/wrn_jun2011

June 2011

www.wireropenews.com

Gulf area suppliers talk about the spill story on page 8

San Francisco’s tried and true cable cars story on page 22

Advertisers Index Page 79

Photo courtesy of VERSABAR Lift Specialists

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Vol. 32, No. 5 June 23, 2011 Publisher & Editorial Director Edward J. Bluvias

Contributing Editor Barbara McGrath Spencer

Contents Features Gulf area suppliers talk about the spill ................. 8

Concerns for area businesses and new demands for products grew during the spring and summer of 2010’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Circulation Director Patricia Bluvias

Getting a clearer view of the window cleaning trade ......................................... 16

Graphics & Layout Don Tywoniw - 2D Graphics

San Francisco’s tried and true cable cars ............ 24

Website: www.wireropenews.com

WRN talked to a few window cleaning professionals to get the scoop on the equipment, tools, and challenges they face.

The city of San Francisco sticks with the tried and true technologies to keep their cable cars moving.

The state of domestic wire rope manufacturing...................................... 30

The few wire rope manufacturers who were left standing after the arrival of cheap imports in the 1960’s.

Accentuate the positive......................................... 36 ISSN 0740-1809

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology is published by-monthly by Wire Rope News, LLC, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia, New Jersey 07067-2819. (908) 486-3221. Fax No. (732) 396-4215. Address all correspondence concerning advertising, production, editorial, and circulation to Wire Rope News, LLC, P.O. Box 871, Clark, New Jersey 070660871. Subscription rates: $20 per year, domestic: $30 per year foreign: $25 per year, Canadian. Quantity discounts of three or more subscriptions available at $15 each per year, domestic: $25 each per year, foreign: $18 each per year, Canadian. Single copies $4 per issue, domestic: $6 per issue, foreign; $5 per issue, Canadian. Copyright © 2011 by Wire Rope News, LLC, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia, New Jersey 07067.

All rights reserved. Publisher reserves the right to reject any material for any reason deemed necessary.

Printed in Canada Published bi-monthly; Oct., Dec., Feb., April, June, Aug. Issued 3rd week of month published. Insertion orders, classified, and editorial copy must be received before the 20th of month preceding date of publication (e.g. May 20th for June issue).

Email: info@wireropenews.com

Four experts give their advice on how to turn a negative worker into a positive performer.

Cover photo:

Eighteen spreader bars and a variety of sling lengths and sizes are used to lift a 448-ton module at a Texas refinery. Featuring eighteen connection points, such a complex lift requires accurate weight and center-of-gravity measurements in order to calculate precise rigging arrangements. The lift was engineered

by VERSABAR Lift Specialists; the slings were manufactured by Yarbrough Cable Services of Memphis. Photo courtesy of VERSABAR Lift Specialists

Departments Advertiser’s Index........................................................79 Steel Industry News....................................................39 The Inventor’s Corner..................................................63 People in the News ....................................................75 New Products..............................................................76 Classified.....................................................................80 Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

7

Gulf area suppliers talk about the spill

By Peter Hildebrandt

The spring and summer of 2010 will no doubt go down as the season of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. As the country waited, watched in horror and frustration and waited some more, service and supplier companies in the region found things shaken up more than a bit. New demands for products involved with boom construction grew especially urgent and then with the on-again, off-again, onagain Gulf oil drilling moratorium, more fears and concerns for area businesses and suppliers were thrown into the mix.

F

or now, the spewing well is capped. The damage done by months of spilling of untold millions of gallons of oil may never be completely known. And for those dealing with day to day equipment and supply needs, the future of offshore drilling is unclear. WRN talked to several suppliers in the Gulf region to find out if and how their businesses were affected by the spill, and what they’re up to now.

Keeping a Handle on True Inventory Needs “We’re driven by the offshore oil industry, whether we want to admit it or not,” says Bob Comeaux, president of Dominion Steel Specialties, Inc., an importer and wholesale distributor of wire rope, chain and chain fittings, rigging hardware, castings, forgings, and many other related products. “We’re trying to stay ahead with our inventory just to be ready for the anticipated upswing. But there’s a basic quandary. No one is really sure what Doug Worswick, CEO “Hands on quality management” to do right now. The downturn’s not horrific, but it’s not at the same pace it normally is.” honored. Cancellations are abundant The oil spill increased business for a now,” explains Comeaux. month or two, according to Comeaux.

Twenty percent of Dominion Steel’s Now they’ve moved on to the problem business is with domestic chain and of collecting for all the materials sold wire rope manufacturers. They try to during the height of the spill; that’s a give their customers what they’re lookhuge dilemma for them right now. A ing for, according to Comeaux. But tremendous amount of material was there will be an adjustment period that on the way to them. Overseas and do- will produce a huge excess of certain mestic factories were booked solid with inventories for quite some time in the all of their capacity going to producing future.

5/16 and 3/8 chain and 5/16 GAC. Comeaux has found that there are “It also created a huge problem; now far more companies in the boom particularly with the secondary sup- manufacturing business than there pliers who had contracts directly were five or six years ago, and anywith BP and which were not being one in an awning-type business or 8

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

firms that had sewing machines jumped into the boom manufacturing business. And many of them jumped in at the last minute, had huge contracts and are finding themselves stuck with materials and cancelled orders.

Our involvement with these products didn’t reach the point where we created a problem for ourselves.”

Dominion Steel currently has some minor headaches because of the spill, but nothing that would jeopardize what they do on a daily basis. “There were companies that put everything they had and beyond into things involving a commitment from BP. Of course, that changed dramatically when the capping occurred.

“At best you hope a catastrophe such as this is short-lived and hope it doesn’t have an impact that will own you for the future.

We’re poised to go back to a regular business.

Dominion has a location in Lafayette, Louisiana which is more heavily tied to the offshore oil industry. During the oil spill, they used the employees they had. Not being a manufacturer they had literally a three to five month wait to get things from overseas. Fortunately what they have in stock is typically what they sold and they never were extended much beyond what they had in their inventory.

“The product selection we’re involved with has changed right now. But we maintain the inventories and are optimistic things will go back to normal soon. I couldn’t see exposing ourselves for something of such an unknown length. We knew we couldn’t make a continued on page 10

continued from page 8 thing else has slowed down.

“We have one customer who makes substantial difference in addition to the riskiness of having lots of materials ar- aluminum boats for the military and rive just as the problem was alleviated. they purchase quite a bit from us too.

“We never ordered anything special Though they are small 20-30 foot boats, as we knew we’d go through everything we supply mooring ropes, anchor ropes we had in stock. We did fairly quickly and various related products to them. and obviously experienced a gap in We have a distributor in the Gulf who materials – but everyone else in the does a lot in the pleasure marine area, country did too. Beyond that we nev- and commercial marine, including the er extended the risk, betting that the oil field business, commercial fishing problem would remain. We stay on the and other areas. They’ve had a slowdown due to a drop in the commercial conservative side business-wise.”

Staying Diverse Helps During fishing. The economy, more than anything else (including the oil spill) has Tough Times “At the time the spill first happened, been the major factor for us.”

Nationwide, Buccaneer Rope sells to everyone and his uncle, aunt or cousin was calling everyone to try to find rope many different markets. “Being diverfor booms, says Dan Pockman, owner Buccaneer Rope Company, Scottsboro Alabama. “They wanted polypropylene rope and not that many companies in this country make that anymore. But we, in fact, do not make polypropylene and could not help all the people calling us, unfortunately.

“Many companies were contacted for materials.

Some were told their rope or work didn’t meet standards, but toward Certified Slings Team Members - fabrication department. the end I think they were just trying to get out of their sified has been the key for us. When contracts and a number of companies you’re in as many different markets as were stuck with material. I felt sorry we are, when one section slows down, for them. They were big companies everything else doesn’t necessarily that those manufacturing the booms slow down,” says Pockman. “We know were dealing with, so there wasn’t others who have had just one or two much they could do toward the end markets and things are pretty slow for when all of a sudden they didn’t meet them. But most rope companies are diverse in their product line; it helps all standards.”

Though it’s not a huge part of their the way around.” business, Buccaneer Rope supplies New Opportunities in Wake of Spill Doug Worswick, CEO with Certified some mil-spec rope to military vessels in the Gulf, mostly to Northrop-Grum- Slings® & Supply, Casselberry, Florman shipyards. This is all put out for ida, had some unique opportunities bid or sometimes the various distribu- with the Gulf oil spill disaster. During the height of the spill, Certified Slings tors will contact them.

The pleasure marine market actu- became involved in a new application ally forms more of their business in the of their equipment and skilled labor.

The company was approached by Gulf. “In addition to pleasure marine and government work we sell a lot to someone needing them to build oil abpeople who fabricate things for the gov- sorbent booms for use in shoreline proernment. Right now the government tection and oil spill clean up. “We had work is the biggest part because every- quite an operation going here for about 10

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

a month,” says Worswick.

They worked on the project in conjunction with ACF Environmental, headquartered in Richmond, VA with offices in Orlando. The absorbent booms were purchased in mass quantities by both BP and even individuals through retail outlets like ACE hardware stores, for protecting their personal boats in private marinas.

Because of immediate need for this specialty manufactured product, Certified Slings was tasked with recruiting and pulling together, within 48 hours, a specialty work force of 21 employees, including industrial sewers and assemblers. Certified Slings also aided in the specific design process of the oil booms for quicker, more efficient response.

“Amazingly, in a time where most U. S. manufacturing jobs have been lost to Asia or other off shore destinations, there still exists a small group of entrepreneurial manufacturing companies here in the USA that have the willingness to adapt their skills and invest their resources into manufacturing products to respond to an immediate and passionate need,” says Worswick.

Certified Slings continues to be a successful industrial sling and synthetic webbing manufacturers located in the Orlando area, according to Worswick. “We were established in 1958, and have gone on to become an awardwinning manufacturer, distributor and retailer in the State of Florida. Our chief products include rigging, overhead lifting, load securement and contractor supplies. We’re also the Slingmax® Rigging Solutions Dealer for Florida with locations in Tampa, Casselberry, Fort Myers, Miami, Orlando and Ocala.”

Synthetic Ropes and their Growing Role with Offshore Oil Rig Needs Dennis Sherman is the Technical Sales Director for the Offshore Division of Samson, handling everything on the commercial and technical side, a relatively new division for Samson. They continued on page 12

continued from page 10 other things going on.”

Samson is expanding staff in both were very active Samson pioneered single point moorings and was the first Asia and Europe. These folks will work company to provide a synthetic SPM in directly with Gaylin International the North Sea in the offshore industry and Endenburg on projects happening back in the 1970’s and 80’s primar- there, in Europe, SE Asia and in Westily with single point moorings (SPM). ern Australia. “We’re active in the minBut they’d sold off the offshore busi- ing industry and there is much minness and equipment to a UK firm and ing taking place in Western Australia, as part of the non-compete agreement replacing wire with synthetics,” says they signed, this resulted in them not Sherman I need to leave out any menbeing able to be involved in the offshore tion of mining for now as work we’re doing is covered by an NDA. industry.

Delmar is another big customer, a By 2008 they started the process of entering the offshore business again, mooring installation contractor that with a 35,000 square foot expansion sets pre-sets for mobile offshore drilling to their Lafayette facility and the addition of a 2,000 mm 12-strand braider enabling them to build up to 203 mm ropes.

That particular machine is one of the largest of its kind in the industry incorporating features that make it unique to the industry, according to Sherman. They also have a 48-strand horizontal cover braider able to cover up to 264 mm jacketed ropes on this particular machine. This is to support winch lines and mooring lines for offshore structures.

“Polyester is really the fiber of choice for syn- Delta Rigging & Tools new patented locking thimble thetic moorings of offshore structures,” explains Sherman. units or MODU units. The moratorium “On the 12-strand braider, we primar- affects them directly. And anything inily build large HMPE (High Modulus volving deepwater drilling is very quiet Polyethylene) ropes. Dyneema and at the moment, according to Sherman.

Samson is a diversified company.

Spectra are the two fibers available; “We’re not going to dry up and blow we use Dyneema fiber.

“The Gulf right now is fairly quiet. away if the moratorium’s not lifted.

Everything in the news down here But it sure would make things easier right now deals with the drilling mora- for us. Despite all this emphasis on torium, including a lot of conflicting oil, we’re also quite active with wind information in the media. Many of the projects, as synthetic slings are very drillers are sitting tight waiting for popular in wind farm construction something to happen. But it’s anyone’s for lifting and setting of the mono piles offshore. guess as to when that might be.

Samson recently did a huge project “This all certainly affects our decision-making from a market and re- with Seaway involving the setting of source allocation standpoint. We have mono-piles using synthetic slings. Projthree master fabricating distributors ects involving renewable wave energy in the world, one in the Gulf, one in are also going on with the help of synHolland and one in SE Asia. Southwest thetic rope technology. Another large is a very large customer and they are area of work involving synthetic slings sitting waiting to see what happens. is the de-commissioning of oil rigs in We do have some projects, one involv- such places as the North Sea. These are ing some maintenance work in the the thick jackets which now sit on the Gulf. But it doesn’t involve new drill- seabed in only about 500 feet of water.

“The European Union simply used ing. They have enough diversity that if things quiet down in the Gulf there are to leave the rigs out there, perhaps re12

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

moving the tops and sinking the jacket which in turn was used as an artificial reef. The large HMPE rope slings are useful for the application due to both the heavy loads involved and the lengths required to do the lifting,” says Sherman. “But now the EU has placed a moratorium, directing that all jackets must be removed. There are ships specifically used for this function.

A Safer Future is the Goal “From what we’re hearing, there are a lot of new safety requirements coming to the Gulf,” says Eric Johnson, vice president of Delta Rigging. “They’re probably going to look at safety on the rigs, from top to bottom, and every design change that can improve safety without adding to costs or time is going to be important to the industry.”

