HOW TO ORDER WIRE ROPES

In order to prevent errors, you have to discribe the wire rope in the correct manner when ordering or inquiring.
This description is best to be taken over from a previous commission or account. If you haven’t ordered the required wire rope before, you have to provide the following information:
• The amount of pieces and the length of the rope
• Sort of material : plain,countersink,stainless
• Diameter or outline (see pict.)
• Construction
• Core
• Tensile strength
• Twist
• Moulded or not
• Potential end joints
• In case of prestressed wire ropes with accurate lenght :
The strain under which this lenght must be reached.

Example :
1 x 100 m. effective length, plain wire rope, 18 mm., construction 6 x 19 wires Seale + 1 fibre core,
tensile strength 1770 N/mm², regular lay right stranded moulded, with cable shoe for 40 mm. diameter pin.
For wire ropes used in hoisting cranes you may find the above mentioned ordering-information in the crane book where they must be stated. Changing to another wire rope without consulting the wire rope-manufacturer or supplier may case unpleasant results. You have to consider that the cable constructions in hoisting cranes often are developed for this purpose only.
If some information isn’t provided, the wire rope will be delivered in the most used construction. So it is always useful to mention the use of the wire rope.


THE HANDLING OF WIRE ROPES
You problably know how unpleasant it is when there is a hitch somewhere.
Something you counted on, can’t be realised and not often with far-reaching consequences. A quirn in your wire rope may cost you a lot of money, but most importantly, you haven’t got control on your safety.
Therefore alone you have to take the utmost care on your wire rope.
Wire rope has to been taken care of with the utmost precaution. A wrong treatment may cause disadvantages, namely: Service life may be shorted considerably.
Check a wire rope-hawser or –reel at arrival on damages. When storing you have to make sure you have got a dry storage and at least dry subsoil; A wooden plank-bridge is sufficient. When storing for a longer period you should check on a frequent base for corrosion.
You also must prevent that a wire rope is damaged during transport due to sharp objects, like lose bricks and so on. Sand and mud also belong to the culprits. This is also important when unwinding the reel.
Hawsers never may unreeled from the inside, this surtenly will give quirns; The hawser must be “rolled” out.
When a wire rope is reeled over from a hawser to a drum, you have to rol it from the bottom side of the reel to the bottom side of the drum or from the topside of the reel to the topside of the drum. By doing so an opposed bending working is prevented, which reduces the wear.
When chiselling a wire rope the strands have the tendency to twist apart. In order to comply you have to untie the wire rope immediately. For this you can use a soft steel wire or a strand of some steel wires.
Fatigue, wear and/or corrosion may cause that the safety of the wire rope isn’t acceptable anymore. Therefor you should let the wire rope get inspected by an expert. In that manner you also prevent that a wire rope is replaced while it isn’t necessary.



MAINTENANCE OF WIRE ROPES

Maintenance a must !
Maintenance of wire ropes is necessary. For safety, life and from economical reasons. If wire ropes have to be maintenanced, the best way to do so is to use versatile maintenance products, which comply with the most working conditions.


How to handle when inspecting the wire ropes
A wire rope is a ‘consumer good’. An important reason for inspecting wire ropes periodical. A wire rope is actually being ‘consumed’ and therefor gradually looses his strength. The reason to execute an inspection is simple: A wire rope looses much in reliability between two inspections. If there will be a next inspection …
That regular inspections by certain governmental measures are obligatory, is in some way of minor importance, the necessity to execute inspections will always exist. The Government may expect from the machine owner and/or user that they will execute regular and directed inspections and holds inspection reports. The owner/user is responsible for this. Perhaps the basic rule for inspecting a wire rope, from any machinetype or tool, that every wire rope must be reviewed separately.
This ‘individual’ approach is of special interest when inspecting ‘non-moving wire ropes’ like guy wires, carrying rope and so on. For example extension-guy wires, which hold a long crane, jib and mostly have various lengths. Each of these guys is an isolated wire rope and has to be reviewed separately. Because there are different measures for these ‘non-moving’ wire ropes you have to inspect then separately from the ‘moving’ wire ropes. It is possible, for practical reasons, that you inspect the ‘moving’ and ‘non-moving’ in the same inspection round, for instance in high or hard to reach places. But notwithstanding this every wire rope must have separate attention. The obtained information has to be written down separately. It is obvious that a proper inspection can’t be executed when a wire rope is under strain or is moving. A wire rope has to be unloaded and in rest during the inspection.


