SMM showcase
This year’s SMM saw Denmark headquartered global safety specialist, Viking, release more innovations than at any other point in its 50-year history, including new developments in PPE clothing, safety equipment outsourcing, onboard training solutions, and evacuation systems. The company also released a catalogue that almost doubled the number of maritime products.
Viking CEO Henrik Uhd Christensen put the heightened pace of product releases down to a simple mechanism: “When you’re close to your customers, you can develop exactly what they want– or what they will want in the near future,” he told Maritime Journal. “And they help you to continue improving the product as their needs evolve every step of the way.”
“Nothing succeeds like success, as they say – so, of course, when we see the industry choosing our products as much as they have been doing, it injects a tremendous amount of energy into product development efforts throughout the company. It creates a kind of snowball effect.”
PPE clothing
One of the most visible changes to the Viking product line-up is the new High Visibility Yellow range of Gore-Tex constant wear/anti-exposure suits, neoprene and multi-layer PU coated nylon immersion suits, and lifejackets. The new, strikingly bright outer material is aimed at making the chances of being noticed in even the most difficult sea conditions better than ever.
“We constantly monitor the latest research on visibility at sea for vital safety equipment – and we have made it a priority to be the first to bring promising developments to our customers,” says Viking CEO Henrik Uhd Christensen. PPE clothing in the new colour has been showcased at SMM and is available immediately.
One of Viking’s showcases consisted of the multi-layer flagship immersion suit that, according to the manufacturer, provides the best performance possible with a PU coated nylon outer fabric and a separate quilted thermal liner for insulation. This combination is aimed to provide optimal dynamics between safety, thermal performance, durability and comfort – even in the most extreme situations. Built-in buoyancy provides superior freeboard and therefore, no lifejacket is required.
Also showcased was Viking’s brand new constant wear work lifejacket, the PV9340. Designed for tough marine and offshore work applications, it combines superior in-water performance and durability with a comfortable, ergonomic design. A low-profile compact cover – in a choice of Cordura or wipe clean fabrics for a durable, yet comfortable, exterior of the jacket. The uniquely designed buoyancy chamber with integrated cleat-attachment system ensures best in-water performance and safer recovery.
More maritime products
With the release of a new, greatly expanded marine products catalogue with almost twice the number of products previously on offer, Viking has moved closer to becoming the complete, one- stop source for marine safety equipment from leading brands.
To achieve this, the company is flexing its significant distribution muscles, using capabilities that, it claims, none of its competitors currently have the size or supply chain access to match. For example, while Viking-branded products such as lifejackets and immersion suits figure strongly in the catalogue, the 2010 acquisition and integration of Hamburg-based Hygrapha has added a long, multi-brand list of marine and occupational safety equipment to Viking’s product portfolio.
Henrik Uhd Christensen also sees his company’s marine safety equipment know-how as a vital part of each Global Safety Product Agreement: “We have the broadest range with the strongest network – more than anyone else in the market. So we’re in a unique position to help shipowners and operators make the best choices for their specific needs.”
Training too
Viking’s recently acquired training arm, Viking Saatsea, which develops 24/7 onboard training systems for OPITO and STCW crew certification, is releasing new “refresher” packages designed to help shipowners and offshore operators comply with the tougher demands of STCW 2010, which comes into full force on 1 January 2017. The system was demonstrated at Viking’s stand, with experts on hand to explain how onboard training can reduce training costs and save valuable time compared with training at land-based facilities.
Viking Saatsea’s CEO, Kim Baarsøe, told us: “Although there’s still 15 months to go before STCW 2010 is fully applicable, shipowners will already be grabbing every available seat in land- based training facilities for their crews. Our new refresher packages let you keep basic education on board up to date by combining theoretical with practical exercises and reducing land-based training to a single day every five years.”
LifeCraft
Star of the stand for us though was Viking’s new super-sized, flexible evacuation system; a revolutionary hybrid that could promise to bring together the best of lifeboats and liferafts in one. The Viking LifeCraft system is claimed to combine all of the advantages of modern lifeboats – such as self-propelled maneuverability – with the flexibility, comfort and smaller footprint of today’s liferafts.
“This is a product that completely changes the lifeboat vs. liferaft discussion – at least when it comes to high-capacity evacuation systems,“ said Viking CEO Henrik Uhd Christensen: “The Viking LifeCraft system enables rapid, mass evacuation with maximum safety for passengers and crew.”
The LifeCraft system consists of two main elements; The LifeCraft survival craft – a self- propelled inflatable vessel with four engines for a high degree of manoeuvrability and safety, and a stowage and launching unit, either placed on deck or built in, containing up to four LifeCraft crafts with a capacity of 200 persons each.
By Jake Frith