Delta Rigging is much like other firms with connection to the Gulf oil and gas industry; they are eager to see everyone getting back to work. But they’ve also developed a new, patented “Shackle-Loc Thimble,” that could help make work in the Gulf safer.

“With a sling set, the shackle always needs to be the right size for the wire rope,” says Johnson. “But what happens in the field often, is that the shackle is taken off and replaced with something else. Because it may not be sized correctly the integrity of the sling set can be compromised. In the past the companies tried to prevent this by welding a bar on the thimble to hold the shackle in place, but that puts torch temperatures next to the wire rope, and that can compromise the integrity of the set as well.

With the Shackle-Loc Thimble, the right size shackle is always put on when the sling set is assembled and the certificate of compliance is issued. The thimble locks the shackle in place without welding, so it cannot be removed and you avoid torch temperatures near the wire rope.

“It’s a clever design that really improves safety without adding cost or time. You also only need one compliance certificate for the sling set.”

It’s just one little thing, but at Delta Rigging and Tools, we feel that whenever any one of us in the industry can show safety improvements, it’s going to be beneficial to everybody working out in the field, and that’s important.” WRN

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Getting a clearer view of the window cleaning trade

By Peter Hildebrandt

Window cleaning can be a challenging and dangerous occupation, between the large pieces of glass, the necessity of hanging from ropes fastened to sometimes unfamiliar equipment, and the need to stay steady enough to get glass streakfree while hanging many feet above the ground in imperfect weather. Though the equipment a window cleaner uses can be fairly basic: a bucket, cleaning solution and a squeegee, the rest of what is needed consists of reliable scaffolding and wire or synthetic poly ropes and slings – and of course the worker’s fearlessness of heights and the guts to do the job. WRN recently talked to a couple of window cleaning professionals to get the scoop on the equipment, tools, and challenges they face on a daily basis.

J

ohn Bjork, owner of Perfection Window Cleaning, San Diego, California, has worked in the window cleaning industry for 22 years. In 2004 he decided if he was going to be doing this dangerous work, he’d like to be better compensated for it, so he started up his own company.

His business now covers the entire San Diego area and he does a mixture of both commercial and residential win- The Colorado Civic Center in Colorado. dow cleaning.

“I feel it doesn’t have to be that overBjork says that lately, over-design of equipment on the tops of some new designed, heavy and with all these unbuildings has become an issue for win- necessary moving parts. These pieces dow washers. This equipment often don’t have to weigh 500 pounds. You’re proves heavier, bulkier and more dif- only as strong as your strongest point ficult to maneuver, assemble or service and your strongest point is your wire than such equipment used only a de- rope and the smallest of fittings like the shackles, not some massive piece at cade or more ago.

“They’ve now put huge davits on the the top of the building.” Because of the top of newer buildings. The wire rope is difficulty of using such heavy equipattached to the davits. But they’ve gone ment, Bjork will shy away from such overboard as they’re always cracking buildings.

Back in the 1980s and 1990s they down on towers. They want to totally maximize the amount of weight that made the attachments on the buildwould be acceptable for any type of load ings just right, according to Bjork. for any building. They go way over the Then the parts were much smaller and limit needed because they don’t want to easier to work with. Some of the davits then were a fifth less than the size of a be responsible.

14

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

basketball. These were akin to a hollow metal cane, shaped much like a candy cane.

These contained simply a bolt with an eyelet to which the wire rope rigging clips directly.

“You put them in a little pivot, put it up and stick the cotter-style pin in and that’s it,” says Bjork.

“Though they don’t make them like that anymore, those are the best, really, the older ones.”

The tallest buildings in San Diego are approximately 45 stories high. Bjork finds that a number of the newer buildings, those featuring rounded, concave glass can be especially challenging. Since the wires are connected on top and the further down the workers get to the bottom the more play there is, this makes the swinging during work at the lower levels quite daunting.

The wire ropes they use have small mechanisms to help with plugging the rope into the building. They are hooked to the cables on each side of the scaffold or sling as a worker descends. It ties the window washer in.

“A lot of the older buildings I’ve worked on had those plug-in holes, continued on page 16

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continued from page 14 making them relatively easy to work on as you are then tied safely to the building,” adds Bjork. “A number of the newer buildings, however, do not have those holes. One six year old building I work on does not have the female parts to place the cotter pins in; those holes were never installed. Every time I wash the windows on this building – and this is a one-rope job, not a two – I spin like a top and must use my hand to stabilize myself. At the end of the day I’m exhausted from holding myself straight on this building. If I let go I will spin – and all because those holes were not installed on the building.”

The situation for Bjork leads him to comment that out of every ten buildings he works on, six of them will have something wrong with the equipment, either making it unusable or requiring him to rent his own equipment. Having technicians come out to a building and load-test the equipment onsite is very expensive, sometimes up to ten thousand dollars.

“Load-testing must be done, or you cannot rent equipment to go over the side of the building,” says Bjork. “Generally the equipment I often see on a high rise building is made in some in-

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continued from page 16 equipment is not even being used on this high rise; it’s just sitting there in the sun, oxidizing” This high rise has responded. But he had to pull his teams off of another building. He started it around Christmas, 2009 and it’s still not completed, as Bjork is still waiting for it to be fixed. The first time he went out to go back to work on it the mechanical pulley system started getting hot on the ascent all the way up and then started to jolt. “I had to stop and wait and hold

myself. I’d go again, wait ten minutes, it would go up and then start sputtering. I would stop again, wait, try again until I finally got up.

“It’s my job to hang from the equipment, and it’s got to work right. I guarantee every other window cleaner out there has these same woes.”

The new equipment pieces on the newer buildings are sectional; they come apart. There is a collar pulling apart fairly far and it hangs on a straight pole. But often even the individual pieces tend to be very big and

very heavy. Buildings usually want workers to be quiet while they’re working on the roof, but that is impossible as these pieces are too heavy not to clunk around while up there, according to Bjork. It takes two workers exerting themselves at the extent of their strength to move them around. “Because they’ve gone overboard on the equipment on some of the newer buildings you slow down on the job because the davits are hard to lift, so you have to bid higher for the job and everything is tied up due to this, when it doesn’t have to be.”

With the complexities involved with worker’s compensation and the costs of keeping an employee on the outside of a building Bjork has found it is quite hard to find someone really worthy of the job who knows how to hang 30 stories up. So when he gets a big window cleaning job he has a subcontractor he will call to help him out. All the workers are legit and have been checked out before the job starts.

“This work is like anything else,” says Bjork. “When you get a call for a job you go and check it out to see if it’s worth your time.” The high-rise window cleaning market is a tough one to be in, according to Bjork. You need to have a lot money beforehand as it can take a month or even longer to get paid.

“In San Diego, though a lot of window cleaners advertise that they handle high rise buildings, in reality they won’t do them. Those several other outfits in San Diego that do high rises, are successful at this and have the backing needed to perhaps take on even more of this work.”

“Usually with a high rise you have to rent all the equipment and it can be complicated. It has to be executed just right and is a very sensitive area of window cleaning. It pays well when you are done but there is just a lot to deal with when you are doing it, loads, being certain all your equipment is working right because when you’re out over that edge swinging around 20 or so stories up, you’re just hanging there – that’s it – you’ve got to get the job done.”

Help from Local Supplier Keeps Things Running Smoothly All the equipment, wire ropes, connections and scaffolding is rented.

What Bjork owns himself are the safety ropes, safety harnesses, lanyards hooking to the ropes and harness and the buckets and squeegees. When Arise/ Waco gets him his wire ropes and equipment, it has all been properly continued on page 20

18

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

continued from page 18 stored and checked out before he gets it and starts working with it.

Arise/Waco Scaffolding & Equipment, Bjork’s main supplier, was founded in 1958 to service the ship repair and commercial scaffold markets in San Diego, California. Wire rope and manual or motor-powered suspension products have been in their product line since the beginning, according to Paul Zimmerman, Arise/Waco assistant branch manager.

“Our main clients and customers are ship repair contractors and commercial wall systems contractors,” says Zimmerman. “Additionally we serve all manner of industrial maintenance customers from the San Diego City Water Department to the power companies in the area.”

Arise/Waco has about 100 employees in the San Diego Metropolitan Area.

Their particular business location serves San Diego and Imperial Counties in California. Their typical day involves figuring out solutions to various problems their customers, like cleaners of high rise buildings, encounter. In a nutshell, they provide workplace access solutions for their customers.

The materials they supply to window cleaning businesses runs the gamut. It includes the supplying of all types of supported and suspended scaffolding equipment and accessories.

“We are far and away the leaders in our market in supplying wire rope and synthetic safety line to those in our area that use suspended scaffolding equipment,” adds Zimmerman. “We are a factory-trained repair station for all the major powered climbing equipment manufacturers. One gadget or product that’s been a favorite in our business is the ‘Hold Me’ synthetic safety line termination device that simplifies the termination of the line.

“One enjoyable part of the business is the challenging applications that come up. There is never a dull moment and every day in this work is different and satisfying. For example, we enjoy our work with John Bjork of Perfection Window Cleaning. We help him and his business out by supplying any of the equipment, supplies, repair work, training involved as well as all his installation labor needs. We in turn purchase all of our wire rope that we use in our business from a local source here in San Diego, the Bee Access Company.”

Flexibility Works for Year-Round Service Bob Popp Building Services, Inc., Denver, Colorado provides window 20

cleaning services for commercial office buildings, cleans high rise windows, power sweeps parking lots, piles snow and also does a great deal of caulking repairs on windows.

Workers are sent out in crews of two, according to owner Bob Popp. Much of their rigging supplies come from both Spider and Tractel. They use a descent control system and on some jobs, a power-suspended platform and boom or personnel lifts. On the big buildings they normally use 22-inch squeegees to do their cleaning work, although the squeegees are available in virtually any width desired.

Popp echoes Bjork’s observation that buildings have increased the size and weight of the davits for handling the window cleaning operations. “This is definitely becoming a common complaint,” says Popp. “The systems are much bigger than they used to be and we are hearing a lot more complaints from employees.

“The architecture used in the construction of some of the newer buildings now often makes the access on the exterior of the structures much more difficult, a lot more challenging with their various architectural features and points. Curved sides and windows can be tough to work on.”

Weather is also a big concern for Popp as they’re right at the base of the Rockies and the weather comes right down off of the mountains. They get wind issues, falling temperatures and a great deal of lightening. In the winter they have to make sure they have antifreeze in their cleaning buckets too.

Those employed in the window caulking work are a separate division. During the winter months caulking cannot be done very effectively so those individuals at that time work with the window cleaners. All workers are hired in house; there is no outside contracting of the labor force.

Popp has an in house safety director and everyone goes to safety class once a week in addition to a lot of training in the field for the journeymen and supervisors. The firm has 80 employees and works on any of the buildings in Denver, some up to 60 stories high.

“Our insurance company will not let us have anyone under 21 driving our vehicles, so that is the minimum age of our workers. At the other end we have some employees in their 50s. I think people have an innate sense of whether they have a fear of heights and if so, do not apply or consider such work. The job is definitely not for everyone. A few of the guys here do mountain climbing,

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

so this is a great job for them.”

Long-Term Reliable Relationship Equals Consistent Safety Bob Popp Building Services uses temporary suspended access equipment rather than permanently-installed gear, requiring its own total separate regulation as far as the wire rope construction and changing out, according to David McCombs, operations manager with Spider in Denver. “Typically with the permanently installed access equipment, it needs wire rope that has a 10:1 safety factor for the hoist motor capacity. So for a 1,000-pound hoist you would have to have a 10,000-pound minimum breaking strength on your wire rope.”

“With permanently-installed window cleaning equipment on a building 300 feet tall or taller, every time they’re going to wash the windows, the swingstages deploy from the roof down. This equipment is owned by the building or property manager. That’s where the line gets drawn. Bob owns a Spider fleet; he doesn’t rent a whole lot of equipment from me. With the temporary access equipment, which we rent, the safety factor required by OSHA only needs to be a 6:1,” according to McCombs.

Popp typically relies on McCombs for supplying him with 5 by 26-construction fiber core, galvanized rope, with a 5/16-inch diameter. “He replaces his wire ropes every year,” says McCombs.

“Bob is a great customer. He’s had a long relationship with us. For Bob our biggest challenge is staying on top of wire rope inspections and the crimping we do for his thimble eyes as well as other tasks of a similar nature, such as standard wire rope maintenance. This includes both protection and lubrication, depending on which wire rope he’s got.”

Spider has been around since 1947 and consumes in excess of 1.5 million feet of wire rope annually in its operations nationally. Wireco is the primary supplier and local vendors, such as Denver Wire Rope & Supply, builds them assemblies to Spider’s specifications. Spider maintains rigorous standard work inspections (SWIs) on the wire rope it uses in its rental fleet to assure reliable operation of its suspended platform equipment. .

Spider has some 100 different accounts in the Denver area. These include glazers, glass installation, ironworkers, concrete finishers, drywall businesses, the wind turbine industry, coal burning power plants, coal mines and other types of mining. WRN

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San Francisco’s tried and true cable cars

By Mark Glover

Advances in technology continue to power new designs in industry but some entities stick with the tried and true — such is the case of the wire rope used to propel the cable cars in the city of San Francisco.

“T

he Cable Car Division has stayed with this type of wire rope for many years and with the on-going support of the best brains of the wire rope industry they never found any reason to change,” said Christopher Hill, recently retired manager of Propulsion and Maintenance Department in the Cable Car Division of the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

SF Muni uses a 1-1/4 inch diameter 6 x 19 right Lang lay modified Warrington on all four of their trunk routes, a rope design that has been around for nearly a century.

“It gives the most contact area for our dies and grips, with the strands and wires in the strands, running in the same direction, this presents the best metal to metal contact surface, therefore the best friction and traction,” Hill said.

