Uncompromising quality, developed in-house: SECUMAR
Every SECUMAR lifesaving product must protect and save lives in an emergency. This commitment has guided our work for 100 years. We develop and manufacture lifejackets and other lifesaving equipment for use on, in, under and above the water.
We bear a great responsibility. It demands craftsmanship, our own innovative strength, consistent quality and an experienced team. This combination has characterized Bernhardt Apparatebau and the SECUMAR brand since its foundation.
Karl Bernhardt founded the company. He was succeeded by his son, Jost Bernhardt, and his grandson, Jan-Ulrich Bernhardt. Today, Benjamin Bernhardt leads the family business as the fourth generation at the helm. Jan-Ulrich Bernhardt continues to support the company’s development as a member of the management team and an experienced adviser.
Our mission has remained unchanged since the very beginning: we aim to ensure safety on, in, under and above the water.
Quality from our own production facilities
Our commitment to quality runs through every stage of product development and manufacture. We carry out key operations under one roof in Holm, near Hamburg. These include high-frequency welding of the floats, cutting, sewing, assembly and final inspection.
Prototype testing, bespoke product development, testing procedures and maintenance are also closely integrated with our production processes. The short lines of communication between development, production, quality assurance and service facilitate collaboration and make many processes immediately transparent.
We do not merely inspect our products at the end of the manufacturing process. We scrutinise every safety-critical step. Our aim is to identify weaknesses at an early stage and to continuously improve the reliability of our rescue equipment.
Every safety-critical component is inspected
For every SECUMAR life-saving device, all safety-critical components are 100 per cent inspected. Only then are they fitted and, together with the finished product, leave our premises.
This applies, amongst other things, to buoyancy chambers, release mechanisms and CO₂ cartridges. We weigh every single CO₂ cartridge and every release tablet. We also check that the CO₂ cartridge is punctured securely by the pin in the release mechanism. The tests also include checking the reliable operation of the lever mechanisms for manual and automatic release.
Every float produced is tested for leaks and is left inflated for 16 hours for this purpose. In addition, two floats from each production batch are inflated to bursting point. This allows us to test the strength of the welded seams as well as the resilience of the material and coating under extreme conditions.
These tests are labour-intensive. However, they are essential to ensure that life-saving equipment functions reliably in an emergency.
Tests under realistic conditions
The development of new rescue products is also accompanied by intensive testing. Our test dummies, Scotty and Bambi, are regularly used in water tests in our in-house test pool. They demonstrate how a lifejacket performs under realistic conditions.
We have a clear objective in mind: to identify any weaknesses as early as possible. This applies to the development, manufacture, monitoring and delivery of our products.
Practical safety solutions
Our rescue equipment is used worldwide by professional users in the commercial shipping sector, by rescue organisations and by water sports enthusiasts. Trust in our products is not built solely on technical specifications. It is built on experience, transparent processes and reliable solutions tailored to specific requirements.
We are ISO 9001 certified. However, our own history, our sense of responsibility and our close connection to the people who use our life-saving equipment are equally crucial to our day-to-day work.
Our site in Holm is situated close to the coast. Dialogue with users and customers is therefore a natural part of our work. Feedback from the field helps us to further develop existing products and create new solutions.
“Our guiding principle has always been, and remains, to have the right lifejacket ready for every operation. We have therefore always manufactured products to meet specialised requirements and developed solutions for tasks for which no suitable solution yet exists. When customers approach us, we can respond and develop bespoke products,” says Benjamin Bernhardt.
By experts, for experts
Rescue equipment is often exposed to extreme conditions during operations. This is particularly true of equipment used by rescue organisations and professional users. It must be reliable and robust.
We are therefore constantly refining existing rescue equipment and working on new solutions. One example is the specialist lifejackets for the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service (DGRS).
We also regularly put tried-and-tested SECUMAR designs through their paces. We adapt them to new requirements, improve their ergonomics, use new materials and further develop deployment and buoyancy technologies.
“This is what we mean by taking responsibility for the people who venture out onto the water, relying on our technology,” says Jan-Ulrich Bernhardt.
Milestones in the development of lifejackets
The history of SECUMAR lifejackets has been marked by numerous developmental stages. In the 1970s, the SECUMAR BS 8 model represented a significant advance in inflatable lifejackets.
Bernhardt Apparatebau also developed new solutions for the activation mechanisms on several occasions. The Secumatic 3001S used three red-green indicators to show the status of the automatic mechanism. On the successor model, the SECUMATIC 4001S, a single indicator was sufficient. It indicated whether a release tablet had been inserted, a full CO₂ cartridge was correctly screwed in, and the manual release lever was in working order.
SECUMAR also developed lifejackets with an integrated harness and made buoyancy aids more resistant to external impacts using the double-layered DUO-PROTECT system. SECUMAR was the first manufacturer to introduce a click fastening. This made it as easy to fasten a lifejacket as it is to fasten a car seatbelt.
With the SCOUT model, SECUMAR integrated a distress beacon into a lifejacket for water sports enthusiasts for the first time.
Safety and responsibility guide our actions
We also focus on details that can make a significant difference in an emergency. These include specially developed, application-specific pressure relief valves, as well as viewing windows providing a direct view of the release mechanism. This allows the condition of the lifejacket to be quickly assessed.
Our collaboration with professional users brings experience from demanding operational environments into our ongoing product development. One example is the SECUTRONIC release unit, developed for military applications. It features water-depth sensors, can be deactivated and offers a countdown function.
The development of our life-saving equipment is never complete. New requirements, practical experience and technical advances constantly provide reasons to review and further develop our products.
One example of this dates back to the 1950s. A member of Jost Bernhardt’s team at the time wanted to test a lifejacket model as realistically as possible. The lifejacket was also intended to be able to rescue an unconscious person in the water. To do this, he had himself fully restrained and jumped from the one-metre board into the test pool. It was not his last contribution to the development of our rescue equipment.
This approach continues to define SECUMAR to this day. We are not content with the status quo. We seek ways to improve, review our solutions and take responsibility for the people who rely on our technology.