Diverse Marine & Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service to Build New Lifeboat

21 December 2021

Cowes, UK (21-12-21) – Diverse Marine Ltd. and Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service Ltd. are pleased to announce that the two parties have signed a new vessel construction agreement for a first of class 14m Medina Class Lifeboat.


After a competitive international tender process using a design from Walker Marine Design, the construction of the vessel at Cowes on the Isle of Wight completes the evolutionary process that saw the original Medina Class Lifeboat built very close to the current build location over 35 years ago - before the design was adopted by the Dutch who built the stations current Lifeboat, ‘Bernard Matthews II’ 16 years ago.


The 14m self-righting Lifeboat features an aluminum hull, deck and coach roof together with a resiliently mounted GRP wheelhouse to reduce noise and vibration for the crew. The fully air-conditioned wheelhouse layout has been designed for up to six crew, all with designated AllSalt Maritime SHOXS 2000 seats. Configuration is for a central helm station forward, nav station aft to stbd and an additional dedicated space for stretcher and casualties.


Twin Scania DI13-077M main propulsion engines drive twin Hamilton HJ364 water jet units for speeds in excess of 35 knots. Twin helm stations will feature Hamilton Jet’s AVX control system and Jet-Anchor functionality for station keeping. A comprehensive navigation and communications suite will be supplied by Boat Electrics and Electronics Ltd.


The vessel has commenced build and will be delivered in 2022.


Ben Colman, Director of Diverse Marine says “We are delighted and very proud to be awarded the contract for this Lifeboat for such a high profile and respected charitable organization. Our expertise building high quality workboats together with the repair and maintenance of Lifeboats stands us in a good position to deliver this first of class vessel, meeting the specific requirements from the crew of the Caister Lifeboat.


Paul Garrod, Chairman of Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service says says “This marks the next chapter in the history of Caister Independent Lifeboat. Our current lifeboat has served us well over the last 16 years, and carried out many rescues during her time on service. The new lifeboat will be purpose built for our needs at Caister, and the Directors, Crew and Members and all our volunteers are excited and proud that it will be built in the United Kingdom.”


For further information visit www.diversemarine.co.uk


-Ends-


About Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service

 

SAVING LIVES SINCE 1791 Caister Lifeboat is an independent charity and was Britain’s first independent lifeboat service. Its role is, and always has been, to save lives at sea and along the coastline of Norfolk and Suffolk.


The Caister Lifeboat charity is made up of a board of eight trustee directors, an operational crew and a team of volunteers who help run our office function, on-site shop, cafe and museum. None of our team is paid, so every penny of donations can be used to support our lifesaving work.


The volunteers and directors are responsible for the day-to-day and long-term planning of Caister Lifeboat. That means ensuring the boats and equipment is correctly maintained, the crew are trained and that the bills get paid. The board of directors are also responsible for fund raising and income, which ranges from a series of events throughout the year, as well as promoting donations and legacies.


The board of directors meets monthly, with another monthly meeting for our 38 members, which is made up of current and past crew. Through the discussions at these meetings, the charity’s policies, aims and ambitions are set out, as well as decisions on investment in lifesaving equipment, training and fund raising.


The charity has been supported and visited by HRH Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, the Princess Royal and Princess Alexandra. In 2012, the year of the diamond jubilee of HM Queen Elizabeth II, Caister Lifeboat was invited to take part in the Pageant on the Thames, where the charity was presented with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service - the equivalent of an MBE.

 

To find out more about Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service, please visit: 

 

https://www.caisterlifeboat.org.uk

Diverse Marine’s Finance & Lease Programme Delivers Two CTVs, with Five More in Build