The right Lang lay modified Warrington wire rope is supplied by WireCo WorldGroup and manufactured at their Sedalia, Missouri plant, a facility that has been making wire rope since the 1890’s when it was originally known by the Broderick & Baskin brand.

“The cable cars are one of the leading tourist attractions in San Francisco and they don’t want that system to be down,” said Senior Vice President of Sales John Josendale of WireCo WorldGroup. “They require a high quality, highly specified wire rope and it’s been our pleasure to provide that to them over the years.”

The San Francisco Cable Car Division inspects the wire rope on their cable cars daily. They also maintain wire rope records dating back to the inception of the cable car system in 1873. Life expectancy of each cable per trunk line has been averaged back to 1984. These records show that the most popular line, Powell Line, averages 80 working day of cable life before it is replaced. Mason Line averages 175 operating days and both Hyde and California Street line average 200 days before replacement is necessary.

22

San Francisco Municipal Railway Cable Car on the California Line that uses at 21,700 foot endless loop single spliced length of 1-1/4 in diameter 6x19 right Lang lay modified Warrington wire rope supplied by WireCo WorldGroup.

Photo: Courtesy of E. J. Glover

During normal operating days, the cable on each line will travel approximately 190 miles.

The single endless loop lengths vary from 9,300 feet for the Powell Line to 21,700 feet for the California Line.

The Cable Car Division contracts for single un-spliced lengths for each line.

The splice needed to make the endless loop is done by SF Muni personnel at the cable car barn.

“It’s a critical splice and their very specific specifications have little room for tolerance,” Josendale said.

Occasionally they have to shorten up the wire to allow for stretching in the inner fiber core or other changes in the trunk line system.

The wire rope consists of six strands closed around a fiber core. Each strand must be fabricated in one process without breakage or splicing. All wires in the rope must comply with the latest American Iron and Steel Institute specifications. The rope lay is 8.5 inches and the minimum diameter of the

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

rope is 1-1/4 inches with a maximum diameter of 1-5/16 inches. The strand lay is 3-1/4 inches with a strand diameter of 0.4375 inches and a helix height of 1-5/32 inch. The core diameter is 19/32 inch nominal composed of three strands right lay.

A fiber core is used and sisal of Yucatan, African, Java, or Maritius origin is required. The high commercial grade sisal must be clean and free of waste as well as saturated with Pre-Lube 19 at 12 -16% per weight basis.

The outer crown wires have a minimum wire tensile strength of 160,000 psi and a maximum of 210,000 psi. To avoid excessive martensite transformation, a maximum carbon content of .36 % is specified. The maximum variation of any one wire strength is set at +/15% and the minimum torsion for outer wires calls for 32 revolutions per 100 wire diameters length. The finished cable has a minimum accepted breaking strength of 117,000 pounds.

All the wire rope used is manufac-

tured in accordance with Federal Specification RR-W-410D dated April 25, 1984 and Amendment 1 dated April 21, 1988 for Type 1 Class 2 cable. All wires have to meet AISI wire rope steel specifications for improved plow steel.

The invention of wire rope in the first half of the 18th century revolutionized many industries of the time including mining, merchant shipping, and railroads and spawned new industries like San Francisco’s cable cars.

In the mid 1830’s the experimentation of wire in England was well underway in both the railroad industry and as rigging in merchant sailing ships. Andrew Smith of London, was influenced by the earlier drawings of William Albert, a German government employed mine inspector who worked at the silver, lead, zinc and copper mines of the Hartz Mountains and published rather than patent, specifications of stranded wire rope in 1831. Smith appeared to be the first to register patents in the United Kingdom for stranded wire rope in 1836. However his patent did not include the use of inner cores, which have proven over the years to keep the metal strands equally separated and prevent chafing within the machine

of the wire rope. Moreover, Smith’s application for patent may have been legally miswritten. Other wire rope manufacturers were springing up and along with Smith they were converting hemp cordage machinery to manufacturer wire rope. R.S. Newall competed with Smith to supply the London and Blackwall Railroad, the world’s first cable – operated railway, with their wire rope requirement.

Newall went on to fix the London and Blackwall Railroad contract in 1837 and later supplied “metal cordage” for an innovative new maritime project, the S.S. “Great Britain.” Newall’s wire rope was used for the vessel’s standing rigging. Smith served Newall with a patent infringement claim but the case received little traction. Newall’s wire rope was comprised of six strands, each containing its own hemp fiber core stranded around a central hemp fiber core, made on a Newall designed machine called the “strander.”

Smith’s rope was noticeable inferior as suggested by the following editorial comment printed at the end of an article on the subject in the Mechanics Magazine in 1842: “…Some of the evidence for the plaintiff certainly is, on the face of it, of a

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most suspicious description… …We have always understood that Smith’s wire rope, so far from answering the purpose on this line (London and Blackwell Railway) had proved a failure and that another sort patented by Mr. Newall had been substituted for it… Ed. M.M.” An article written by D. ForesterWalker in History of the Wire Rope Manufacturers in Great Britain, (1952) seems to pinpoint the problem faced by Smith’s product: “These were first the necessity of avoiding twist in the individual wires forming the strands, and secondly, the necessity of ensuring equal stress upon the individual wire and strands, which in turn, required that these components should be accurately held equidistant from their respective centres.

This was achieved by forming the wires and strands around hemp cores properly maintained in position.”

Smith’s company struggled and eventually went bankrupt in 1849.

In California, the Gold Rush was on and the bankrupt Andrew Smith and his son Andrew H. Smith sailed on a passenger schooner from the port of London on the Thames to continued on next page

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23

continued from previous page San Francisco for another shot at wealth. As it was for most folks in that famous migration, wealth was hard to come by and Andrew Smith returned to London a year later. But Andrew H. stayed on, changed his name to A.S. Hallidie and brought British wire rope technology to the gold fields. Working numerous jobs including gold miner, blacksmith, surveyor and builder of bridges, Hallidie was taken on as a consultant at a gold mine in 1857 at American Bar in the Mother Lode country near Sacramento. He encouraged the mine owner to make the investment to change from hemp rope to wire rope and with that change came a paradigm shift in the industrialization of the California Gold Rush.

But the Gold Rush was short lived and soon with gold getting scarcer, Hallidie moved to San Francisco and opened A.S. Hallidie & Co., the first full scale wire rope manufacturer in California.

According to a cable car chronology issued by the San Francisco Cable Car Museum, Hallidie witnessed and was later inspired by a horse-car accident in 1869 at the top of Clay Street. On a typical damp summer day five horses

were dragged to their deaths as their footing gave way under the load of a full car and tumbled backwards down the steep street’s cobble stone.

Three years later, in 1872, Hallidie, with the help of engineer William Eppelsheimer, opened the Clay Street Hill Railroad, a single car powered by an underground rotating stranded wire rope with a fiber hemp core that propelled the city’s burgeoning population up the killer Clay Street Hill. The father of the San Francisco cable car system patented his designs and unlike his father before him, the patents were well drawn up and protected.

History tells us that Smith died a rich man in 1900.

Today each line’s cable is powered by a 380 KW stationary electric motor situated in the cable house and looped via a set of self-adjusting sheaves that maintain, depending on the load, a relatively constant speed of 9.5 mph.

The cable car begins to move when the grip or clamping device is connected to the moving cable. The car is stopped by releasing pressure on the cable and applying brakes.

The San Francisco system is one of the few remaining cable cars that are still operated manually. The driver

of the car is known as a gripman and requires above average upper body strength needed to smoothly operate the grip and release cable lever. Hand – eye coordination to know when to brake, power or coast are also talents required of the gripman. Much coasting is done on the routes to avoid crossing cables, places where the cable does not follow the track and to anticipate possible collisions with vehicular traffic.

Annual classes and test are given for the gripman position but few pass (30 %) and to date only one grip woman, Fannie Mae Barnes, has been hired.

In 1949 the Mayor of San Francisco proposed to close down the cable cars. But a citizens group challenged the idea and forced the city to maintain the charter.

Since the 1950’s the cable car system has seen extensive shut down periods for various upgrades. In 1982 the cable car system was closed for a complete rebuild and the effort to raise the 60 million dollars upgrade repair costs was led by then Mayor Dianne Feinstein.

The system reopened on June 21, 1984, just in time to host the Democratic National Convention. WRN

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The state of domestic wire rope manufacturing A report on those left standing

By Thomas G. Dolan

The 1960’s saw the arrival of cheap imports wiping out much of domestic wire rope manufacturing. The few left standing, however, are still standing tall. Here’s a report on how they have survived, and how they are succeeding.

I

t’s no news, in fact it’s now history, that the U.S. was once the unchallenged leader in wire rope manufacturing. But then, during the 1960’s, as the result of the demise of U.S. steel mills, many of which owned many of the well over a dozen wire rope man­ ufacturers, coupled with the flood of imports, from first Japan, then South Korea, then China, as well as many others, most domestic wire rope makers went under. Though the initial onslaughts were dictated by price alone, the quality of the imports gradually improved. How much the imports did or did not improve has been the subject of some debate. But it’s clear that they did not gain their staying power simply by dumping consistently inferior products at cutthroat pricing.

Here are the reports from the big three domestic wire rope manufacturers still left standing, Bridon American, Wirerope. Works Inc., and’WireCo World Group; along with the largest of the second tier survivors, Loos & Co., Inc. BRIDEN AMERICAN, Wilkes Barre, PA; “It’s definitely a global market, but this has not helped U.S. industry,” says David Sleightholm, technical director. “Wire ropes come in from all over, and the U.S. steel industry is not what it used to be. It’s a basic industry, but very small, and a lot of what there is is under foreign owner­ship .

“At one time U.S. buyers of wire rope wanted domestic products, but this is much less of a factor than it once was.

Certainly the U.S. market is very accepting of imported products and much more willing to buy them. And we don’t do a great deal of exporting.”

Sleighthold says that “general purpose rope sales are not what they used to be, and those as well as small diamter ropes are not what they used to be 10-years ago, but we’re holding our own. We’re trying to keep up with 26

changes in the industry by putting more effort into high performance rope, such as mining and oil field and cranes.

Mining and oil is still fairly decent, but construction is way off, which has a big effect on the crane business.”

In terms of the recession, Sleightholm says, “it’s obviously affected us. As far as a turnaround goes, once in a while we see some glimpses of hope, but they don’t appear to be long lasting.

There doesn’t appear to be any real strength in the economy, or significant uptake, that’s for sure.”

When asked why Briden American has survived, Sleighthold replies, ironically that “We are associated with the Briden Group in the U.K., so we have a strong consistent ownership behind us.”

WIREROPE WORKS, INC., Williamsport, PA; “We wish we didn’t have all of the foreign competition, but we do,” says Virgil Probasco, executive vice president. “Foreign manufacturers are very competitive against us on any product which depends primarily on pricing. But whenever there is engineering involved, and quality is involved, as well as delivery, we generally do very well.”

When asked what has contributed to his company’s survival, Probasco responds, “We’re a bit unusual and unique in that we service all markets for wire rope, both in terms of the industries that buy the rope as well as all the products. We’re the only domestic market and one of the very few in the world that services all markets.”

This has provided diversification.

For, as he explains, “although general purpose rope sales have fallen off during the recession, including aerospace, we have remained strong in mining and structural strand, as well as elevator maintenance. Marine fell off in 2009 but came back in 2010. I know that offshore oil has been somewhat

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

soft but we deal more with land-based energy, which has proved to be stronger in 2010 than 2009.”

It’s often been said that the hope for U.S. manufacturing in the future rests upon the quality this country can provide. This is true, to an extent, but it’s not quite as simple as that, Probasco suggests. “There certainly has^ been a push for quality around the world; but, having said that, the Asian ropes, primarily, have come up in quality, and, obviously, the European ropes have always been high quality.”

Yet Probasco sees a bit of leveling off of Asian imports. The reason is because of the large growth of the consumer market in Asia. The wire rope industry in Asia is having trouble keeping pace with the Asian economy, at least in the high end. “As long as the market in Asia keeps growing, we’ll do fairly well,” says Probasco. “Asian manufacturers have to supply Asians in what they are consuming, especially high quality and high strength ropes, which I see continuing through 2011. The result is that Asians have less product to ship to the U.S. and Asia represents a growing market for high end U.S. wire rope.”

Probasco explains that the Asian imports “came as a big blow at first. But now the situation is more complex and it can go both ways. The price wars which have taken their toll have now somewhat stabilized. Not that there isn’t still price pressure. But I think we’re not going to see so much price erosion in the future. Frankly, if someone is only looking for wire rope on a casual basis, and is only purchasing every other year or so, then price will be the main issue. But if you have a company or entity buying wire rope on a regular basis, then these other quality considerations come into play as well.”

Probasco not only sees the economy, in general, gradually improving, but continued on page 28

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continued from page 26 also says that “Even in 2009, we had a decent year in spite of the recession going on. We’ve been able to maintain our volume and even increase it in 2010, and look for a steady improvement in 2011. We like the markets we’re serving, have a very strong customer base, and are planning a capital expansion in our plant. So we’re very comfortable with where we’re at.”

WIRECO WORLDGROUP, Kansas City, MO; “I think when you look at the general trends in the market, 2009 was a very difficult year for everyone, with pretty substantial cutbacks in production, and inventory levels, as well as reductions in the labor force and work hours,” says Dave Hornaday, chief administrative officer. “We’re all aware of the difficulties in the construction sector. But as we look forward I see a gradual rebound in construction and industry.”

Hornaday also says that 2010 was already “a very nice rebound for us, and that’s been led primarily by the energy and mining markets.”

Hornaday acknowledges the adverse impact of imports starting in the 1960s, but adds, “We know imports are a factor in the marketplace, but we don’t

spend much time worrying about it.

Instead we try to focus on what’s necessary for us to compete in both the domestic and foreign markets.”

