- Zelim’s SWIFT man overboard recovery system received type approval from Lloyd’s Register after rigorous testing.
- The system demonstrated high efficiency in trials, pulling individuals from the sea more than twenty times faster than traditional methods.
- SWIFT is compliant with SOLAS standards and is designed to improve survival rates by rapidly rescuing people from the water in all weather conditions.
Zelim’s SWIFT man overboard recovery system has received type approval from Lloyd’s Register. This certification comes after extensive in-water tests at Fleetwood Testing Laboratory and heavy weather sea trials, confirming its reliability for widespread use in the maritime industry, reports IFSJ.
Successful Trials
The SWIFT system was successfully demonstrated in May 2023 during trials at a wind farm offshore Ramsgate in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. The system recovered a test dummy two nautical miles offshore and performed over twenty times faster than conventional man overboard equipment.
Designed to pull both conscious and unconscious individuals from the sea in under one minute, the SWIFT system meets the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) standards.
System Capabilities
Zelim’s CEO, Sam Mayall, highlighted the importance of the certification, stating, “Type approval certification assures the global maritime and offshore industries that SWIFT is compliant with SOLAS and can be adopted as a primary means of man overboard recovery for ships and offshore installations.”
Developed by search and rescue personnel, the SWIFT system uses a conveyor belt mechanism on a rescue vessel to quickly retrieve individuals from the water.
Impact on Maritime Safety
Mayall also emphasized the significance of quick retrieval times, noting, “Sea survival is hugely dependent on the time it takes to retrieve individuals from the water, but often high sea states make recovery difficult.”
“When rescue vessels approach, many survivors do not have the strength to pull themselves to safety.”
Statistics show that survival rates for man overboard incidents are low, with only 17% to 25% of passengers surviving and 40% of incidents reported between 2015 and 2023 resulting in fatalities.
Stewart Gregory, Zelim’s COO, added, “The maritime and offshore industries now have a fully type-approved certified system capable of rapidly rescuing people from the sea in all weather conditions. Lives lost to man overboard incidents could be reduced substantially if every rescue boat, crew boat, pilot boat or tender was equipped with SWIFT as a matter of course.”
Zelim’s SWIFT man overboard recovery system has received full type approval from Lloyd’s Register. This certification confirms that the SWIFT system meets SOLAS standards and is now ready for widespread maritime use. During trials, the SWIFT system proved its efficiency by significantly outperforming traditional rescue methods.
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Source: IFSJ
