Our Rescue team are a hard-working bunch, they’re the team with the fastest growing market share at Northern Diver and it’s due to their commitment to their customers and dedication to designing innovative new products for the sector. We’re incredibly proud to announce that their efforts continue to pay off as seen by the recent Fire and Rescue contract we won in Panama.
A rescue team who look after the Canal Zone in Panama, came to us to ask us for Personal Flotation Device (PFDs).
Where’s the Canal Zone?
Located in Central America on the border of Costa Rica and Colombia, the Republic of Panama is home to around 4m people.
The Panama Canal Zone (or Zona del Canal de Panamá as it’s known by the Spanish speaking natives) is an area that extends 8km (5 miles) either side of the Panama Canal and includes the waterway itself. (Although it excludes Panama City and Colón). Its border spans three Panamanian provinces so reservoirs were created to assure a steady supply of water for the locks and those lakes are also included within the Zone.
The Rescue team who work there are charged with protecting the canals and their infrastructure while also providing disaster recovery.
You could be forgiven for assuming that the Rescue team predominantly look after trade routes, however, The Canal Zone is home to several impressive attractions, which means that many tourists also use the waterway and surrounding area. There’s a lot of wildlife and bird watching as well as hiking done in The Canal Zone. Tourists also visit the Miraflores Locks, Parque Nacional Soberanía and the Panama Rainforest Discovery Centre. The Canal Zone is also home to one of the world’s most famous tropical research stations, Isla Barro Colorado and the indigenous village of Emberá and Wounaan which are on the shores of the Río Chagres.
This means that the remit of the Rescue team is far reaching and there are a lot of people who depend on them to keep them safe if an accident was to occur in The Canal Zone.
Northern Diver supply of Canal Zone PFDs.
The Rescue Team came to us requesting bespoke Personal Flotation Devices. Working with the customer, we designed the PFDs to their specification and began the manufacturing process. We produced a sample for them within 3 weeks and following their approval the order was made and shipped in just 6 weeks. This kind of speedy turnaround is possible for the team at Northern Diver due to the onsite expertise of their team and the diligence of our fantastic Warehouse and Dispatch teams.
This large order was the third the Canal Zone team have made. We’ve now supplied their helmets, torches and gloves alongside their new PFDs. Here at Northern Diver, we look forward to continuing to support them in the future.
Another great success for Craig and the Rescue team – well done guys!