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RNLI lifejacket workshop

03/10/22

Rnli Lifejacket Workshop With Crewsaver 1200 X 600

The inflatable lifejacket – for survival at sea is essential and often taken for granted. But like all the world’s great inventions it’s taken time and innovation to get here. A hundred years ago, lifejackets were bulky and cumbersome, containing cork or kapok for buoyancy.

Lifejackets have come a long way. Expert designers and engineers have transformed both the aesthetic and functionality of lifejackets supplied today.

Earlier this summer, members of our lifejacket design and engineering team were invited by Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), the UK charity that saves lives at sea, to host a workshop for schoolgirls to help inspire a career in design and engineering.

Forty schoolgirls, aged between 11-13, came along to the inventors and innovators workshop where our garment and pattern designer, Clara Serenellini, talked in detail about our cardboard master patterns from which hundreds of lifejackets can be made by using the indications on each pattern to
understand where to shape and cut materials.

The pupils then created lifejacket covers by joining the patterns together in the correct formation and understanding the importance fabric and materials have in the functionality, reliability, longevity and strength of a lifejacket. The girls pieced together fabric, adding straps and their own designs and trying the mock lifejackets on a mannequin to assess fit.

With less than 13% of the engineering workforce being female this was an excellent opportunity to inspire schoolgirls about future careers and to break down the barriers of gender disparity in the sector.

The day ended with inspiration, excitement and career ambitions running high and I hope our contribution is an enabler to helping these girls achieve their dreams.

In 100 years, the inflatable lifejacket will be very different than it is today due to advances in innovation that the next generation will bring to safety at sea.

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