Viking to upgrade Topaz fleet liferafts

Marine and fire safety equipment specialist VIKING Life – Saving Equipment and Topaz Energy and Marine, an offshore support vessel company, today jointly announced the signing of a USD multi-million, 10-year combined fixed price and exchange service agreement for liferafts.

Under the terms of the contract , VIKING will upgrade all of Topaz’s current life rafts and manage the ongoing servicing and certification of Topaz’s life raft fleet .

“This agreement significantly enhances our ability to operate safely, which is a top priority for Topaz and for our clients,” says Topaz CEO, René Kofod-Olsen.

The offshore focused company enjoyed a 2013 year free of lost-time accidents and has won several safety awards recognizing its leadership in safe operations and employee protection. The new agreement further strengthens Topaz’s health and safety credentials , raising the bar in an increasingly competitive market.

“Topaz doesn’t do things halfway,” says Henrik Uhd Christensen, VIKING’s CEO. “Their commitment to safety manifests itself in a systematic, well – planned approach to protecting their employees.

With the new agreement they have managed two things at once: lifting overall safety to a new level, and introducing predictable cost-efficiencies. ”

“After thoroughly researching the market, we felt confident taking this step. Their extensive servicing network matched our needs and the high reliability of the VIKING products, timely servicing of the liferafts and standardization of the process in line with global best practice was very convincing,” explained René Kofod – Olsen.

“The agreement will help to protect our track record and ensure even better safety for the future.”

Henrik Uhd Christensen sees the new agreement as a good example of what can be accomplished when shipowners realize the advantages of putting safety equipment provision and management in the hands of his company.

He points to VIKING’s status not only as a high – quality manufacturer and servicing provider, but also to the responsible reputation the company has built up over many years in the marketplace.

“This is a textbook example of the value VIKING has spent the last two years bringing to the offshore industry, combining top – quality safety equipment with flexible servicing concepts at predictable costs. We’re very proud to be working with an insightful company like Topaz that shares our commitment to maritime safety and operating efficiency.”