RFD Beaufort - Liferafts, Survival Jackets and Marine Safety Equipment

RFD Beaufort, part of the Survitec Group of Companies, was borne through the merger of RFD Ltd and Beaufort Air Sea Equipment Ltd in 2003. We manufacture survival jackets and equipment for marine applications. Whilst RFD Beaufort is a relatively young company, it started life with a proud and prestigious heritage of leadership and innovation in the safety and survival equipment industry.

The company operates from two sites in the UK, the Dunmurry site (formerly RFD Ltd) in Northern Ireland, and the Birkenhead site (formerly Beaufort Air Sea Equipment Ltd) in England. RFD Beaufort has two sales divisions to serve the extensive global market for commercial marine and defence, and aerospace products.

RFD Beaufort has a combined heritage of over 80 years in the design and manufacture of safety and survival equipment, employing over 500 people. The company produces reliable, marine tested safety products from its manufacturing and office facilities measuring over 30,000m².

COMMERCIAL LIFERAFTS

We manufacture a wide range of survival liferafts for marine application. This range includes the following:

• Survival liferafts
• Ferryman liferafts
• Seasava liferafts
• Marin-Ark marine evacuation system

RFD commercial marine liferafts incorporate the latest innovations in design and manufacturing techniques, making them the ultimate commercial liferafts. They are suitable for use on all types of commercial and military marine craft.

MARINE EVACUATION SYSTEM

The RFD Marin-Ark marine evacuation system provides the most advanced way of evacuating passengers and crew from all types of passenger vessels in an emergency. Evacuees transfer quickly and safely from the ship directly into the liferaft without exposure to the weather.

RFD has over four decades of industry-leading experience dealing with marine evacuation systems and our ultimate survival system, the RFD Marin-Ark, has been installed on a substantial number of vessels including cruise ships, conventional passenger ferries and high-speed craft.

Features of the system include four reversible liferafts for over 100 people, two descent chutes, all housed within one stowage unit. The system provides enclosed evacuation, with 90 seconds of deployment, and cost effective and efficient servicing by experienced engineers.

LIFERAFTS AND LIFEJACKETS

RFD Beaufort Commercial Aerospace Division manufactures the following products:

• Heliraft liferafts
• Aerolite liferafts
• SAR raft
• Stowage
• Aerospace lifejackets
• Babycots
• CAA approved products

DEFENCE LIFERAFTS AND SAFETY EQUIPMENT

RFD Beaufort produces the following range of defence liferafts:

• Single seat liferafts
• Abandonment suits
• Submarine escape equipment
• Pilot ensembles
• Breathing equipment
• Lifejackets

FERRY LIFEJACKETS

These products are manufactured from highly visible, yellow, lightweight, PU coated fabric. They are comfortable to wear, require minimal storage space, and are easy to put on. An additional advantage is that the life jackets can be manually inflated. Our single chamber life jackets are ideal for use in coastal and inland waters. Features include a grab loop becket with over 180kgs lifting capacity, retro-reflective patches for minimum visibility, oral topping up tube for buoyancy chamber and the jacket is packed compactly in a transparent valise.

FRD is one of the world's leading manufacturers of marine survival systems, and is recognised within the industry for innovative design and engineering skills. The company ensures that the highest quality products are available to its customers world wide, and meets quality standards in accordance with ISO 9001 procedures.