In terms of the domestic market, a key area WireCo has, over the past decade, put a considerable emphasis in becoming a leader in the structures market. “Over the past few years we’ve become a predominate supplier in that area,” Hornaday says. “We are currently shipping suspension cables for the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge. And we are shipping replacement cables for the Manhattan Bridge in New York. These are two of the largest structure projects going up anywhere. There’s nothing magic about it.

When we find a market need we set out to provide unsurpassed technical and engineering support, with high per­ forming products, as well as all of the possible service.”

Hornaday says WireCo’s response to the import has “been to adapt and separate ourselves as much as possible from the commodity market by adding value.”

Another interesting way WireCo has done this, Hornaday explains, is by opening up facilities abroad or purchasing existing ones. WireCo has recently

acquired its second wire rope and synthetic wire facility in Portugal. WireCo also has two facilities in Mexico, one in Germany, and one in China.

“Ten years ago we were completely reliant on the U.S. market for almost all of our business. Today over half our business is outside the U.S.” By establishing facilities abroad, WireCo is, in a sense, not trying to break into foreign markets. It becomes a part of that market, its facility becoming a part of that community, using the indigenous labor force, while increasing distribution efficiency and reducing costs.

“It’s safe to say that this movement into the global market has strengthened us,” says Hornaday. “.It’s created market diver­sity and contributed to our financial stability. We’re actually doing well and have great plans to continue to grow in the future.”

LOOS & CO., INC., Pomfret, CT; Michael Wallace, vice president, sales/ marketing, describes the industry as generally broken off into two segments. He characterizes the big three, as detailed above, as general purpose wire rope, with the second segment, to which Loos belongs, specializing in aircraft and small diameter specialty continued on page 30

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in the areas. This tends to take price continued from page 28 cables. out of the equation.”

“General purpose manufacturers Another area of speciality cable Loos speak in terms of volumes of tons of focuses on is that for fitness equipment. wire rope,” Wallace says. “These manu- Loos sells this cable to other countries, facturers still have their roots in the for, as Wallace explains, the buyers in steel mills which owned them, and those countries can’t get the same qualthey still have the steel mill mental- ity from their local manufacturers. By ity. In our segment, however, we never the same token, U.S. makers of fitness concern ourselves with tons. We only equipment are much less inclined to look at how many feet of wire rope are purchase these cables from abroad, no being sold, which the general purpose matter what the cost savings. “Nobody manufacturers don’t concern them- wants the supports holding up a couple selves with.” of hunrdred pounds of weight over your Of this smaller segment, Loos is by head to snap,” Wallace says. far the largest, with about 80 percent In terms of Loos removing itself from of the market share. The smaller play- the commoedity market, Wallace says, ers, some new, some who have been “I use the analogy of Asian manufacaround for awhile, work to find their turers providing large amount of Breyown niche. ers vanilla ice cream, whereas, we proThis smaller diameter segment has vide a smaller amount of a much richer also been decimated by imports, no less Ben & Jerry’s.” than the general purpose manufacturBut to compete at this level, to take ers. “For those of us who have stayed pricing out of the equation, Wallace in business, we’ve had to become the says, “You have to have the systems specialists,” Wallace says. “Aviation is in place to produce quality products certainly one area of speciality, espe- with which you can excel in the world cially military specifications. We export market. People will pay for quality aviation and specialty cable products and service.” As a result, Loos is not a because, even though foreign manu- victim to the machinations of foreign facturers have improved their general manufacturers, many of whom achieve Ad092506_7116x458:3.375 9/26/07 quality, they still can’t attain our level 12:59 their PM low Page costs1 through extremely

30

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

cheap, even slave labor. Instead, by focusing on the value-added, Loos sells its aviation and specialty small diameter cable, especially in the area of fitness equipment, all over the world, to China, Russia, Europe, and South America. Having achieved a comfortable niche might tend to make a company a bit complacent, but this is not the Loos way, Wallace says. “It’s easy to become stagnant, and that makes you vulnerable to the ups and downs of the economy,” he maintains. “We have a very aggressive sales and marketing force, and have made an investment to broaden our scope to cables for medical devices.”

Due to this aggressive stance, Wallace reports that even though 2009 saw a 40 percent drop in sales compared to 2008, due to the economy, the company still made money. “In 2010 we certainly did see a rebound in use and consumption in our markets,” Wallace says.

“It still hasn’t gotten back to where we were in 2008, but we’re confident, that as the economy gains momentum through rebounding both domestically and globally, that 2011 will bring us back to the levels achieved in 2008 and then beyond. We’re bullish about the future.” WRN

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Accentuate the positive From negative worker to positive performer

By Phillip M. Perry

Workers with negative attitudes! Just when you need them to shift into overdrive they throw on the brakes. Most businesses have picked up their share of negative employees over the years. And their machinations can bring customer traffic and business profits to a new low.

Left unattended, bad attitudes only get worse and spread to the workforce at large. But you can take steps to turn around negative attitudes. Just how is detailed by four experts in this article.

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president of danamics, a Portland, Oregon human resources training firm (www.danamics.net). Try her “Four As” technique on Sam, and on any other problem employee: 1) Assess the situation Before you say anything to Sam, focus the issue in your own mind. What are you specifically upset about?

“Remember that assessing another person’s negativity is really a judgment call,” says Barz. “So identify the specific behaviors that are causing problems.”

In this case, write down a report describing exactly what Sam said about the customer and how other customers reacted to the statement.

Then consider what factors may be affecting the activity. Are other individuals or departments involved? “Also ask if you as a manager have contributed to the negativity,” says Barz. “Have you perhaps made your own negative comments about customers which have been overheard by your employees?”

Examine the emotions you are feeling as well. Have you allowed your own frustrations to affect how you have in-

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

teracted with Sam in recent weeks?

Write down your findings on all the above and review what you have written to see if you have covered all of the factors surrounding the events.

2) Address the problem With facts in hand, it’s time to approach Sam to obtain some feedback.

Before starting a conversation, though, assess Sam’s current state of mind. If he’s stressed right now because he had a bad time with a customer or vendor, he will not be in the best mental posture for your discussion. Suggests Barz: “You might tell Sam I need to talk with you about something. Is this a good time? Then either move to an office for the conversation or decide on a mutually convenient time.”

“Start the conversation on a positive note,” suggests Barz. You might use words such as I really like working with you and you are enthusiastic about customer service, and here is a problem I am currently facing. Don’t use the word “but” in that sentence, cautions Barz, because it seems to negate what you just said.

Then explain what happened, says Barz. “Don’t just say You were rude with a customer. Instead, state specifics such as this: Yesterday I heard you say that a customer who had just left the store was a ‘pain in the neck.’ Another customer standing nearby overheard you. His eyebrows raised and he shook his head at what he heard you say.”

Then state how this might affect the business: I felt very frustrated because we may have lost a good customer and that means we may not meet our monthly sales goal.

3) Always listen to the other side Time for some feedback. “Give Sam a chance to tell his story,” says Barz. Encourage him to open up by asking him a question such as What do you think about that?

photo © Vladimir Mucibabic via www.dreamstime.com

am makes snide remarks about customers. Andy misses deadlines. Sally frowns behind the boss’s back. And Bill laughs at his coworkers’ ideas.

Do those people sound familiar?

Workers with negative attitudes can stall progress at any organization. And today the problem seems especially acute as employees come under increasing pressure in their private and business lives.

High unemployment is a chief factor.

“Our economy is creating a lot of stress among workers,” says Bonnie Mattick, president of Unforgettable Outcomes, a Phoenix-based consulting firm (www. unforgettableoutcomes.com). “Very often people will bring problems from home into the workplace. If a spouse has been laid off, for example, the remaining wage earner will feel a lot of pressure.”

It’s tempting to ignore negative behaviors and hope things turn around.

But letting things slide can be costly.

“Negativity, like enthusiasm, is contagious,” says Lenora BillingsHarris, president of Excel Development System, Greensboro, NC (www. lenoraspeaks.com). “It spreads quickly through any organization. And that affects the bottom line since employees cannot be creative and productive when they are negative.” Negative behavior can even drive away customers, she adds: “Customers who do not want to deal with negative people go someplace else.”

Go positive So negativity’s bad. But how do rid your workplace of its sour atmosphere?

Take that fellow Sam from our opening paragraph. Suppose he’s made another snide remark about a customer who just left the building. And maybe other customers have overheard what he just said. What do you do?

Here’s some help from Dana Barz,

Use good listening skills. Don’t interrupt Sam while he’s speaking. Assure that you are listening by nodding.

And at appropriate places, paraphrase what you have heard to make sure you understand.

4) Agree on a course of action Finally, encourage Sam to become invested in a solution, says Barz. Ask How will we move forward? or How can I help you avoid doing that again?

Conclude your meeting on a positive note. Say something such as Thank you for listening, for helping me out and helping me to make this work.

In the days and weeks after the meeting, take steps that help Sam eliminate negativity. Use positive reinforcement when you see Sam communicate positive feelings about customers.

Motivate workers As Sam’s story suggests, successful counseling invests the employee in a solution. “When you say you can turn around an employee it implies you can change that person-- and you really can’t,” cautions Jack Altschuler, president of Fully Alive Leadership, Northbrook, IL (www.fullyaliveleadership. com). “Threats and sticks can create compliance but will also be dispiriting: You are guaranteeing you will not get a

person’s best efforts using those tools.”

Real change is an inside job, says Altschuler. “If a person is dedicated to being negative there is no one who can change that except that person.” Your counseling should be geared to inspiring that change.

Whatever you do, don’t wait too long to counsel your employee, says Altschuler. “Hold a meeting before emotions get the better of you. Avoid falling into a situation in which you and the employee get more and more angry, and then instead of conversation there is an explosion.”

Confronting negative employees can be a daunting challenge. See this article’s sidebars for some more scenarios to help you along.

Creating a group of motivated workers protects your bottom line. “Negativity leads to low moral which leads to decreased productivity and performance,” says Mattick. “So it’s important to address the problem before it gets out of hand.”

Bill the Bottleneck Bill continually misses deadlines, throwing the workplace into turmoil.

And he always seems to have a good excuse.

Solution: “Hold a conversation with

Bill,” suggests Jack Altschuler, president of Fully Alive Leadership, Northbrook, IL. “But come with curiosity, not accusations. Conduct the conversation in a way that allows something productive to happen. Bill knows he is missing deadlines but he is doing the excuse dance in his mind. He is blaming others.”

Altschuler suggests opening with words such as these: Bill I can’t help but notice you have been a bottleneck… tell me what is going on. Bill will respond with a list of excuses, says Altschuler. “Listen to Bill’s responses, then ask him what steps need to be taken to resolve the problems. What do you need so we can count on you?

People are being let down.”

A cooperative effort may solve the problem. Offer to take steps required to get Bill back on track. And be willing to adjust your own management style if the evidence warrants. “As much as the conversation is about Bill it is even more about leadership,” says Altschuler. “Bill is missing deadlines because leadership is tolerating it. The behavior you tolerate is the behavior you get. So if you want Bill to not miss deadlines you need to set clear limits and make it stick. Leaders have to be continued on next page

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

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continued from previous page accountable first.”

Nellie the Naysayer Nellie shakes her head whenever a co-worker suggests a new idea. You know this is starting to keep people from speaking up in meetings.

Solution: “Don’t just walk up and tell Nellie she is being rude,” says Dana Barz, president of danamics, a Portland, Oregon human resources training firm. “Start by writing down descriptions of exactly what happened at recent meetings.”

Schedule a talk with Nellie and start the conversation on a positive note, suggests Barz. Try words such as these: One thing I appreciate about you is how you get your projects done on time. That means a lot and I need your help in solving a problem.

Then say: When you laugh at someone with a new idea, that is really frustrating to me and I see the frustration in the faces of other people. Then I see fewer people willing to share ideas and that means we get fewer ideas for customer initiatives. I am wondering how

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do you think about this?

“After this, let Nellie explain her side of things,” suggests Barz. “Then come to an agreement about specific behaviors.”

Carl the Critic Carl likes to compare your business—unfavorably—with a competitor down the street.

Solution: Ask some questions designed to open up Carl, suggests Bonnie Mattick, president of Unforgettable Outcomes, a Phoenix-based consulting firm. “I would ask Carl first off, What makes XYZ company so outstanding in your mind? Give me some specifics. Is it better on-time delivery? Customer service? What is causing us to not perform at that same level?”

Then ask Carl for ideas, says Mattick.

“Ask him to submit a report with some recommendations, then follow up and see which ones can be implemented.”

Consider assigning Carl duties to take advantage of his skills. “Sometimes the negative worker is crying out to be recognized,” says Mattick. “He feels as if his talents are not acknowledged.”

Donna the Dark Cloud Donna is always saying things are going to turn out badly. Even when good news is announced she has a message for everyone: “Don’t get your hopes up.”

Solution: “If someone is always predicting rain when the skies are blue try engaging the person in a productive conversation, suggests Lenora Billings-Harris, president of Excel Development System, Greensboro, NC. “If you start with a critical comment such has Donna, you are always so negative, Donna will put a wall up. Instead try to get Donna to open up with words such as Tell me why you think that. Help me understand what evidence you have that will make that so.

“People usually talk in broad generalities when they are negative,” says Billings-Harris. “They will use words like Every time and always. You might respond with Is it really every time…? When was the last time that you saw that?

If they make those comments in a group setting, try turning to someone who tends to be positive. Here’s one approach: John, what are your experiences in this regard? What are your feelings about this?

Explain to Donna how her comments are affecting co-worker attitudes and thus business profits. Ask her to suggest specific steps the organization can take to turn things around.