How often do I inspect?
You may divide wire rope-inspections in two groups: Daily checks and periodical inspections.
The daily checks are being executed by the operating personnel of the machine and exist of, if possible, reviewing the operation of the ropes and noticing any disruptions or distortions.
Any variation of some extent has to be reported.
The periodical inspections are fixed, dependent on the use and working conditions. So it’s obvious that at intensive use the periodical inspections will succeed each other more rapidly. The Government also may prescribe periodical inspections, which you have, seen as ‘added’ inspections. They don’t relieve the owner or user of the duty to inspect periodically.
For the minimum amount of periodical inspections you may use the following schedule: The first and second periodical inspection at one quarter of the ropes service life.
Following inspections at one eighth of the rope service life. The number of inspections increases if the working conditions demand so, or when an inspection, daily or periodical, shows a variation.
It must be mentioned that if a tool isn’t used for a period of time also may have disadvantageous consequences for wire ropes. It’s recommended inspecting all wire ropes before use.


Vulnerable places
Every wire rope has places that need more than usual attention. Certain places are under great tension or greater external forces and risk. You have to determine all ‘vulnerable’ places for more intensive inspection.
Especially in those places where errors may occur. These ‘vulnerable’ places have to be compared at every following inspection. Places which are most likely to get more then usual attention:
• starting and stopping places
• end fastenings
• balanced sheaves
• drums
• sheaves
• heat
• ‘shiny’ spots


End fastenings
All end fastenings have one thing in common: They restrict the free movement of the strains in the end of the wire rope. Due to the restricted movement and possibility to adjust the strains at the end of the rope, it’s possible that strains will break eventually at those places where they are oppressed. Therefor broken strains are the first thing to inspect at end fastenings. With one single strain breakage normal use is possible, but more then one is often reason enough to condemn the whole machine! Caution! Broken strains are usually harder to detect at end fastenings then at other parts of the wire rope. Thrust a piercer at those places where the wire rope enters the end fastening, often the broken strains will become visible that otherwise wouldn’t show.

Oxidation
An other problem is corrosion and rust.
Oxidation may easily hide broken strains. Increase of oxidation may ‘gnaw’ at the surface of the strains or restrict the movement of the strains.
Also inspect the end fastening! A worn out loop or bracket, disappeared or cracked cable-shoes, open bend hooks, worn and torn pins, and so on.


Notice
Each periodical inspection consists of checking:
• The diameter
• Normal wear
• Internal damages
• The length of stroke
• Swivelling of the rope
• Broken strains
• Internal rope inspection
• Sheaves and drums
The results and remarks are noted. With these results and remarks you get a ‘rating’. NEN 3233 gives
guidance.

Countersink wire rope
Construction : 6 x 36 WS + steelcore
Tensile strength : 1770 N/mm² = 180 kgf/mm²
1960 N/mm² = 200 kgf/mm²
Twist : Regular lay right or left (KSR or KSL)
Utilisation operand : For WLL < 25 t = 5
For WLL 25 – 180 t = decreasing from 5 to 3.33
Use : Tower crane (separate parts), mobile gantry, travelling crab, grabbing enterprises,
dredging and towage towing.
Art nr. for:
1770 KSL: 10802012 t/m 17602012
1960 KSR: 10802004 t/m 17602004
1960 KSL: 10802014 t/m 17602014
VARIOUS -Page 5 WIRE ROPE & CHAIN
Art. nr. Nom. Ø Min.breakforce Weight per 100 m
1770 N/mm2 1960 N/mm2
1770 KSR mm. kN. kg. kN. kg. Ca. kg.