A MARINE civil engineering company will play a crucial role in restoring and constructing lifeboat stations with a new multi-million pound vessel.

Red7 Marine, of Wrabness, added the £2m, 250 ton barge, Haven Seariser 2 to its fleet thanks to funding from Clydesdale Bank. The vessel is currently working on a £9.5m boathouse and slipway for the RNLI at the end of the 113-year-old Mumbles Pier in Swansea Bay.

Construction materials can only be brought in by sea because of the delicate nature of the pier and inaccessibility of the lifeboat stations.

Martin Spurr, chairman of Red7 Marine, thanked Clydesdale Bank for providing funding for the vessel.

He added: “The purchase of the new barge, means we are able to commit to a three-year-contract to provide a safe and secure operating platform for building and restoration work on a range of RNLI stations around the coast.”

Andrew Pike, head of business and private banking in East Anglia for Clydesdale Bank, said: “It is great for us to see their new vessel in action on such an important and worthwhile project.”