27 February 2025
Cowes, UK (27-02-25) Since launching its Finance & Lease Programme in November 2023, Diverse Marine has successfully delivered two crew transfer vessels (CTVs), with three more currently in build for delivery this year and two further shortly thereafter of the first batch.The programme continues to operate as a rolling initiative, providing new-build CTVs based on customer demand. The first vessel completed under the programme was NR Alpha, which was unveiled at Seawork last year. This Storm Class CTV has set new benchmarks for fuel efficiency and performance, leading NR Marine Services to order a third vessel—NR Rival, the first of the new Typhoon Class CTVs. NR Rival was delivered in January 2025. TheTyphoon Class features a hull form designed for exceptional head-sea performance and tower access while maintaining high buoyancy reserves for superior seakeeping in following and stern-quarter seas. It also comes with Zero Emissions (Power Management) class notation, recognising its efficiency in reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Stock Build 3, a first Brevity Class CTV is undergoing sea trials with the vessel available for quick delivery following rebrand to suit a prospective clients requirements. Stock Build 4, to be named NR Rebellion, a second Typhoon Class CTV, is now in its final build phase, with the wheelhouse and saloon fitted earlier this month. Again ordered by NR Marine Services, she is scheduled for launch and sea trials in March. Owen Nutt, Director at NR Marine Services, commented: “Receiving three world-class CTVs in the last 10 months has been transformative for our business. Each vessel has outperformed expectations in speed and efficiency, delivering significant fuel cost savings for our clients.This success has given us the confidence to order another Typhoon Class CTV and another Storm Class CTV through Diverse Marine’s Finance & Lease Programme, and we look forward to putting them to work soon.” Meanwhile, Stock Build 5, to be named NR Hunter, a third Storm Class CTV, is currently under construction at Diverse Marine’s facility in Cowes and will be launched at Seawork in June. Stock Build 6, an Ambitious Class CTV is also currently under construction and will be delivered to OEG, whilst Stock Build 7, a further Brevity Class CTV, will follow in Q3/Q4 of this year. Ben Colman, Director at Diverse Marine, added: “The success of our Finance & Lease Programme is proving that high-quality, next-generation CTVs can be more accessible and affordable for operators. By reducing the financial barriers to vessel ownership, we’re enabling companies to upgrade their fleets with more efficient and capable vessels. With four more vessels in build and strong interest in future slots, we look forward to continuing to support the offshore wind industry with innovative financing and cutting-edge designs.” For more information on the Diverse Marine Finance & Lease Programme, including availability and build slots, please contact Ben Colman or Peter Curtis on 01983 300656.

Diverse Marine Start Construction of CSOV Daughter Craft

12 June 2024
Seawork, Southampton, UK (12-06-24) Diverse Marine is proud to announce that it has been selected by VARD GROUP AS to construct a Chartwell Daugher Craft to be installed on a VARD 4 19 CSOV under construction for PURUS Wind. The 12m catamaran daughter craft,designed by Chartwell Marine in Southampton features a twin IMOTier-3Volvo Penta IPS propulsion system to reduce emissions and provide good performance when deployed from the CSOV.  Ben Colman, Director of Diverse Marine:“I am very proud of this contract award, something different for our small boats team off the back of small military craft, amphibious CTV, survey vessels and a fast passenger vessel. If there is sufficient demand for daughter craft of this type then we may consider a stock build programme similar to the CTV’s to have craft available without the burden of construction finance and stage payments.”

Diverse Marine & NR Marine Services announce the launch of NR ALPHA

10 June 2024
Diverse Marine and NR Marine Services and proud to announce the launch of the second of class Storm Class CTV, NR ALPHA that is now proudly being displayed at Seawork 2024 in the Port of Southampton on berth VB21. NR ALPHA is a sister to NR PREDATOR delivered in March this year. NR PREDATOR has performed very well on her first contract with higher performance levels and substantially lower fuel burn and emission levels than other similar vessels on the same project. The Storm Class measures 27.6m LOA by 10m BOA and is fitted with a quad IMO Tier-3 Volvo Penta IPS propulsion system. Its unique hull form features a very fine entry with higher buoyancy reserves above the main chines and resistance reducingsolutions integrated into the underbody. A resilient superstructure ensures very low noise and vibration levels in the passenger saloon with the first recording sub 55dBA at full power. NR ALPHA is the first vessel from the Diverse Marine Finance and Lease Programme announced late last year and the first of three vessels being delivered to the scheme this year. The programme allows Diverse Marine to build offshore wind crew transfer vessels to stock for onward lease or sale. The scheme removes the requirement for clients to source construction finance and Diverse Marine can offer the vessels on lease/hire purchase with 0% deposit, a fully funded solution with payments monthly in arrears. Ben Colman, Director of Diverse Marine:“We are delighted to announce the build of NR ALPHA for NR Marine Services.Theperformance of NR PREDATOR has exceeded everybody’s expectations with exceptionally good performance, fuel efficiency and reliability, a testament to the high quality produced by our team at Cowes”.  Owen Nutt, Director of NR Marine Services: “The addition of NR ALPHA to our fleet so soon after NR PREDATOR is testament to the growth and forward plans set out by our business to add high quality, high performance and efficient vessels to our fleet. Diverse Marine’s Storm Class is the result of the KPI’s we provided to Walker Marine Design and the ship yard. With NR PREDATOR all of these KPI’s were met with the vessel proving to be faster and more efficient that predicted. We are very pleased and excited that we can add NR ALPHA to the fleet and provide our clients with class leading vessels that can save £100,000’s of fuel cost annually without any compromise”.
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