A Glasgow boatyard has delivered what is said to be the world’s first fully recyclable working vessel as it prepares to expand sales globally creating hundreds of jobs.
Fitted with the latest technology and design features, the vessel will boost officers’ response to incidents in the water such as missing person searches, event patrols, body recovery and intelligence-led searches as part of investigations.
The launch by ExoTechnologies, the owner of builder Ultimate Boats, follows a £7 million investment in the creation of a new composite material technology called DANUTM which is used in place of fibreglass. The vessel for Police Scotland, with a top speed of 50 knots and an operating range of 400 nautical miles, is the first in a new range of high-performance working boats.
ExoTechnologies chief executive Shane Mugan said the company plans to create 300 jobs at the Glasgow yard within five years as its range of recyclable boats has already attracted “significant” interest from commercial operators and military.
“We are preparing to engage with potential investors and strategic partners to scale our company to realise the potential of our market leading technologies capable of accelerating the green transition to a circular economy across all industries and markets,” he said.
ExoTechnologies approached Police Scotland in July 2020 with an opportunity to co-design a purpose-built boat which would be offered on a research and development loan for operational use. It will be loaned to Police Scotland for a three-year period with an agreement in place which covers the cost of insurance, maintenance and servicing.
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams, lead for operational support, said: “This unique opportunity should allow us to benefit from a high-performing asset that will make a positive difference to our capability.
“We have a duty to explore new projects that look to improve the working environment for our officers and staff, as well as the response we can provide to the public. We have been working closely with Ultimate Boats and will continue to provide feedback as the officers look forward to using this asset operationally.”
Mr Mugan added: “We are proud that this pioneering and internationally significant project is being delivered in Scotland, by our talented Clyde-based workforce, in partnership with Police Scotland.
“To witness the world’s first ever fully recyclable boat, in action, made from our fully recyclable DANUTM composite material technology is incredibly rewarding after years of research and development.”
It is estimated that 250 million kilos of fibreglass and thousands of boats are dumped into landfill across Europe each year.