the water after falling processes and survival technology, which version can be specified. The life vest
overboard, abandoning a vessel helps to get people back home again.”
inflates as the single person, insulated full-

or being involved in a helicopter body raft unfurls and inflates, ready for Because of the varying conditions of
ditching is not only one of the most boarding using the handles. The raft is the marine working environment, it is

common, but perhaps the most securely connected to the user by a difficult for employers to completely
dangerous, situation faced at sea. For lanyard. A canopy with a clear face shield remove the risk for offshore and

decades, Personal Floatation Devices is then inflated and closed for thermal merchant workers. Preparation, through
(PFD) have been the primary means to protection, ensuring that the casualty is training and familiarity with equipment

protect from drowning when entering the protected from the elements.
saves hundreds of lives every year, but it’s
water without a life boat, but seafarers a sad fact that today, people are still Survivor+ can be worn during every

are still perishing, especially in cold water drowning that may not have to. This is day work, or only when conditions are

and rough seas incidents. Keeping a what Cobham Life Support is hoping to particularly poor and going out on deck
casualty afloat is vital, but more can be address with a new personal safety cannot be avoided. It can be donned

done; freezing sea and air temperatures, product called Survivor+.
quickly, is designed for comfort and
disorientation, panic, and high sea states agility, so does not hinder working and

all combine to overcome a person in ensures maximum readiness in the event
water within just a few seconds, even if Dr Chris Brooks is an internationally of an emergency. It is ideally suited for Meeting the challenge

they are wearing a PFD.
recognised authority on lifejacket and use on offshore support and crew transfer
John Swain, CEO of Survival PFD use and cold water survival, and has vessels, workboats and merchant vessels.

Systems Training in Nova Scotia, produced reports in which he covers the The ‘manual-only’ version is also a
Canada, an offshore safety and survival need for forward-looking solutions. In the strong candidate to improve safety on

specialist, said: “There are three things 2008-published report, ‘Survival at Sea offshore transport helicopters. When a
that happen when you hit the water. for Mariners, Aviators, and SAR ditched helicopter is inverted in the water,

Firstly, cold water shock, which Personnel,’ he writes about the it may become impossible to inflate the

introduces swimming failure so negates inadequacies of life rafts and life boats, onboard life rafts, but with Survivor+,
your ability to tread water or reach safety stating: “.a whole new concept is crew and passengers could exit the

if, indeed, it is available. Then quite required to design a person-mounted life aircraft and activate their own personal
quickly, hypothermia starts.
raft that may incorporate personal life rafts.

flotation and hypothermia protection, “Aside from avoiding the accident in “Studies and reports indicate that
and most important of all be easy to the first place, it is safety equipment and offshore workers and crew members are

board and be strong enough to resist training that saves lives. We are classic still going into the water and dying as a
puncture.” According to Cobham, behaviour modifiers. We make trainees result of the three key risk factors; cold

Survivor+ fulfils these requirements and examine the events that they could be water shock, swimming failure and
can considerably reduce the risk of involved in and get them to look at them hypothermia. We train workers for all

drowning and hypothermia if a person is differently. Whether it’s an eventualities and teach that all survival

in the water.
abandonment, or fire, or aircraft equipment has a dedicated profile to how
ditching, they have to understand the A completely new class of PFD, it should be used. I personally believe that

safety procedures that must be employed Survivor+ enables a conscious casualty Survivor+ can reduce fatalities under a
for the situation. They must also to remove themselves from the water and number of different incident profiles,”

understand how to use the available the elements within as little as 60 seconds said Mr Swain.
equipment to prevent risk and save their of falling overboard or abandonment. It Survivor+ is suitable for users of

own and their colleagues’ lives. We train deploys automatically when the wearer is varying heights and weights. Its compact
for confidence through the use of
immersed in water and a ‘manual-only’
life raft profile is made possible by

24 The SHIP Supplier Issue 61 2014