Feature 3 | LIFE SAVING APPLIANCES Tooled up and MOB handed
Ship & Boat International rounds up some recent solutions and products designed for resolving man overboard incidents.
S
afety equipment provider SeaSafe Systems has launched a revamped version of its Hypo Hoist man
overboard (MOB) recovery net, re-designed specifically to target smaller vessel and boat sectors. Te new design, which can be ordered on a bespoke basis to suit customers’ individual requirements, has been updated to be deployed and operated by just one person if necessary, largely in response to increasing demand for MOB solutions from the owners and operators of leisure craſt, rigid inflatable boats (RIBs) and sports boats. The downsized Hypo Hoist features a
safe working load of 250kg and is simply stored in a bag and clipped onto a sponson in preparation for use. Whereas versions of the Hypo Hoist produced for larger sea-going vessels incorporate a ladder into their designs, such facilities are impractical when it comes to arranging installation aboard smaller craſt – plus, they tend to rely on the assumption that the MOB will be in a state of consciousness and capable of manually climbing up to the deck. Jeremy Dale, SeaSafe managing
director, tells Ship & Boat International: “Te original Hypo Hoist was based on a solution used by the UK National Health Service for liſting patients out of bath tubs. Te fact that the mesh material supplied was bright yellow was also a bonus. Te systems are all manufactured on a case-by- case basis, depending on the operator’s vessel size and needs – on average, RIBs can accommodate Hypo Hoist systems between 7m and 15m in length. “Obviously, there is a lot more scope
regarding MOB systems for larger vessels but, when you’re talking about most RIBs, you’re dealing with a freeboard space of 4-5m, which provides more of a challenge. The problem with a lot of small vessel designs in the past has been that the ships and boats were built without taking onboard life saving appliances [LSAs] into account, and the amounts of space that these pieces of equipment require were oſten overlooked. However, the process is changing now, with
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The Pacific Lite was originally designed for the benefit of Hawaiian pilots, toiling in a hot environment.
a lot more communication between LSA manufacturers and designers at the earliest stages of new projects.” Te Hypo Hoist package comprises a cloth
manufactured from a tough, heavyweight mesh; a sailcloth tape; four types of polyester
The downsized Hypo Hoist features a safe working load of 250kg.
webbing, all with differing widths; stainless steel eyelets; four carabiners; and a puller and a rope. Once installed at any point of the vessel, the operator deploys the system by bringing the vessel alongside the MOB, releasing the Hypo Hoist from its bag and lowering it over the side of the vessel, where it floats beneath the waterline. Te MOB can then position himself above the Hypo Hoist (or, should he happen to be unconscious, the operator can guide the MOB’s body to a position directly above the solution, using the MOB’s lifejacket hooks – a process which SeaSafe general manager Keith Friar likens to “fishing”) and then winch his body, horizontally, up the side of the vessel, in the style of a sling. Te MOB is most likely to be weighed
down by a lifejacket and work boots, as well as other tools and gadgets that he might be using for onboard operations, meaning that the system needs to be able to pull its weight when required. Friar comments: “We undertook a breaking point measuring test on the Hypo Hoist until, eventually, the steel pole that it was tied to was bent out of shape. Not only did we keep the safe working load of 250kg, we were able to run the test up to 900kg before we had to stop.” Storage is simple but, Friar adds, the Hypo Hoist should be kept out of direct strong sunlight for significant periods, in order to safeguard against premature degradation and a shortening of the solution’s lifespan.
Cooler jackets SeaSafe’s other main product speciality is lifejackets, the most fresh off the line being the Pacific Lite concealed lifejacket system (CLS), an all-in-one coat / lifejacket combo which was originally designed for the benefit of Hawaii-based pilot vessel operators, and launched in May 2011. “Wearing a coat with a separate
lifejacket fastened over the top is not only cumbersome and heavy but can be extremely uncomfortable in warm or tropical climates,” Dale explains. Compliant to Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), the Pacific Lite conceals a
Ship & Boat International July/August 2011
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