“Finally, set timelines with Donna to work on changing her behavior, and give positive reinforcement when you see improvements,” says Billings-Harris. WRN

Preliminary steel imports increase 3% in April

Import market share rises to 22% Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that the U.S. imported a total of 2,535,000 net tons (NT) of steel in April, including 1,915,000 NT of finished steel (up 3% and 2%, respectively, from March final data). Annualized total and finished steel imports in 2011 would be 26.9 and 20.8 million NT, respectively, up 12% and 10% vs. 2010. Finished steel import market share in April was an estimated 22% and is 21% year-to date.

Key finished steel products with significant import increases in April 2011 compared to March include reinforcing bar (up 52%), line pipe (up 51%), hot dipped galvanized sheet and strip (up 38%), plates in coil (up 25%) and hot rolled sheets (up 14%). Major products with significant year-to-date import increases vs. the same period last year include oil country goods (up 58%) and reinforcing bar (up 54%).

In April, the largest volumes of finished steel imports from offshore were from South Korea (309,000 NT, up 28%), India (126,000 NT, up 137%), Turkey (118,000 NT up 138%), Japan (106,000 NT, down 6%) and China (96,000 NT, up 42%). For the first 4 months of 2011, the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (951,000 NT, up 71%), Japan (478,000 NT, up 12%) and Germany (336,000 NT, up 16%). Below are charts on estimated steel import market share in recent months and on finished steel imports from offshore by country.

March steel shipments up 14.9 percent from February

Up 9.6 percent year to date The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that for the month of March 2011, U.S. steel mills shipped 8,006,015 net tons, a 14.9 percent increase from the 6,967,481 net tons shipped in the previous month, February 2011, and a 4.7 percent increase from the 7,646,938 net tons shipped in March 2010. Shipments year-todate in 2011 are 22,502,151 a 9.6 percent increase vs. 2010 shipments of 20,537,822 for three months. 2011 shipments through March would annualize at 90 million tons.

A month-to-month comparison of shipments shows the following changes: hot dipped galvanized sheet and 36

strip, up 19 percent, hot rolled sheet, up 14 percent, and cold rolled sheet, up 13 percent.

AISI strongly commends the passage of legislation to increase energy production from domestic resources

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) applauds the passage of H.R. 1229, H.R. 1230 and H.R. 1231, three bills aimed at expanding oil and natural gas production in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

“Because steel is an energy-intensive, trade-exposed industry, an affordable and abundant supply of energy is critical to maintaining our international competitiveness,” AISI President and CEO Thomas J. Gibson said. “Natural gas, in particular, is a reliable source of energy that will help lower costs for domestic manufacturing, such as the steel industry. Furthermore, since steel pipe and tubing—products that U.S. steelmakers actively supply--are integral to both the gathering and transmission of natural gas, expanding the market will help create valuable and much-needed

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

U.S. jobs. These three bills provide an opportunity for us to explore and develop our offshore resources, and they represent an important step forward in developing a comprehensive national energy independence strategy.”

H.R. 1229, “The Putting the Gulf Back to Work Act,” ends the de facto moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico by requiring the Secretary of the Interior to act on a permit to drill within 30 days of receiving an application and after conducting a safety review. H.R. 1230 requires the Administration to conduct offshore lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Virginia. H.R. 1231 requires the Interior Department to move forward on the 2012-2017 OCS lease plan in areas containing the most oil and natural gas resources.

American Iron and Steel Institute releases 2010 Annual Statistical Report

Longest running statistical series in manufacturing The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), the primary source of statistical information on the North

American steel industry, announced the release of its 2010 Annual Statistical Report (ASR) today. The 126-page book, the most comprehensive reference of its kind for the American steel industry, provides statistical data for the United States steel industry plus a variety of selected statistical data on the Canadian, Mexican and world steel industries. The report is the longest running statistical publication series in all of manufacturing, dating back to 1868. The ASR has been published without interruption since 1914.

The ASR has proven to be an indispensable reference tool for the industry, media, academia, steel analysts and others who are interested in tracking steel industry trends. The most popular charts, in terms of inquiries received by the Institute, include Selected Statistical Highlights on shipments, apparent supply, imports, employment and raw steel data over a 10-year period; Selected Financial Highlights on income and cash flow data; shipments by products and markets over a 10year period; raw steel production (state distribution and capability utilization); and imports and exports data.

The report is preceded by an executive summary that highlights recent and historical trends in the North American Steel Industry. The summary is comprised of 10 pages of charts and graphs on steel production, shipments, imports, demand and operating efficiency. Recent steel market trends in the U.S. and NAFTA region are illustrated.

AISI’s 2010 Annual Statistical Report is available by e-mail or hard copy.

To purchase it online ($450 for a hard copy or $400 for an electronic version) visit www.steelfacts.org. To order it over the phone, call 412.860.5342.

AISI voices strong support for the Infrastructure Jobs and Energy Independence Act

Legislation aims to invest in energy and rebuild our transportation infrastructure The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) voiced strong support for the bipartisan Infrastructure Jobs and Energy Independence Act introduced today by Reps. Tim Murphy (R-PA), Bill Shuster (R-PA), Jim Costa (D-CA) and Tim Walz (D-MN). The legislation focuses on expanding access to America’s domestic oil and natural gas sources, and rebuilding America’s transportation system.

“As major consumers of energy, our member companies in the steel indus-

try are negatively impacted by high energy costs,” AISI President and CEO Thomas J. Gibson said. “This legislation will lower energy costs not only for our industry, but our suppliers and customers, while allowing us to maximize our international competitiveness.

Steel plays a vital role in the gathering and transmission of oil and natural gas through the use of steel pipe and tubing. Additionally, this legislation aims to rebuild America’s crumbling transportation infrastructure, which will create manufacturing jobs in the short and long term. We urge members of the House of Representatives to co-sponsor this job-creating legislation and make it a key part of a comprehensive national energy independence strategy.”

AISI serves as the voice of the North American steel industry in the public policy arena and advances the case for steel in the marketplace as the preferred material of choice. AISI also plays a lead role in the development and application of new steels and steelmaking technology. For more news about steel and its applications, view AISI’s Web site at www. steel.org.

I&I Sling moves to Norwood, Maine

I&I Sling, Inc. is proud to announce their New England plant has moved into a new and larger building at 1400 Providence Highway in Norwood, MA. The increase in sales for the branch required not only a larger facility but also the installation of the “Iron Maiden,” a 300 ton x 80’ Chant Testing machine.

Scott Woodward, manager of the plant, explained that customer response to the QIST program and to new product innovations like the Check-Fast® Inspection System made the move essential. Quality, Innovation, Service and Training are the requisite goals of the business to facilitate the safety and productivity of clients throughout New England. More information is available from the I&I Sling web site under locations.

I&I Sling Inc. operates six plants on the east coast of the United States cov-

ering an area from Maine to Florida.

All I&I locations are part of the Slingmax® Rigging Solutions group.

Sling, Rigging And Fall Prevention Seminar, a tremendous success

The Sling and Rigging Seminar hosted

by Lift-it® Manufacturing was a tremendous success. Participants representing many diverse industries and geographic locations attended the seminar.

The Synthetic Sling Safety Program was presented by Mike Gelskey, CEO, Lift-It ®Manufacturing and featured basic and advanced rigging.

The “A, B ,C’s” of fall prevention and product demonstrations were presented

by Mark Langford, Capital Safety. A tour of the Lift-It production facility with fabrication and testing demonstrations was also included on Day One. Day Two featured classroom and hands on sling inspection. Harley Gist, Rigging Institute presented Hands-on Rigging. Participants determined load weight, centers of gravity and calculated sling tension.

Day three featured a Train-theTrainer program which provided considerations and instruction in the presentation of the Sling Safety Program.

The attendees were extremely complimentary in their post conference evaluations. One prevailing comment was that the seminar imparted a tremendous amount of useful information.

Mr. Gelskey has educated thousands of sling users and inspectors over the last thirty years. He remarked, “We were particularly impressed by the interaction and participation of the attendees. I was also very grateful for the kind words from many of the participants during the shop tour”. It was also very inspiring to see outstanding attendance at a time when travel and safety related expenses are being cut by many businesses”.

The next seminar is scheduled for October 25 and 26, 2011 and will feature preparatory training for Rigger Level 1 and Signalperson. The Traincontinued on next page

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

37

continued from previous page the-Trainer Program, which is also a professional development course will be featured on October 27. Early registrations are encouraged. The class size is deliberately limited for maximum benefit and participation. The specific details are available at www.Lift-it. com or by contacting Conference Coordinator, Michelle Brown at (323) 5826076 x 715.

Applied Fiber Manufacturing attains ISO9001:2008 certification

Applied Fiber’s quality management system received the International Organization for Standardization ISO 9001:2008 certification by Det Norske Veritas Inc (DNV). This certification

reflects Applied Fiber’s ongoing commitment to a consistently high standard of quality in the manufacture of its products.

“Customer satisfaction is our number one priority. A robust quality management system is essential to ensuring our customers’ needs and expectations are met consistently” stated Richard Campbell, CEO of Applied Fiber. “ISO registration supports our pursuit of continuous improvement and an on-going commitment to provide our customers assurance of product quality.”

Located in Havana, FL, Applied Fiber provides terminated solutions for performance-based synthetic fiber systems. The company manufactures rope and cable assemblies for both high volume mass market applications, and low volume specialty applications. Applied

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Emmert International, Barnhart and Tradelossa win SC&RA Hauling Job of the Year Awards

The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) has announced the winners of the Hauling Job of the Year Awards. The awards went to Emmert International, Clackamas, OR, in the Moving category, Barnhart Crane and Rigging, Memphis, TN, in the Hauling over 160,000 Pounds (net) category and in the Hauling under 160,000 Pounds (net) category and Tradelossa, Monterrey, Mexico, in the Hauling over 160,000 Pounds (net) category. Moving jobs feature specialized equipment such as self-propelled transported dollies and crawler assemblies. Hauling jobs involve regular licensed tractors and trailers, moving predominantly via public roadways.

Emmert transports four immense steam generators through environmentally sensitive area Immediately after winning the contract to transport four replacement steam generators from the Port of Long Beach, CA to San Onefre, CA, Emmert International, Clackamas, OR, began a detailed planning and engineering pro-

cess that required nearly three years to complete. Emmert worked closely with the client, federal and local environmental agencies, the U.S. Marine Corps, California Department of Transportation, as well as federal and local security and law enforcement agencies.

Each generator measured 67 feet long, 23 feet 8 inches wide and 21 feet 1 inch high and weighed 1,352,300 pounds.

After three months, Emmert concluded that the optimal solution involved a 15-mile route incorporating unimproved access roads, Interstate 5, through a State Park area and a beach.

The entire replacement project at the power plant, including transportation, was subject to a permit from the California Coastal Commission, which required an extensive Environmental Impact Report. Independent biological monitors controlled all work and movements in areas designated as environmentally sensitive, which included virtually the entire route.

Most of the route passed through areas supporting endangered and federally protected species of flora and fauna, and the focus was to avoid any impact on these. During the active nesting season for sea birds from early spring until September, beach operations are prohibited, which further complicated scheduling.

Emmert received the generators on a barge it provided after they were shipped from a Japanese manufacturing plant. The barge was then towed in the open Pacific Ocean to Del Mar basin within the confines of the U.S. Marine’s Camp Pendleton. To avoid severe rip currents in the tidal basin, the voyage took place at night.

After others dredged the heavy-lift dock, Emmert offloaded the barge using a 16-axle double wide Goldhofer PST to cross a 30-foot ramp. From there Emmert moved across the Marine base on asphalt roads to a staging area protecting underground services along the way with steel plates and lowering or shielding overhead cables as the load passed below.

For the next stage, a 7-mile move along the beach, Emmert used two 700-ton capacity transporters mounted under a steel platform holding a generator. These tracked vehicles could travel on soft sand without matting but topped out at 3 to 5 miles per hour when loaded.

After three days, the generator exited the beach at a 10 percent grade on a temporary road created by Emmert, was loaded onto the Goldhofer and moved off the elevated area until

passing onto I-5 for a night-time move of about ½ mile. The Interstate portion took less than 30 minutes, excluding preparatory work and the clearing up of steel plates and matting afterwards.

Next, each load moved to a State Park, subject to environmental scrutiny because of the presence of several endangered species. Tight clearance at park entrances posed an additional challenge.

The generator then moved one mile along a frontage road with underground services requiring protection from the load entering the power plant reservation through a car parking area. Traveling on a road built to Emmert’s precise specifications, the load then descended on a 6 percent grade onto the power plant’s main entry road, maneuvering between existing buildings with a pinch point of 1/4 inch on both sides and a steep embankment along a curved road.

In common with all operations inside active nuclear facilities, security of the load was very tight. There were no injuries to crew during any of the four moves.

Over 160,000 pounds: Barnhart sets record for largest single item move in Tennessee and Virginia Barnhart Crane and Rigging, Memphis, TN, successfully met the challenge of transporting a massive steam turbine generator from Port Allen, LA, through the Appalachian Mountains to St. Paul, VA. After the original heavy hauler was unable to receive the necessary permits, Barnhart began performing route feasibility studies and bridge analyses. Barnhart received the transportation contract on January 18, 2010, more than two months after the initial scheduled delivery date. Because the customer suffered from liquidated damages every day the generator was not on the final site, Barnhart agreed to do everything possible to complete the job safely within six months. Such an extensive project normally called for 18 months of planning alone.

The 304,000-pound generator – measuring 35 feet 11 inches long by 18 feet 7 inches wide by 17 feet one-inch high – was the largest single item ever hauled in Tennessee and Virginia. Barnhart provided analysis of 36 of 109 bridges crossed along the 176-mile route. Five independent engineering firms worked simultaneously to generate hundreds of pages of data per bridge.

Total permit costs – including permit fees, bridge engineering, bonds and remediation – were $1,876,494. Barnhart set a new precedent in safety planning with a 115-page engineered heavy continued on next page Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

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continued from previous page transport plan. Briefings with many local and state officials, community groups and the press included a route survey with state engineers and traffic control officials to discuss each day’s planned movements.

