We’re surrounded by some of the most talented and successful women in the maritime industry who contribute to our success and our customers around the world.

Our colleague’s service lifejackets for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), the UK charity that saves lives at sea. The team service close to 5,000 lifejackets every year for the RNLI, which can take anywhere between 45 minutes to 2-hours per lifejacket, depending on the condition of the lifejacket.

The RNLI lifejacket servicing team were recently recognised in the Survitec Thank You Awards. They also received recognition from the RNLI, who said, "over the past two years, the team, despite not being RNLI staff, have indeed shown themselves to be part of our watch and have certainly proven to be an important part of our crew. Please accept our thanks for your efforts in these challenging times".

We asked three colleagues who work on the lifejacket servicing desk for the RNLI to share their insights

Emma Lambe works with her colleagues to inspect the lifejackets, re-sewing items, repairing the lifejackets, inflation testing and checking each element to ensure it meets all regulatory requirements. Emma said that her job requires a lot of strength and focus to ensure there are absolutely no mistakes. Emma said her role is not just a job, but a commitment to helping to protect lives.

Zoe Collins is the Service and Repairs Supervisor and has worked at Survitec for 14 years. Zoe started her career as a beautician before commencing employment with Survitec and never looked back. The outdoors enthusiast enjoys horse riding and ziplining and describes Survitec as one big family. Zoe enjoys collaborative working with her colleagues and starts the day with a coffee and social chat before setting out the daily requirements.

Elaine Curson has worked for Survitec for a decade and takes pride in her work, ensuring that every task is carried out to a high standard. Before joining Survitec, Elaine worked in a bank and longed for a career change. She was familiar with the brand name and decided to apply for a job to learn a new skill. Elaine loves the changing environment of the RNLI service department, where every day presents new challenges and when she’s not at work, her passion is rescuing reptiles.

Enjoyed reading the story of the lifejacket servicing team? We have more. Click here to read about Laura, the first female MES service technician.