We ask the questions Providing lifeboats is an essential part of the RNLI, but making sure the facilities are in place to launch them is equally important. The building and upkeep of lifeboat stations and facilities is down to the shoreworks section of the estates office, which carries out C12M-worth of development and maintenance each year. Overseeing the huge range of projects taking place is Estates Manager Howard Richings, and the Lifeboat spoke to him to find out moreIs shoreworks sometimes the forgotten side of the RNLI? It is not an area that always springs to mind with people, but having said that, people have left some generous legacies in the past for shoreworks. It is not just about building lifeboat stations. There are 60-70 projects a year dedicated to upkeep and maintenance and we spend between £1.5M and £2M per year on that side. Launching facilities can suffer a lot of wear and tear. There is one project nearing completion at the moment at Rosslare Harbour, where we have had to replace and strengthen the berth because a 36,000 tonne ferry reversed over the lifeboat and flattened the berth.

How do people respond when the RNLI announces it wants to build or alter a lifeboat station on their seafront? Most people are very understanding when it comes to building in their town. If there is a problem or confusion over a plan we have public meetings, which can range from a handful of interested people to more than 100 trying to have their say. Generally the community will come out on the side of the RNLI.

What about the authorities? Getting planning permission can sometimes be tricky. Because of people's changing views of planning over the last 15 years, local authorities do not give us consent just because it is a lifeboat station. You have to use different materials in different locations that are sympathetic to the buildings around them. Architects design our stations individually.

What have been your best and most difficult experiences with shoreworks? We are very pleased with Looe. We built a £750,000 new B and D class boathouse and slipway there. It is always a nice outcome when things go smoothly and everyone is happy. Bude was the most difficult. It took 16 years to get it up and running. Everyone wanted a new lifeboat station but not next door to them. In some way those projects are all the more satisfying though, once you overcome the obstacles and it is finally finished. Then the crew can get on with saving lives.

Any particularly strange tales to tell? There was one chap who thought a new station we wanted to build would spoil his view. He put up protest banners and everything. He was also quite eccentric, and one evening he went to the end of the harbour dressed up in flowing robes, staff in hand and tried to summon the elements against us. When the elements did get up that night, they came in the form of a storm, which ripped off the protest banners from his balcony.

Shoreworks around the UK The look and location of Lifeboat stations can pose many challenges but every building and improvement project is an investment. That investment, whether it speeds up launches, improves crew safety, or houses a vital new lifeboat, helps the RNLI better achieve its aim to save lives at sea. The Lifeboat took a closer look at some of the shoreworks team's latest schemes Salcombe The new £750,000 lifeboat station at Salcombe in Devon, was opened in April 2004 along with a berth for the all weather lifeboat and facilities for the new inshore lifeboat. The improvements, which have delighted the crew, are designed to improve response times and crew safety. It will also be easier to maintain the lifeboats at Satcombe, cutting costs now and in the future.

See the Listings section of this issue for more on the opening.

Looe Residents and local authority leaders alike have praised the new lifeboat station at Looe in Cornwall Traditional materials such as local stone, granite and slate were used so that the building is in keeping with the area. The new station was needed to house a D class lifeboat and a tractor unit alongside the existing B class. As well as the crew room, shower and toilet facilities, souvenir sales and stores on the ground floor, the first floor offers a meeting room, office and lookout.

Mudeford It was decided to build a new station at Mudeford, Dorset, after the Atlantic 21 inshore lifeboat was replaced with the heavier Atlantic 75.

The greater weight of the new ILB meant the manual winch-assisted launch and recovery procedure was no longer acceptable on health and safety grounds and a fully coupled tractor and 'Do-Do' rig were needed - and a new station.

Coming up with a design that met with approval proved a challenge. But several public meetings and amended plans later, a modem and practical solution was found that was in harmony with surrounding buildings. As well as improving facilities for housing the inshore lifeboat, the £590,000 building includes changing and training areas and improved public access. It was completed last year and is currently under consideration for a design award.

