SAR Composites Ltd, an RNLI subsidiary company, has acquired the lifeboat hull construction facility previously owned by Green Marine Ltd. Contracts were signed in January, securing the long-term future of all-weather lifeboat hull construction in the UK.

RNLI Engineering and Supply Director David Brook says: ‘This is not a decision we are taking lightly. Green Marine is the only manufacturer in the UK able to produce the technologically advanced composite hulls we need, to our exacting standards. Loss of this capability would have had catastrophic consequences for our Tamar, Atlantic 85 and other future lifeboat construction.

‘After carefully evaluating a comprehensive range of options, including potential overseas suppliers, we concluded that taking over the Green Marine capability would best serve the Institution’s current and future interests.

‘I am confident that our decision to secure the continuation of lifeboat hull construction in the UK, (in Lymington, Hampshire) is the right one, and I look forward to welcoming the Green Marine workforce that will be joining SAR Composites Ltd.’