White Glacier has launched the Arctic 25 immersion suit, which gives 25 hours protection in freezing waters.
The suit can be donned in under 60 seconds, has 10 metre jump protection and four second fire resistance.
According to the company, if a person suffering from hypothermia puts on the Arctic 25, that person’s core temperature will be stabilised within 10-15 minutes. Clothes will dry out in two hours.
The Arctic 25 is triple layered – with a bubble layer in the middle and aluminium coating on the outside. It has been developed from the NASA material used to blanket spacecraft.
“For the price of a fish finder you can save your life,” a White Glacier spokesman said. “What’s your life worth?”
On 1 January 2017 the Polar Code comes into force – by law, shipping companies going to cold waters will have to have immersion suits robust enough to keep people alive until rescue. If they do not comply they will face huge fines and serious insurance issues.
“The Arctic 25 adds at least 19 hours to the IMO stipulated six hours survival time requirement,” said Diego Jacobsen, CEO of White Glacier.
“The Polar Code is very clear when it comes to hypothermia protection. All passengers and crew must be provided with adequate thermal protection, bearing in mind the time to rescue, the cold water, wind, etc. Rescue times in the Arctic could be anywhere from 10 hours to five days, with luck. Clearly, a six hour emergency route is not adequate.”
The Arctic 25 is incredibly easy to use, and people who have not seen the suit before can get into it in 70 seconds.
The company says that Arctic 25 offers more protection than a liferaft, as it is quicker to get into the suit than to get into the liferaft and then get the liferaft into the water. Artcic 25 also offers protection from the cold.
Buoyancy is claimed to be 50% higher than anything else, and in warmer the temperature can be regulated with a zipper.
Weighing just 6.5kg/14lbs, it also packs down to the size of a doctor's briefcase.
White Glacier is currently developing the Arctic 12 suit, which will be breathable - allowing people to work in it.