Newhaven After their old boathouse was demolished as part of a wider riverside development scheme, the Newhaven crew moved into temporary accommodation. A new station was needed that could provide a building and berth with easy access, and fit in with the area - the designers did not disappoint. The new lifeboat station is able to resist extreme weather conditions and is at the same time visually attractive.

It provides training accommodation and public access.

Lytham St Annes Photo: Graham Gaunt, Tel 01736 7994' Lytham St Annes This £1.6M lifeboat house and slipway was completed in the summer of 2003 and uses a modem design with a nautical theme. Features at the station - which is at a prominent seafront location - include its curved boat-like form and circular windows, which are similar to the new college building at Poole. Materials such as engineering brick and copper roofing were chosen for their low maintenance properties.

Waterloo Pier One of the most fascinating projects being undertaken by shoreworks is the conversion of a 135-year-old floating pier on the Thames. Waterloo Pier, a former police station, was bought by the RNLI with the aim of providing a lifeboat station. The facilities will include training space, changing rooms and sleeping quarters, a workshop, office and storage.

It will involve applying a new superstructure, and repairing and strengthening the existing hull. First, permission from English Heritage has to be secured as the pier, which is attached to the Embankment, is counted as being part of a listed building. Working drawings are being prepared and the plan is to take the floating pier away to refurbish it further down the Thames. Then it will be taken back to its berth for final fitting and commissioning.Huge project taking shape at Tenb Getting on well with the neighbours is a high priority for most people when they move, and so it was when plans were announced for a new state-of-the-art lifeboat station at Tenby Local support was vital and, as with many communities with lifeboat stations, a strong bond exists between the people of the popular Pembrokeshire town and the RNLI. Therefore little fuss was made when work started on the new £5M slipway and lifeboat station, despite the inevitable disruption.

The current lifeboat station was the busiest in Wales last year.

This exciting project will mean the Tenby crew will be the first to try out the newTamar class lifeboat. Works are due to be completed at the end of the year, with theTamar due for trials early in 2005.

'There is a lot of cooperation in the town,' said Bob James, Deputy Launching Authority and Training Coordinator at the existing lifeboat station. 'We have had a public meeting about it, and it was explained there may be a bit of noise or lorry traffic.

But people are fascinated by the job and the crew is very excited about getting the whole package - we're getting a new station and will be the first to try out the Tamar.' Historic step With the station being built next to the site of a castle, the scheme has also had to negotiate restrictions placed on ancient monuments. But the new lifeboat facilities will also become part of Tenby's history, replacing the existing station which will be 100 years old in 2005. This small, old building has no room for the Tenby crew to take part in training. There are also no toilet facilities, the shop is no bigger than a sales counter, and the building occasionally gets damp, causing problems with drying the crew's kit.

The current slipway is also problematic. Progressive siltation at the toe of the slipway means that regular dredging is required.

On spring tides the lifeboat has to be kept on moorings in the bay if it is not to be stranded in the boathouse for an hour or so each side of low tide. That can leave the boat exposed to strong winds, meaning crew members have to then take her to a nearby island for shelter.

All that will change soon and the opening of the new station is expected to attract visitors of all ages, with the facilities to include a viewing gallery and RNLI shop. Bob, who is also the press officer at the Tenby boathouse, added: 'We are expecting school visits to double.' A unique project The new building will sit on a SOOmm-thick concrete slab, approximately 25m long by 15m wide. The designers for the project are consulting engineers Posford Haskoning who have over 100 years of experience of designing lifeboat stations for the RNLI. To meet high environmental standards, the boathouse will be clad in cedar, finished block work and large glazing panels. The Tamar lifeboat will be housed in the horizontal position, so a tipping cradle will be incorporated into the structure to allow the boat to be launched and recovered in the traditional fashion. With access to the project site very limited by road, main contractor Dean & Dyball has had to have materials delivered by boat or amphibious vehicle. A key phase of the construction was the driving of huge steel piles into beds of rock below the sand, to create a supporting structure. More recently, a pipeline has been pumping concrete to create the main deck which will support the boathouse, and now the project is really starting to take shape.

Bob enthused: 'They are a young crew here and it is a great project. It can't happen soon enough.' See page 32 for the latest on the new Tamar class lifeboat..