A BRAND new type of sledge is being launched by a Worcester company.

Business partners Sean Heather and Darren Mather set up Axiski three years ago after coming up with the idea of creating a more practical piece of equipment for people to use in the snow.

The duo are now in touching distance of the finished product which is being manufactured in Droitwich and is expected to be launched in October.

The sledge, which is like a snow board and made from hi-tech HDP plastic, has been designed so that more than one person can use it either standing up or lying down.

Mr Heather said his friend of six years, Mr Mather, came up with the idea after becoming frustrated with his own conventional sledge and how it handled in the snow.

“My business partner has two daughters,” he said. “Three years ago in 2010 when it snowed a lot they went to the slopes. He wanted a sledge he could stand up on at the same time as his daughters and he couldn’t really do it.

“He went to his garden shed and made one out of laminate floor board. It looked awful, but it worked really well and everyone was lining up to use it.”

To give them a headstart, the pair are hoping to raise £40,000 through the Kick Starter website where people are invited to make pledges and in return will receive rewards.

“The whole point of Axiski is that it extends the potential time for fun,” said Mr Heather.

“People cannot go sledging the second it starts to snow as they need a lot of it for them to work.

“Axiski works right from the start, so more time for fun. There’s nothing on the market like it.

“You can buy amateur snowboards that you can use locally, but you can’t sit on them and you can’t lie down on them and you can’t have multiple people on them at the same time. Ours does it all.” To make a pledge, visit kickstarter.com/projects/1196384158/axiski-the-most-versatile-skiboard-fun-for-the-fam.