Crewsaver - please DO SOMETHING about this!

[Mirelle]

Like many other people I am a tolerably reliable customer of yours. Three auto lifejackets with combined harness, two manual lifejackets without and two buoyancy aids, to be precise.

Now, you offer a face mask/visor as an optional extra.

Anyone who has read even a little on the subject knows that this is for all practical purposes an essential item, if you are going to survive in the water.

The design of your face mask is fine as far as it goes....BUT it assumes that the casualty will have the presence of mind, when struggling in the water, to find the thing in its pouch, and put it on - an operation which involves undoing it, finding which way up it is meant to go, and placing it over your head right way up.....in the water....

Furthermore, the design of the pouch is pathetic and it comes undone at the drop of a hat. I now carry mine in my oilskin pocket!

PLEASE go back to the drawing board, incorporate the face visor as an integral part of the lifejacket and include it as a "basic", not as an optional extra. Ideally. make it self deploying. But at all events attach it to the collar.

Your kit is already a bit more expensive. Your won't stop us buying it....

 

[tome]

Totally agree with this. The face mask should be integral and not an afterthought if it's to prove effective. Face masks are said to be most useful during the first minutes in the water when the dis-orientated casualty is most likely to inhale spray etc which can lead to secondary drowning. Having to unpack it from a pouch and deploy it defeats the object.

Also, whilst on the subject, the method of fitting the optional light is equally poor and makes it difficult to pack the lifejacket.

 

[alex_rogers]

Life jackets for flying offshore to oilrigs all have an integral face shield and a light. After inflating the life jacket, you pull the shield over your head and then stick the light to the velcro strip on top of your head.

I've never seen anything like that in a lifejacket sold for boating.

 

[Mirelle]

Yes, that's just the thing. Why not for yottilifejackets?

I suppose that the lifejacket makers feel that the foul weather gear makers should provide the integral face shield with the hood - but there cannot be a problem with including it in the lifejacket, surely?

 

[EdEssery]

Baltic do what appear to be a very effective spray hood option for their life jackets. It stows round the back of your neck inside the normal cover - when the lifejacket inflates you just reach behind your head pull it forward and hook an elastic under the bladder on each side.

Never had to use them in anger fortunately but seems a much better approach than CrewSaver's

Ed

PS No connection to Baltic - other than as a satisfied customer...

 

[MikeKopman]

Has anyone tried unpacking the hood from the pouch, and rolling it up in the folded lifejacket...? Maybe with some minor mod it could be permanently attached there so once the jacket is inflated you just reach back and pull it over your head. Or alternatively attached the front bits, so once inflated you pull it backwards over your head... Can't be too hard, tho' Crewsaver should be doing this thinking, not us!
btw I don't find any prob with the light attachment... u sure it's on right?

Mike

 

[tome]

Crewsaver - Light attachment

Not sure if it's on right, but think so. From memory it has a flap of plastic with a hole and press stud which fits loosely over the oral inflation tube. It doesn't seem very secure and I remember having a job re-packing the jacket with it in place.

I seem to recall the instructions were a poor photocopy of a badly explained procedure so you might be right - Ill take another look at this next time I'm on board.

I did what you're suggesting with the hood and removed it from the pouch so it's in the lifejacket. Not very satisfactory and much better to have it attached properly.

 

[Mirelle]

Re: Crewsaver - Light attachment

Me too.

 

[Rob_Webb]

Mirelle

Obviously some heartfelt comments and criticsim/feedback here!

To make the most of it, I presume you will send a copy of this thread to Crewsaver rather than just hoping one of their people stumbles across it here?

Rob

 

[Mirelle]

Rob,

First thing was to find out if I was being unreasonable. Evidently not, so I hope that YM will draw Crewsaver's attention to this thread - if not, I will!

 

[Guest]

As mentioned in one of the replies, helicopter passengers to N.Sea rigs use a jacket with spray hood. We are all trained to use them during our Survival Course. The difference they make is truly remarkable, as I discovered recently. But their use must be panic-proof.
KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid.

 

[Rob_Webb]

Well that's what I mean really, there's lots of constructive feedback here and it would be shame if Crewsaver never heard about it - if I were you I wouldn't leave it to chance and would send them a copy for info and see what they say? Let us know.....

Rob