Record rainfall in the region shortly before the job’s scheduled start caused the collapse of a retaining wall in Tennessee, narrowing the highway to a single lane. Barnhart developed a plan to replace the wall with engineered fill, which stabilized the area for both heavyhaul transport and the general public.

To meet Tennessee requirements, Barnhart transformed its 24-dolly transporter – the world’s lightest of its kind – to accommodate 28 dollies. As it moved through the state, it measured 365 feet 5 inches in length, 22 feet 2 inches in width and 17 feet 3 inches in height, with a gross weight, including prime movers, of 1,404,869 pounds. In Virginia, Barnhart shifted back to 24 dollies without transloading. The project necessitated development of numerous innovative tools and techniques. A special “Dog-Bone Link” support system with two 100-ton jacks enabled expeditious reinforcement of the transporter’s transition girders.

Barnhart expanded its proven “CrabSteering” technique for spreading the weight of the transporter laterally and longitudinally across bridges, creating seven new steering arrangements to complement the company’s traditional crab-steering arrangements.

Barnhart’s redesign of its “Hanging Suspension System” used carrier beams beneath the sole plates of the generator to minimize the overall height to 17 feet 3 inches. Finally, Barnhart completed five different bridge jumps of up to 130 feet, including one midway of a 7 percent grade ascent and descent in a quarter mile.

Under 160,000 pounds: Tradelossa relocates three mills to two mines over rugged terrain Tradelossa, Monterrey, Mexico, relocated three mills from a mine in Zacatecas, Mexico, through the Sierra Madre Mountains to two different mines in the state of Chihuahua. Two mills went to a mine 490 miles away, the other to a mine 480 miles away. The mills measured 22 feet long by16 feet nine inches in diameter and weighed 110,231 pounds.

Tradelossa took on this project after two other specialized transporters failed to move the load beyond the first mile. Because of the lost time, the client needed the job completed as quickly as possible. Besides, the federal road 40

permits were valid for only 30 days.

Other challenges they faced included passage through traffic; rough, narrow roads; tollbooths; small towns; access to mines; tight turns and even tighter clearances. A key Tradelossa engineering solution was the use of hydraulic equipment with a girder bridge open to 3.6 meters (11 feet 10 inches), enabling the load to be dropped as needed almost to ground level.

The equipment had been in use on another project, so Tradelossa had only four days to assemble it and check that the desired configuration truly could operate as required. Without the ability to reduce the height of the shipment, the convoy would have been forced to take considerably longer routes.

Tradelossa expeditiously overcame the initial challenges that thwarted the previous carriers at the site. Even after disassembling the cargo as much as possible, they barely had a foot of clearance at the side and a mere two inches at the top of the storage facility exit. Additionally, the length of the load made the very narrow road access even more taxing.

In some places, the roadways were so narrow that Tradelossa had to use both lanes, blocking traffic for as much as seven-and-a-half miles. In other places, rough terrain necessitated the pulling power of two tractors in front of the load. Tradelossa worked closely with the Federal Electricity Commission to cut electricity as the load passed beneath low power cables.

A new 820-foot road onsite had to be built because the existing one had extremely tight turns that prohibited the equipment to pass through. Because of the steep upward slope of the new, loosely compacted road, Tradelossa used a bulldozer to help the tractor move ahead.

When the client unexpectedly changed the unloading site, Tradelossa was unable to exit the same road it had entered. So the crew disassembled the equipment to go out through the principal road, which was not used originally because the equipment was too long for successful navigation.

The entire job required 475 manhours, including 200 hours of planning.

One crew members was dedicated entirely to the project for two weeks.

Tradelossa invests heavily in safety, sending key personnel to Germany for training by Goldhofer. Additionally, Tradelossa made good use of information provided by Goldhofer to ensure the crew made optimal use of the equipment.The project was

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

completed with zero accidents, on time and on budget.

SC&RA Presents Crane & Rigging Safety Awards

The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) announced the winners of the Crane & Rigging Safety, Zero Accident Awards, and Crane & Rigging Safety Improvement during its 2011 Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. Twenty-seven SC&RA members won a Crane & Rigging Safety Award because of their superior safety records: AmQuip Crane Rental, LLC, Philadelphia, PA. Bigge Crane and Rigging Co., San Leandro, CA. Bollmeier Crane & Lift, Madison, IL. Bridger Crane & Rigging LLC, Boulder, WY. Connelly Crane Rental Corp., Detroit, MI. Crane Rental Corporation, Orlando, FL. J.J. Curran Crane Co., Detroit, MI. Custom Service Crane Inc., Mahomet, IL. Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, Inc., Milwaukee, WI. Dutcher-Phipps Crane & Rigging Co., Monahans, TX. Edwards Moving & Rigging, Shelbyville, KY. Emmert International, Clackamas, OR. Fagioli, Inc., Houston, TX. Hawaiian Crane & Rigging, Ltd., Honolulu, HI. Install Inc., Sanford, NC. Magnum Crane Services, LLC, Seattle, WA. Mammoet USA Inc., Houston, TX. Mountain Crane Service, Riverton, UT. Mr. Crane, Inc., Orange, CA. PSC Crane & Rigging, Dayton, OH. RMS Cranes, Inc., Denver, CO. Shelby Mechanical, Inc., Pennsauken, NJ. Southern Industrial Constructors, Inc./Southern Crane, Raleigh, NC. Specialty Crane & Rigging, Santa Barbara/Santa Maria, CA. Tri-State Crane & Rigging, Cedar Rapids, IA. Turner Bros., LLC, Oklahoma City, OK. George Young Company, Swedesboro, NJ. George Young Installations PR, Humacao, Puerto Rico Eighteen SC&RA member companies received the Crane & Rigging Zero Accidents Award because they did not have a single recordable accident or injury in the past year: Bollmeier Crane & Lift, Madison, IL. Bridger Crane & Rigging LLC, Boulder, WY. J.J. Curran Crane Co., Detroit, MI. continued on page 44

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continued from page 40 Custom Service Crane Inc., Mahomet, IL. Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, Inc., Milwaukee, WI. Dutcher-Phipps Crane & Rigging Co., Monahans, TX. Edwards Moving & Rigging, Shelbyville, KY. Fagioli, Inc., Houston, TX. Hawaiian Crane & Rigging, Ltd., Honolulu, HI. Install Inc., Sanford, NC. Magnum Crane Services, LLC, Seattle, WA. Mr. Crane, Inc., Orange, CA. PSC Crane & Rigging, Dayton, OH. RMS Cranes, Inc., Denver, CO. Shelby Mechanical, Inc., Pennsauken, NJ. Specialty Crane & Rigging, Santa Barbara/Santa Maria, CA. Tri-State Crane & Rigging, Cedar Rapids, IA. George Young Installations PR, Humacao, Puerto Rico.

Two SC&RA member companies earned a Crane & Rigging Safety Improvement Award by showing an improved incidence rate compared to the previous year’s contest entry: Emmert International, Clackamas, OR. Mountain Crane Service, Salt Lake City, UT.

Record number of exhibitors and visitors for 2011 fair

Fair rated top industry event by suppliers and buyers Strong support for fringe events The second edition of SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou held from 9 – 11 March 2011 at the China Import and Export Fair Complex attracted a record number of exhibitors and visitors, confirming its position as the top trade fair in Southern China for industrial automation solutions.

Showing at the fair were 354 suppliers from 15 countries and regions, covering three halls in a total exhibition area of 30,000 sqm.

Over 19,300 professional buyers from 40 countries and regions came to the fair to see and source the latest technological innovations.

Mr. Louis Leung, Deputy General Manager, Guangzhou Guangya Messe Frankfurt Co Ltd said: “SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is developing at an extraordinary rate. In just one year, the scale of the fair has grown 50%, exhibitor participation has risen 12% and visitor attendance has increased 15%. These gains reflect the

enormous business potential in Southern China.”

Fair rated top industry event by suppliers and buyers Exhibitors and visitors commended the professionalism of the fair and, most importantly, how it has delivered an exceptional business platform.

“We did very well at SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou last year, so we doubled the size of our booth to showcase more of our product range this year. The quality of the buyers has been marvellous – we are meeting our target audience,” said Ms. Alvis Fong, Senior Marketing Communication Executive Asia Pacific, Harting (HK) Limited.

Ms. Hong Li, Deputy GM, Marketing Director, ELCO which produces sensors and encoders was equally pleased with the calibre of visitors at the fair.

“SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is terrific – it attracts a great many quality buyers, who know exactly what they want. The number of new customers to our booth has gone up daily.”

Oriental Motor from Japan was glad of the opportunity to increase their market presence in Southern China. continued on page 46

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continued from page 44 Mr. Feng Yan, Sales Engineer said: “This has definitely been a worthwhile experience – we have gained new contacts and customers from across the Pearl River Delta during SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou.”

The fair also delivered an excellent marketing platform for companies to raise their brand profile. Mr. Li Shi Guang, Product Management Team Leader, Automation Systems, IA Division of Industry Sector, Siemens Ltd China said: “As a marketing tool, SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is incredible. Over the fair period we have successfully introduced our state-of-the-art technologies to customers, new and old.” The electronics giant had the largest stand at the fair for the second consecutive year.

Visitors attending the fair were also satisfied. Mr. Mohamad Abdel Karim, Technical Director, Asfour Crystal said: “We are leaving the fair with solid leads for Chinese suppliers of servos and stable motors, who we think we can work with in the future.” Asfour Crystal is increasing its output of quality crystal figurines. Over the last five years the Egyptian company has invested more than 60 million euros to

enhance its production levels.

SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is the best sourcing platform in Southern China according to Mr. Qin Feng Qu, Manager, Guangzhou Maidi Machinery Equipment Co., Ltd. He said: “There is no other event like it. You are able to see an amazing selection of industrial automation technologies at SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou.

We have already placed several large orders for sensors and human-machine-interface devices.”

Noting the fair’s development, Mr. Li Ju-fang, Equipment Automation, Head of Department, Dongguan Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd said: “SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is much bigger and better signposted this year. We have been most impressed with the number and quality of suppliers too.”

Strong support for fringe events The educational fringe program held together with the fair, which included 12 specialist seminars and forums were well attended by visitors and exhibitors.

Program highlights included: • European Latest Sensor Technology, Application and Development Seminar

Organized by the German-based AMA Association for Sensor Technology (AMA), attendees of this one-day program were able to see how the newest ceramic sensors, 3D-laserscanners and 1D-triangulationlasers, highresolution digital sensors, intelligent photoelectric sensors and PRT and IOlink technologies could be used in the automation, automotive, medical and renewable energy sectors.

• Sensing in Automotive 2011 Presenting the latest automotive sensor technology, from ceramic to hydrogen sensors, to GE auto to MEMS-based pressure sensors, the forum was a hot ticket event for visitors and exhibitors alike. This event was jointly organised by the AMA and Vogel Media.

• CNC Machine Tools and Basic Manufacturing Equipment Forum The Panel on CNC Machine Tools and Basic Manufacturing Equipments of Guangdong Province, Guangdong Automation Association and Guangdong Mechanical Engineering Institute organised this event. The examination of the ‘12th Five Year Plan’ in relation to the development of a CNC machine tools industry in China drew a large audience.

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

The next edition of SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou will take place 6 – 8 March 2012 at the Guangzhou Import and Export Fair Complex.

SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou is sponsored by the China Foreign Trade Centre and Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH, organized by the China Foreign Trade Guangzhou Exhibition General Corporation, Guangzhou Guangya Messe Frankfurt Co Ltd, Guangzhou Overseas Trade Fairs Ltd and Mesago Messe Frankfurt GmbH, with Guangdong Association of Automation and the Guangzhou Association of Automation being the Honourable Organisers.

Background information on Messe Frankfurt Messe Frankfurt is Germany’s leading trade fair organizer, with 424 million euros in sales in 2009* and more than 1,500 employees worldwide. The Messe Frankfurt Group has a global network of 28 subsidiaries, five branch offices and 52 international Sales Partners, giving it a presence for its customers in more than 150 countries. Events “made by Messe Frankfurt” take place at more than 30 locations around the globe. In 2009*, Messe Frankfurt organized more than 90 trade fairs, of which more than half took place outside Germany.

Messe Frankfurt’s exhibition grounds, featuring 578,000 square metres, are currently home to ten exhibition halls and an adjacent Congress Center. The company is publicly owned, with the City of Frankfurt holding 60 percent and the State of Hesse 40 percent. For more information, please visit our website at: www. messefrankfurt.com

portation the or construction management complete job. After the generator and grants go tofrom employees or children was suspended the gantry with a pursuing bar classes at a vocational spreader arrangement usingschool wire or to slings, furtherittheir education.

The folrope was rotated 90 degrees, lowing four companies have set on an hydraulic slidealready rail system, madeslid generous commitments and into the building. and Oncewill it have a the corporate scholarship cleared building,named the generator was beginning jacked upinto2012. remove the slide rail Terex, Wilmington, NC – $21,000 system and to install vibration mounts.

Southern Industrial Constructors, The rigging equipment selection Raleigh, NC – $15,000 simplified the rigging tasks and BennetttheInternational Mclessened impact of theGroup, snowy and Donnough, GA – $9,000 icy conditions prevalent during the Mammoet, Houston, TX – $9,000 project.

The project required 578 man Companies interested in particihours, including approximately 80 patingofinproject the new corporate and named hours management 20 scholarship program are encouraged hours of engineer designed lift and to contact Jackie Roskos at jroskos@ rigging planning. scranet.org.

