South Shields, UK based Solar Solve Marine was recently awarded its biggest order in the history of the 44-year-old family business. The order is for 741 of the company’s well-known, Type-Approved SOLASAFE type approved sun screens and came from a group of French shipbuilders who are constructing a series of 39 vessels.
The SOLASAFE type approved sun screens will be manufactured using silver reflective shade film and will reject glare, infra-red heat and ultra-violet light from the sun. Each vessel will have 19 of them installed at the navigation bridge windows as a navigation safety aid, which will be brought into use to improve the working environment for bridge staff when needed.
John Lightfoot, MBE, Company Chairman commented, “The great team at Solar Solve have been liaising with the shipbuilder’s personnel on this project since July, to ensure that we got everything about it just right and we are delighted that our efforts were successful. We have already dispatched the customer’s requirements for the first batch of vessels and the balance of the order is due to follow over the next few weeks.”
John continued, “We would have liked to publish more details but we are not at liberty to give out too much information, including the value of the order, which is significant and the highest value order we have ever received. Probably more significant however, at this time of anguish and uncertainty as a result of what can only be described as the UK Governments BREXIT fiasco, is the underlying message that whatever the eventual outcome, life will go on and most businesses in Europe and globally intend to just get on with it.”
In September, Solar Solve celebrated its 15,000th order, which was from another customer based in the EU. That prestigious contract came from BV TEMARO, one of the company’s longest established and most successful World Wide Distributors who are based in Rotterdam. Ronald Scheffer, Managing Director of the highly successful company who promote themselves as THE Dutch Marine Suppliers, has already advised his colleagues at Solar Solve that he does not foresee any major problems trading with the UK or any other country, no matter what transpires eventually regarding BREXIT.
John Lightfoot added, “If the UK leaves the EU then there will be difficulties, if there is no deal then the difficulties will undoubtedly be magnified but we already face all sorts of difficulties and obstacles with some of the other 102 foreign countries with whom we trade. Traders are human beings and prefer easy options but when we meet obstacles, we work to find a way round them. We have no choice if we want to succeed.”
