ALL TIED UP World leading specialist wire and rope maker Bridon International Ltd has recently invested in the largest rope making machine in the world. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to CEO Jonathan Templeman to learn how this will further boost the company’s offer.
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K-based specialist wire and rope maker Bridon International Ltd has built up a solid reputation as the world’s leading manufacturer of wire and rope solutions for the most demanding applications. Its most recent investment highlights its desire to maintain the top spot, delivering ever-more complex ropes to its customers worldwide. CEO Jonathan Templeman told Industry Europe how the investment has been spent. He said, “We are very close to commissioning a major piece of machinery that is sure to further cement our position as the world’s leading wire and rope maker. We have invested considerable sums in the Closer – the largest rope-making machine in the world. It is a welcome addition to our technologically-advanced equipment
portfolio as it can be used to form dozens of strands of wire into a single finished rope. The Closer is capable of manufacturing ropes with package weights of up to an incredible 650 tonnes, which is by far the largest and most complex ever made. We know that the addition of the Closer will bring benefits to our customers as we can offer a broader range of package weights for the most demanding applications.”
Preparing for installation As part of the installation of the machine into the Bridon Neptune Quay, the company’s new facility on Tyneside which is set to be officially launched in November, the Closer’s eight bobbin section and capstan are already in place, a task which involved
the successful completion of the heaviest and highest risk crane lift of the whole Bridon Neptune Quay project - the move of the capstans into the pit. Off the back of this successful operation, the team is now setting out the 16 bobbin section ready for installation, and preparing to load material onto the machine in early October. In addition to the Closer, Bridon is also firing up the facility’s Strander for the first time. Both the Strander and the Closer have been manufactured by German engineering company SKET, and will be capable of winding dozens of wires together into individual strands to then be spun together into a final rope. This machine has now been fully installed, marking another major milestone on the road to project completion. Industry Europe 147