North American Business Buckner Companies and conditions dip slightly in Skanska USA building June but remain win SC&RA’s first indicative of growth Environmental Award NEMA’s Electroindustry Business

The Specialized Carriers RigConfidence Index (EBCI) for & current ging Association North American (SC&RA) conditionsannounced measured the first winners its Environmen53.6 in June, itsof39th consecutive tal Award on April 16 during closing month above the 50-point threshold night ceremonies of its favorable Annual Conindicating conditions to ference Although in San Diego, CA. declined As part on of growth. the index its commitment to “go with one inthe month, the drop wasgreen a modest creased awareness visibility for of only 2.2 points fromand a reading of 55.8 environmental issues,” the SC&RA instiin May. Meanwhile, index for tuted the award to recognize a memfuture North American conditions rose ber company made low outstandslightly from that last has month’s water ing contributions to environmental mark, climbing 0.9 points to 27.8. protection.

The business environments in each amother pleased to regions report the competiof “Ithe world included in tion survey drew some strong stronger. entries,” the were very somewhat said SC&RA Chairman Bill America, Stramer.

Current conditions in Latin

“In fact, and in this first year, there were Europe, the Asia/Pacific region all two members that were in posted strong readings in so thestrong low 60s, variousfuture policies, programsmeasures and practicwhile conditions for es thatofwethese electedregions to issue two awards.” each reached or Winning entries came from Buckner exceeded 50.

Companies, Graham, N.C.ofand For a complete summary the SkanJune, ska USA New 2006 index,Building, including Inc., charts and York, a list New York. of participating companies, visit Buckner headquarters epitomizes www.nema.org/econ/ebci/upload/06_20 material salvage and recycling 06_EBCI.pdf.

Buckner T h e E l e was c t r o irecognized n d u s t r y Bprimarily usiness because its Index new headquarters simulConfidence gauges the business taneously serves as a vivid demonconfidence of the electroindustry in stration of material salvage and recyAsia, Europe, North America, and cling and as a showplace for the Latin America, and are based onsteel the erector’softrade.

Designers combed the results a monthly survey of senior company’s boneyard for components, managers at NEMA member compaincluding oldcompanies crane parts that could be nies.

Those represent more incorporated into than 80 percent of the the project. electroindustry.

Ultimately, 83 trade tons ofassociation steel – more NEMA is the of than 40 percent of all the steel in the choice for the electrical manufacturing ibuilding n d u s t r y–. came F o u ndirectly d e d i n from 1 9 2 6Buckand ner’s yard. Thenear completed projectD.C., feaheadquartered Washington, tures reconditioned columns manufacand girdits 430 member companies ers for the exposed frame, reused ture products used steel in the generation, corrugated metal to support roofs transmission and deck distribution, control, and use floors, salvaged curved wood and of and electricity.

These products glue-laminated roofmedical, beams, which were are used in utility, industrial, overlapped to create a clerestory. commercial, institutional, and residenThe 15-ton pedestrian that tial applications.

Domesticbridge production links the new and existing buildings of electrical products sold worldwide was recovered from the University of exceeds $120 billion.

In addition to its North Carolina campus, where Buckheadquarters in Rosslyn, Virginia, ner hadalso firsthas installed years Sao beNEMA offices it in 30 Beijing, fore. And pieces Paulo, and two Mexico City.of 15-foot girder salvaged from Clemson University’s Littlejohn Coliseum form the walls of Mobile Crane Operator a new conference room, which cantileand Inspector vers out the front to Classes shelter the main North American Crane Bureau has on next page multiple Mobilecontinued Crane Inspector and

* preliminary numbers (2009)

SC&R Foundation introduces corporate named scholarship program

The SC&R Foundation recently announced that it had approved a corporated named scholarship and grant program. The Foundation introduced the program during the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) Annual Conference April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. Participating companies will fund a $3,000 scholarship or a grant for three to ten years, depending on their contribution. The scholarships go to students preparing for careers related to trans58

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

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In re posed in in the states, facture public copies o Handlin Equipm contrac damage Guid Damag designe ers, ins produc advice o equipm water. require recond sional. electric motor transfor cords, w protec ballasts includ commu trial con The incorpo gency M Principl and Co Buildin intende enginee homeow The downl ‘www.n oad/gui ged_ele ordered (800) 85 397-795 2740 (fa

47 Rope News Wire

continued from previous page entrance.

The sustainable building effort grew to embrace other environmental measures, including a chip-and-tar drive, storm water bio-retention pond, and new materials with high recycled content such as Galvalume roofing, linoleum flooring and low-flow toilet fixtures. Networked roof drains supply a 15,000-gallon water cistern, which recycles grey water for use in washing vehicles and irrigating landscaping features. The new clerestory faces south to introduce ample natural light, as well as sunshine and warmth, to conserve energy use.

Additionally, Buckner embraces progressive office and workshop recycling practices, aggressive fuel storage and hazardous-materials practices, a conversion to virtually paperless management, computer-controlled thermostats, programmable lighting and basic external landscaping with minimal water requirements.

Skanska USA building serves as global leader in environmental stewardship Since 1995, Skanska has been a member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. All Skanska offices worldwide are registered in compliance with ISO 14001, meeting the International Organization for Standardization’s criteria for environmental management systems. Skanska was the first construction company in the Americas to be ISO14001 registered.

Skanska was recently ranked the top global leader of green building by Construction magazine. Skanska Senior Vice President Beth Heider has been elected as a future chair of the U.S. Building Council’s Board of Director.

Skanska USA headquarters, located in the Empire State Building, reflects the company’s belief that its longstanding commitment to green building as demonstrated in its Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification “is not only the right thing to do, but it is good business.”

Skanska capitalizes on the abundance of natural daylight entering the space from large windows at the perimeter. Lighting and occupancy sensors have been installed throughout the workspaces in conjunction with a highefficiency lighting system. The company uses light-emitting diode (LED) task lighting at each workstation, as well as motorized shades to reduce glare.

Most of the space is cooled by a pressurized raised floor air-distribution sys48

tem with an air diffuser near each workstation for individual controls. Heating comes from perimeter steam convection.

Carbon dioxide sensors throughout the space maintain air quality.

The building maintenance team uses all green cleaning products and receives training on properly maintaining the waterless urinal. All equipment and appliances are Energy Star rated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Because of these and other practices, management representatives from the Empire State building routinely tour Skanska USA offices to showcase the space and use it as a benchmark for future tenant space requirements.

Skanska also actively participates in EPA’s SmartWay program. The company offers $100 a month to employees who purchase, own and drive a Certified Smartway Green Vehicle. However, Skanska purposely located its offices within walking distance of mass transportation hubs and encourages employees to use bicycles, even stationing some at offices for their use.

All diesel-powered vehicles (excavators, backhoes, cranes, compressors, generators, bulldozers, and more) are powered by ultra-low sulfur diesel, and use the latest in Best Available Technology for reducing emissions. All cranes uses diesel particulate filters with a silicon carbide center body to greatly reduce particulate matter, hydrocarbons and carbon. Each piece of equipment undergoes a monthly environmental audit to assure it is running at peak environmental performance.

The Specialized Carriers and Rigging Association (SC&RA) is an international trade association of more than 1,300 members from 46 nations. Members are involved in specialized transportation, machinery moving and erecting, industrial maintenance, millwrighting and crane and rigging operations, manufacturing and rental. SC&RA helps members run more efficient and safer businesses by monitoring and affecting pending legislation and regulatory policies at the state and national levels; researching and reporting on safety concerns and best business practices; and providing five yearly forums where these and other relevant member issues can be advanced.

NCCCO prevails in legal dispute with crane school

Crane operator certification organization actions vindicated In a landmark case that has major

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

implications for certification organizations nationwide, the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) prevailed in a lawsuit brought against it in California Superior Court by California Crane School (CCS) and its owner, John Nypl.

After deliberating for less than one day, a 12-member jury returned a complete defense verdict for NCCCO, awarding CCS and Nypl nothing.

In the suit, Nypl claimed that NCCCO and its testing services provider, International Assessment Institute (IAI), intentionally interfered with certain business relationships of CCS and Nypl, with the intention of causing them harm. Nypl sought more than $5 million in damages.

“NCCCO vigorously defended this action in the firm knowledge and belief that its treatment of CCS and Mr. Nypl has been fair and appropriate,” stated NCCCO President, John M. Kennedy. “The decision of the jury in favor of NCCCO is a vindication of the steps NCCCO was obliged to take to prevent damage to the quality and integrity that has become a hallmark of CCO certification over the past fifteen years,” he said.

CCS and Nypl originally demanded more than $30 million from NCCCO. The plaintiffs filed their initial complaints in Oakland and Nevada City, CA, but NCCCO filed successful motions to transfer the litigation to Sonora. The original case also asserted claims for alleged violations of California’s antitrust and unfair competition laws, but those claims were thrown out before trial. Eventually, the case went to trial only on two surviving claims for alleged business interference.

“Whenever there is evidence of inappropriate conduct by firms or individuals who desire to participate in CCO certification programs, NCCCO has an obligation to ensure they comply with all prevailing policies and procedures,” said NCCCO Executive Director, Graham Brent. “To do otherwise could undermine the integrity of CCO certification and put at risk those who rely on it to mitigate the hazards associated with working around cranes.”

Last year, in a separate action brought by NCCCO, a federal judge found that CCS and Nypl were in civil contempt for violating a 2005 permanent injunction against them. The court also found that CCS and Nypl breached a settlement agreement arising out of NCCCO’s 2005 complaint against CCS and Nypl for copyright infringement and misappropriation of

trade secrets.

The National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) is an independent, non-profit organization established in January 1995 by industry to develop and administer a nationwide program for the certification of crane operators. Since then, NCCCO has administered over 500,000 accredited written and practical examinations to more than 100,000 operators in all 50 states, ensuring those who work in and around cranes are informed, trained, and qualified.

Bishop Lifting Products receives the Crane & Rigging Support – Silver award

On May 6, 2011, Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. (BLP) was the recipient of the Crane & Rigging Support – Silver award in Houston Business Roundtable’s Safety Excellence competition. Since 1988, the Houston Business Roundtable has been recognizing greater Houston area Industrial Contractors for outstanding safety performance. This award process has become a joint effort to improve on-site safety, eliminate accidents, and most importantly, reduce injuries to employees.

After receiving the nomination from BP in the category of Crane & Rigging Support, forms were submitted including the OSHA required safety data for fatalities, lost workday cases, recordable injuries and illnesses, copies of safety policies and procedures and documentation of safety best practices.

Following a formal review process, 33 companies were chosen to receive field audits to assess onsite safety programs. Topics under review for the field audit included accident prevention plans, safety training and education, emergency evacuation plan, substance abuse control programs, and driver safety training to name a few. The audit team also interviewed shop employees to ensure “what was written is being implemented” for all safety procedures.

Matthew Wilson, QHSE manager at Bishop Lifting Products, said “it was an extreme honor to be nominated by BP and to receive the silver safety award for Crane & Rigging Support. Recognition should be given to every individual employee at Bishop; starting with the executive management who places such a great emphasis on safety, to all employees who follow the safe practices on a daily basis.”

About Bishop Lifting Products

Pictured from left to right: Wayne Oswald (Director, HBR), Josh Kibby (HSE, Bishop Lifting Products), Matthew Wilson (HSE, Bishop Lifting Products), David Bishop (CEO, Bishop Lifting Products), John Hellums (Sales, Bishop Lifting Products), Roger Bruton (Lead Auditor, LyondellBasell), John Buchanan (HSE, Shell Deer Park)

Founded in 1984, Bishop Lifting Products, Inc. (BLP) is a leading fabricator and distributor of products, services, and lifting solutions for crane, rigging, and oilfield applications. Our 180+ dedicated employees throughout Texas, Louisiana, Wyoming and Oklahoma supply wire rope, slings, rigging hardware, lifting devices, hoists and winches to customers with lifting, oilfield, towing, and hauling applications.

wire & Tube Southeast Asia 2011 attract strong industry support

Five months before the start of wire Southeast ASIA 2011 - 3rd Wire & Cable Trade Fair for Southeast Asia and Tube Southeast ASIA 2011 - 3rd International Tube & Pipe Trade Fair for Southeast Asia, exhibitors from more than 20 countries have confirmed their participation and the organizers expected more than 300 exhibitors from 30 countries to take part. Country group exhibits from Austria, China, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Taiwan and the U.S. will increase the international participation.

Adding to the global reach of this regional event, wire Southeast ASIA/ Tube Southeast ASIA 2011 also enjoys strong support from renowned industry organizations such as the International Tube Association (ITA). “The ITA is delighted to be the main international sponsor of Tube Southeast ASIA, having been a strong supporter of its predecessor Tube Singapore since the very first staging,” stated ITA President Dr. Gunther Voswinckel. “Bangkok is a very important hub for the region’s key markets and this exhibition provides an excellent platform for suppliers in the tube and pipe industry to establish a presence in Southeast Asia. Because of Bangkok’s location in the center of this part of the world and its accessibility, visitors to the exhibition are at-

tracted from other regions like India, the Middle East and Africa, as well as Australasia.” While Dr. Voswinckel is aware that the previous Tube Southeast ASIA event in 2009 was affected by the tail end of the global recession, the 2011 exhibition is scheduled at a very opportune time for the industry: extremely positive economic forecasts are coming from Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand, with growth rates in the 5 - 7% range stimulated by major infrastructure projects. wire Southeast ASIA 2011 is supported by the Italian Wire Machinery Manufacturers Association (ACIMAF). “This exhibition continues to play a great part with its outstanding quality and quantity of visitors. Moreover, Thailand is one of the most important industrial countries in Asia with a wide range of companies actively dealing in the wire and cable industries,” explained Ferrucchio Bellina, president of ACIMAF. Another key supporter is the International Wire & Machinery Association (IWMA). IWMA Chairman Colin Dawson commented: “The IWMA is a long term industry partner and sponsor of the wire Southeast ASIA exhibition since its very edition. This support started with wire Singapore before it was re-located to Bangkok in 2007 and re-named wire Southeast ASIA. The new location and title received the full support of the IWMA and its members for very good reasons. There is no doubt that despite encountering difficulties from time to time, be it unexpected natural events, political situations or health-related concerns, a number of the economies of the Southeast Asia region are firmly on course to develop strongly through the decade, especially Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.

