Wren Engineering worked with Marine Specialised Technology to produce specialist boat cradles that will be used to handle ribs and inflatables deployed on European military operations

A Merseyside marine welding and fabrication specialist has manufactured a series of specialist boat cradles to store and transport high-speed military workboats.

Wren Engineering secured the project with Liverpool business Marine Specialised Technology (MST). The cradles will be used to handle ribs and inflatables deployed by European armed forces.

Wren Engineering, founded in 1990, was recently bought by Wirral entrepreneur and former armed forces member Jonathan Willoughby.

He said Wren had developed a long-standing relationship with MST – renowned as a world-leading rigid Inflatable and workboat supplier for military and professional use.

“Our team of engineers designed and manufactured a series of boat carrying cradles and engine mounts to transport ribs used by armed forces across Europe,” said Mr Willoughby.

“They were constructed for easy loading, storage and manoeuvrability.

“While the ribs and inflatables are robust, durable and expertly made, our job was to ensure they could be safely protected while out of the water for stowage and transported between locations.

“The cradles and mounts have been designed using high grade aluminium steel providing strong reinforcement and an ideal protective skeleton for the workboats to lay in.”

Mr Willoughby said the scale of Wren’s operation, with a 6,000 sq ft workshop and wide range of plant equipment, enables it to deliver a broad range of services to clients such as MST.

“We are hugely appreciative of the close relationship we have developed in the local Merseyside maritime cluster with other world-leading firms such as MST,” he said.

“This enables us to support each other for mutual benefit and work in collaboration on specialist projects.”