TRAINING systems that make the Royal Navy the world's most effective fighting force can equally give business in the south a leading edge.

Institute of Directors members learnt about that when they visited the Maritime Warfare School at HMS Collingwood in Fareham.

Joint hosts were the head of the School, Commodore Philip Wilcox, who has an annual resource budget of £110m to train 25,000 naval personnel, and Flagship Training, the Portsmouth-based organisation contracted to deliver the training.

They explained that the door was now open for businesses to benefit from the navy's top-notch expertise and facilities. Training courses for all staff, from apprentices to the board of directors, could now be made available, along with naval premises for conferences and exhibitions.

Members heard that Flagship is entering the eighth year of a 15-year partnering arrangement with the Royal Navy's Training Agency.

It is on target to exceed the contracted delivery of over £150m of savings to the Royal Navy in the 15-year period.

Flagship's business includes facilities management, service provision in support of naval training and, jointly, the delivery, design and programming of core training.

It customises all available training for overseas military, UK and European commercial customers.

Liz Milne, for Flagship, said courses offered to industry in career and personal development opportunities ranged from apprenticeship and special equipment training, to fire awareness in the office.

Corporate learning and development exercises included taking a team on to a mock-up of a sinking ship and getting them to work together to save the ship.

The meeting was combined with a special welcome for new members to the IoD's Hampshire and Isle of Wight branch.

Its chairman, Michael Foote, outlined branch activities sponsored by BDO Stoy Hayward and Clydesdale Bank, and invited members to each give two-minute presentations on their companies.

These ranged from Ross Ryan, from James Walker Keaflex in Bordon, who reported on his company's use of rubber technology to make precision mouldings, to Rod Struzyna of Hollybank Associates in Lymington, a specialist in bringing together £1.2 billion undersea cabling contracts.

Information about the local branch of the IoD and its activities is on www.iod.com/Hampshire.