A small company in mid-Wales is finding a demand for its products – life-size horse rescue mannequins – as far afield as Australia and the USA.
Resquip, based in Welshpool, Powys, is the only manufacturer of the dummies in the UK and one of only two in the world. The other is in the US.
Office manager Sarah Naylor told H&H: “Resquip is an offshoot of another business, Big Beasts Ltd which makes props for film sets and shop window displays.
“They branched out into making the mannequins in 2008, when they realised that fire services were increasingly involved with rescuing horses.”
The mannequin, called “Randy”, weighs 400kg and is made of industrial rubber. His name is changed to “Bruce” when he is sent to clients in Australia.
Resquip is finishing off two horses this week, bound for America. They have already sent five to the US, while “Randy” has also been dispatched to fire departments in Finland and Belgium and mountain rescue teams in the French and Austrian Alps.
Closer to home, one valued client is the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, who recently used their “Randy” in a demonstration (pictured).
And making large, heavy animals has stood Resquip staff in good stead for their next project – they are working on an extra-large human training dummy, to help emergency workers practice carrying morbidly obese people around.
