The RNLI's fleet of inshore lifeboats do sterling service 365 days a year - but who is responsible for the creation of such trusted workhorses? The volunteers so rightly renowned for their skill and bravery in saving lives at sea rely daily upon the RNU's 200 or so inshore lifeboats. From the tiny X boat powered by oars to the 40-knot 9m E class each must be just as ready for action in an emergency as its occupant.

A boatyard tucked away on the River Medina at East Cowes, Isle of Wight, is the unlikely hive of industry that makes this possible. The Minerva Yard has been used for more than 75 years for the construction of RNLI lifeboats and once stored piles of timber used to make the wooden lifeboats of old. As the Inshore Lifeboat Centre (ILC) it is now full of neatly stacked inflatable lifeboats and racks of outboard engines.

Since the RNLI began using inflatable and then rigid inflatable (RIB) lifeboats in the 1960s, the yard has grown into a centre of excellence for the construction, overhaul and repair of such craft. Overseeing it all is Glyn Ellis, the ILC Operations Manager, who is keen to maintain the high reputation that the ILC has at home and abroad. 'We are very well respected by the industry and by other lifeboat organisations,' he explained. 'People trust the RNLI and know we have the history and experience of developing and building the best inshore lifeboats.'Sticky tape and glue In 2006, the ILC aims to build 10 of the new Atlantic 85 lifeboats virtually from scratch.

The 85 is the latest B class incarnation, designed to eventually replace the Atlantics 21 and 75. (See the spring 2005 issue of the Lifeboat for more on the collaboration between the RNLI and Atlantic College.) The Atlantic's inflatable tube (the sponson) and carbon fibre hull (the 'rigid' part of the RIB) are bought in from contractors. The ILC's solutionists fit the rubber tube to the hull using tape and glue - although the adhesives involved are rather stronger than those you might use when wrapping a Christmas present. 'Once a tube is bonded onto a hull it can remain there for 10 years,' explained Glyn.

The shell of the helmsman's console is also bought in and then fitted with its controls, navigation equipment and a radio.

All the electrical components are assembled at the ILC's own electrical workshop.

The lifeboat really begins to take on a recognisable shape when ILC workers mount the console on the deck and fit the roll bar to the stern. The roll bar holds the righting system, a system pioneered at the ILC. As practised frequently in the survival tank at The Lifeboat College in Poole, the crew of a capsized Atlantic can trigger the inflation of a large airbag, which rolls the lifeboat back over.

Crews need to be able to restart the engines after capsize. Standard engines won't usually restart after being plunged upside down in the sea but here new outboards are stripped down and inversion proofed, using a technique developed by the RNLI's engineers. To my knowledge, we are the first in the world to inversion proof these engines,' noted Glyn.

Construction of the fully inflatable boarding boats, X, Y, XP and D class lifeboats follows a similar process to the Atlantic lifeboats though by definition none of these has a rigid hull: they begin life as rubber tubes (manufactured by Avon), which are then fitted out at the ILC. The latest IB1- type D classes have more complex consoles to fit that include flare storage, a first aid kit and navigation light, an anchor locker and oxygen tank.

Personal service A few ILC staff members are trained to witness first hand the capabilities of the boats they have worked on. There are 10 qualified helmsmen on the construction team who take the completed lifeboats out into the Solent for testing. 'They checktheir own work on the end product. It really makes for a joined up role,' said Glyn. Every inshore lifeboat goes on to be tested by Hugh Fogarty, Staff Officer Operations (Fleet), to gain the final seal of approval.

The ILC's personal service even extends to distribution. Clyn explained: 'Our craftsmen deliver the Atlantics to their stations themselves. They know better than anyone what has been done to the boat. They can demonstrate any new kit and explain any modifications, something a commercial driver couldn't do.' Refit, repair, relief Atlantic lifeboats are refitted every four years or so. The console, roll bar, cabling, steering and engines are all removed, stripped, checked and either refurbished or replaced.

Each righting bag is pressure tested. It takes about 12 weeks to refit an Atlantic and it comes out looking new - though it must still pass the rigours of testing.

D class lifeboats are refitted every 18 months as, lacking a rigid hull, they are more prone to damage. On arrival at the ILC, a D class is placed in a jig to check its shape and dimensions so as to ensure the best (and safest) performance at sea.

While the floor and console are removed and refurbished, the basic boat is pressure tested. It is all then reassembled, with new rigging and electrics. A sea trial must again be passed before the boat is returned to its station. Similar overhauls are carried out on the lifeguards' inshore rescue boats at the end of each season.

The RNLI's less well-known, inshore boats operate on the River Thames. The E class boats were bought 'off the peg' and the ILC refitted them to RNLI specifications during 2004—5. (See the spring 2005 issue of the Lifeboat for more on life on the Thames for RNLI crew).

When a boat is at the ILC for refit it is temporarily replaced by one from the relief fleet. A relief boat will also be sent, within 24 hours, in the event that a station craft is damaged. In the meantime, ILC workers will either visit the lifeboat station to repair the lifeboat in situ or it will be sent to the ILC for repair there.

With inshore lifeboats making up more than half of the RNLI's fleet, the high standard and efficiency of the ILC's work is vital to the effectiveness of the whole lifeboat service. Clyn concluded: 'We have an excellent, if largely unknown, specialist facility here. As always, it is only thanks to our supporters that we can keep up the good work.'More facts and figures • The ILC has around 80 staff who clock up an average of 140,000 hours per year.

• One or two young people each year are taken on as apprentices, eventually taking a full-time job at the ILC or being snapped up by other boat yards.

• The ILC builds about 10 B class lifeboats and 25 D class a year, and carries out 80 refits.

• Older lifeboats such as the Atlantic 21s are sold at the end of their service life or given to the International Lifeboat Federation. Older D classes can also be converted into boarding boats or used in displays for publicity..