Revolutionary survival platform

Having a place of safety and allowing time for survivors to recover before being rescued at sea is behind the newly designed Seapod inflatable survival platform. The device, which will be making its Seawork International debut this year, combines the latest technology, with proven research to solve the age old problems of surviving critical hours before rescue comes; problems of quick deployment, hypothermia, visibility of survivors and staying safely out of the water to maximise survival time.

UK Company, Salvare Worldwide, has developed the Seapod, a lightweight, easily deployed, fully interlocking inflatable life saving platform based on the Carley Liferaft concept. The Carley Liferaft was used throughout World War II as a survival platform that saved thousands of lives because it got the sailors out of the water delaying the onset of hypothermia. But unlike the Carley Liferaft, the Seapod is light, (it weighs less than 4kg and is packed in a water activated case) and offers good protection from the onset of Hypothermia, increasing the chances of survival. Because of its compactness the Seapod can be stowed on large ships, coastal vessels, small boats, helicopters and aircraft alike. So, according to its makers, reliance upon lifejackets alone is a thing of the past.

Salvare states the Seapod is a unique development, “We recognised the market need for a truly safe survival platform early on. Through intensive research, we found that while there are Liferafts with Freeboards, these often failed to launch or are difficult to board, leaving survivors still in the water at greater danger of hypothermia, with nothing but a Lifejacket to rely on. The Seapod offers a much higher chance of survival and is such a big step forward in safety of life at sea.”

The Seapod has two separate auto inflatable chambers activated as soon as it hits the water and capable of retaining a steady position. Even if one chamber is punctured the Seapod’s unique design enables the other chamber to be manually further inflated to maintain optimum buoyancy.

A small freeboard allows water to flow freely over the platform, cutting down on the amount of water retained on-board. Getting onto the platform has been made simple by reducing the overall thickness of each platform. The Seapod is only a few centimetres thick and has strategically placed hand and foot holds to ensure survivors can board easily. Once there, they stay in position, without being immersed in freezing water, a critical factor delaying the onset of Hypothermia.

Salvare produces several versions of the Seapod in various shapes and sizes designed to carry one or multiple survivors. All are equipped with SOLAS approved LED lighting as standard. Bright orange in colour and can be manufactured to clip together to make a much larger survival surface. The top of the range version is installed with a MOB location beacon to alert ships and aircraft to its exact location. Being on the surface of the water survivors are also more visible on a Seapod than if wearing a lifejacket alone

Seapod applications are variable and suitable for Rescue Services worldwide (Land, Sea and Air), ship and boat owners, along with dock and harbour-side marinas and authorities.

The product range can be viewed for the first time at Seawork 2015 on stand C20 and within the Innovations showcase in Hall C.