These economies are predicted to grow from between 5 to 7% this year, driven to a large extent by major infrastructure projects and strong domestic demand.” Colin Dawson is confident that wire Southeast ASIA 2011 is staged very timely and will provide the wire and cable industry with an excellent forum to benefit from the opportunities in the economies of this region.

Heinz Rockenhäuser, president of the International Wire and Cable Exhibitors Association (IWCEA), noted that in contrast to the economic situation in October 2009, the wire and cable industry has been experiencing an upturn since autumn 2010: “Southeast Asia benefits especially also from its neighbors, growth engine China and highly continued on next page

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

49

vestment destination, Malaysia is promoting several logistics infrastructure projects that will increase demand for wire and tube solutions.

With these high levels of investment in ASEAN economies and the strong industry support, wire Southeast ASIA/ Tube Southeast ASIA 2011 will again be a must attend event for all industry professionals in the region. wire Southeast ASIA/Tube Southeast ASIA 2011 is sponsored by: International Wire & Machinery Association (IWMA); Italian Wire Machinery Manufacturers Association (ACIMAF); International Wire & Cable Exhibitors Association (IWCEA); Austrian Wire and Cable Machinery Manufacturers Association (VÖDKMAWCMA); International Wire and Cable Exhibitors Association - France (IWCEA-France); German Wire and Cable Machine Manufacturers Association (VDKM); Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA); International Tube Association (ITA). wire Southeast ASIA/Tube Southeast ASIA 2011 is supported by: Tube Düsseldorf; wire Düsseldorf; Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau; Hong Kong Fastener and Screw Council (HKFSC); Japan Spring Manufac-

development. continued from previous page industrialized Japan. All participants With their strong economic fundain the Bangkok exhibition, i.e. the wire mentals and wide-ranging investment and cable industry together with their plans, Thailand’s fellow ASEAN nasuppliers showcasing in the trade fair, tions Indonesia and Malaysia further will explore the latest developments, reinforce the significance of wire Southbeyond their own growing demands. east ASIA / Tube Southeast ASIA 2011.

The disaster in Japan will result in the • Indonesia has experienced an exaccelerated development of renewable tended period of political stability and energies worldwide with new business the outlook remains positive for conprospects for the wire and cable indus- tinued investment in infrastructure, try following from that.” petroleum, petrochemicals and mining.

As noted by key supporting organiza- GDP growth is also forecast to remain tions, wire and Tube Southeast ASIA’s strong in coming years, exceeding 6% host country Thailand and neighbor annually.

Vietnam are major users of wire and • The Indonesian automotive industube solutions. Thailand has a well try has recovered strongly and doubledeveloped industrial infrastructure digit growth is forecast for the next with large automotive, electrical/elec- four years, with industry estimates tronic, petroleum and petrochemical pointing to a doubling of production beindustries boosting demand. As income tween 2010 and 2015. The country is levels rise in the country, high levels transforming into a global manufacturof infrastructure spending will also be ing base for PVs. essential. The need to develop infra• Indonesia will require an estimated structure in Vietnam, meanwhile, is US $150 billion of infrastructure inbecoming increasingly pressing as the vestment over the next five years. http://designm.ag/resources/adobe-illustrator-brushes/ country emerges as a production base • Malaysia and other ASEAN econointegrated with the global economy. mies are benefiting from a renewed emVietnam’s Ministry of Planning and In- phasis on FDI in the Southeast Asian vestment estimates that between now region, partly to counter higher labor and 2020, Vietnam will require some costs and reduced incentives in China.

US $150-160 billion for infrastructure • To consolidate its position as an in-

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turers Association (JSMA); Malaysian Iron & Steel Industry Federation (MISIF); Steel Wire Association Malaysia (SWAM); Philippine Metalcasting Association, Inc. (PMAI); Iron And Steel Association of Thailand (ISIT); Technology Promotion Association (Thailand-Japan).

For further information on visiting or exhibiting at wire Southeast ASIA/Tube Southeast ASIA 2011, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601.

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SC&R Foundation awards $24,000 for six scholarships and four grants

The SC&R Foundation recently awarded $3,000 scholarships for 20112012 to six students preparing for careers related to transportation or construction management. Additionally, the Foundation awarded four $1,500 grants for the pursuit of technical degrees or certificates.

The scholarships and grants were announced during the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. Since 1986, the SC&R Foundation has awarded over $275,000 in scholarships.

In alphabetical order, this year’s $3,000 scholarship recipients are Jeff Boudreaux, Mitchell Nettinga, Taakena Ross-Gober, Robert Vodicka, Christopher Zabrosky and Daniel Zartman.

Jeff Ryan Boudreaux attends Lousiana Tech University, Monroe, LA, where he maintains a 4.0 GPA while pursuing a double major in Chemical Engineering and Business Administration. He plans to graduate in May 2014. His stepfather, Edward Brown, is an Information Technology Manager at Turner Industries, Baton Rouge, LA. Mitchell Curtis Nettinga, a repeat winner, attends Dordt College, Sioux Center, Iowa, where he maintains a 3.938 GPA as an Engineering major.

He plans to graduate in May 2014. His Mother, Marlys Nettinga, is a Secretary at Berghorst & Son, Inc., Hull, IA. Taakena K. Ross-Gober, a repeat winner,works at NBIS, Atlanta, GA, as an Underwriter Assistant while pursuing an Associate’s degree in Marketing Management at Chattahoochee Technical College, Marietta, GA. After

completing her degree, she plans to transfer to Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta to pursue a degree in Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

Robert E. Vodicka, Director of Organizational Development, at Stevenson Crane Service, Chicago, IL, plans to earn his Master’s of Business Administration degree at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University, Chicago, by fall 2012.

He currently maintains a 3.3 GPA in the program. After earning his Bachelor’s degree at Illinois State University, Normal, IL, in 2003, he worked for Grace Masonry, Downers Grove, IL, before joining Stevenson in April 2010.

Christopher Anthony Zabrosky works as a drafter in the Virginia branch of Bigge Crane and Rigging, San Leandro, CA, while attending Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, and maintaining a 3.82 GPA as a Civil Engineering Technology major. He plans to graduate in December 2013.

Daniel Webster Zartman attends Pennsylvania State University, State College PA, where he maintains a 3.8 GPA as an Architectural Engineering major. He plans to graduate in May 2012. His father, David Zartman, is

President of Zartman Construction, Inc., Northumberland, PA In alphabetical order, this year’s $1,500 grant recipients are David Lalonde, Phillip Salazar, Nicholas Sucky and Joshua Thompson.

David Luke Lalonde, a graduating senior at St. Michael the Archangel High School, Baton Rouge, LA, plans to complete training in Heavy Equipment/Diesel Repairat Nashville Auto Diesel College, Nashville, TN, by August 2012. His mother, Teresa Lalonde, is Regional Credit Manager for H&E Equipment Services, Inc., Baton Rouge.

Phillip Felipe Salazar III, a graduating senior at Richard King High School, Corpus Christi, Texas, plans to use his grant for Welding School at the Craft Training Center of the Coastal Bend, Corpus Christi. His uncle, Christopher A. Calderon, is a Crane and Rigging Inspector at Bay Ltd., Corpus Christi.

Nicholas David Sucky plans to complete an Associate’s of Applied Science degree in Auto Mechanics at Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park, MN,

by May 2012. His father, David Sucky, is a Driver/Boom Operator for LeFebvre Companies, Inc., Elk River, MN. Joshua Allen Thompson works at continued on next page

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51

continued from previous page Allstates Rigging, Inc., Manitowoc, WI, performing a variety of duties, including shop maintenance and loading/ unloading equipment. He plans to use his grant to complete general required courses for an Associate’s degree through the University of Wisconsin in Manitowoc before entering the University of Wisconsin in Whitewater to pursue of a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management/Accounting. His father, Jonathan Thompson, is Vice President of Allstates Rigging, Inc.

52

Fagioli and Barnhart Crane & Rigging win SC&RA Rigging Job of the Year Awards

The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) has announced the winners of the Rigging Job of the Year Awards. The awards went to Fagioli, Manvel, Texas, in the Jobs over $750,000 category and Barnhart Crane & Rigging, Memphis, Tenn. for both the Jobs between $150,000 and $750,000 category and the Jobs under $150,000 category.

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

Over $750,000: Fagioli removed and replaced 720,000 pound stators in nuclear plant The Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant, located in Veracruz, Mexico, is the country’s largest electric power generating nuclear plant, producing about 4.5 percent of the nation’s electrical energy. To increase the capacity of the plant by 20 percent, two stators needed to be replaced.

Fagioli was awarded the contract to remove and replace the stators. The job involved many challenges, including the heavy weight of the stators (720,000 pounds each); the restricted working area; the insufficient capacity of the existing overhead crane; and the unavailability of time for a “dry run” to test the fitting of the system. Additionally, working in a nuclear plant had its own issues, including the health and safety of the crew.

Fagioli’s engineering division came up with an innovative, interesting and successful solution to complete the operation without the need for civil interventions within the operative plant.

Engineering preparations started a year and-a-half before the job began.

Due to the insufficient capacity of the hook on the overhead crane, Fagioli designed a lifting system consisting of two L300 strand jacks, which was conceived to fit between the existing beams of the overhead crane. After being awarded the job in August 2009, Fagioli required several months of intensive work to complete the design.

The final approval was given in December 2009, leaving only two months to fabricate, test and ship the system to the jobsite. Fabrication was done in Houston with Fagioli engineers monitoring the quality and testing the components before delivery in mid-February 2010.

The lifting system itself weighed almost 133,000 pounds and was built with high grade steel to keep the weight within the limit indicated by the overhead crane manufacturer.

The system consisted of a swivel connected to the anchors of the strand jacks. The 2 by 300-ton strand jacks were positioned on the jack support beam, while the jack support beam sat on each end on a “u” shaped structure.

The 882,000-pound capacity swivel (able to rotate the stator), rollers and girders were supported by the beams of the existing overhead crane. The structure was suspended from the traverse top beams, and at both ends the roller beams sat on the overhead crane girders, precisely on the trolley tracks.

When the installation work of the system started inside the building, 24hour continuous operations were necessary due to the 45-day window allotted.

Accessing and exiting an active nuclear plant is neither easy nor quick, and required an organized shift schedule. Safety was a priority: Crews worked at heights with temperatures reaching 105 degrees in a radioactive environment.

Every effort was made to maintain exposure to radiation far below the dose limits as practical. This included wearing protective clothing, continuously monitoring radiation absorption of each person, having back-up crews and shifting personnel.

All operations for the removal of each generator, including installation and removal of the lifting system on and from the overhead crane, were to take place within the timeframe of 84 hours.

The same timeframe was allotted for the installation of the new generators.

With the limitation of 12 feet per hour on the 200 foot translation of the overhead crane between the equipment hatch and the generator foundation, the time left to install and remove the system, lift the generator 15 meters, rotate it 90 degrees and lower it 5 meters

was minimal. Fagioli accomplished the task a day ahead of schedule without accidents. $150,000-$750,000: Barnhart erects 11 prefabricated coffer dam sections for San Diego Water Authority The San Vicente Dam, owned by the San Diego Water Authority, is being raised approximately 100 feet to provide more water to the San Diego region.

Phase I of the project was to prepare the dam for the concrete work, which involved the widening and raising of the dam structure. A Coffer Dam was needed so that a new discharge tunnel could be drilled through the dam structure.

The scope of work for Barnhart was to erect 11 prefabricated Coffer Dam sections into one 420,000 pound final Coffer Dam, lower the final Coffer Dam into the water and onto the dam wall at approximately a 6 degree angle, and to hold the load in a stationary position to allow divers to secure the Coffer Dam to the face of the dam, which was estimated to take five to 10 days.

The first rigging option was to locate a large crane on the dry side of the dam. This option wasn’t feasible due to the lack of space for the crane and the size and capacity of the crane re-

quired. There were also safety concerns regarding suspending the load from the crane for such a long time.

The second option was to locate a large crane on a barge on the water side of the dam. The amount of barges needed to support a heavy lift crane made the barge crane idea unfeasible.

There was no roll-on facility on the reservoir and the completed Coffer Dam would then have to be held for five to 10 days by a floating barge crane for securing by the divers. Again that would have been a huge safety concern.

Barnhart chose to develop the lifting system on top of the dam. Still, there were challenges to installing such a system. Access was difficult, the work area was tight and the weather was windy and hot.

Barnhart engineered a cantilever system on top of the water dam to perform multiple lifts of Coffer Dam sections using strand jacks. The cantilever system consisted of 60 130-foot strands, two 300- ton strand jacks, three 450-ton strand jacks and five floating anchors.

A total of six Coffer Dam lifts were performed with the largest piece weighing 410,000 pounds. The job was very challenging due to the incline and continued on next page

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53

California. The first vessel weighed 14,310 pounds and measured 4 feet 6 inches in diameter and was 16 feet long. The second vessel weighed 29,349 pounds and was 8 feet in diameter and 20 feet long.

The challenge was removing the two horizontal vessels from the existing structure without removing a substantial portion of the structure. There was also very limited access to the worksite, and work had to be done over and around active process piping and equipment. The engineering team ruled out two conventional methods: using a crane to remove the vessels through the roof of the building or using two cranes to insert the vessels into the building.

The solution was a tri-block and cantilever beam system in which counterweights were used to counter balance the payload to allow the lifted item to be lifted under an overhead obstruction. The auxiliary load line was then operated to adjust the pick point and set the load in final position.

The client was initially concerned with this plan because it was an entirely new concept for the plant. Additionally, the plan required lifting and transferring of the vessels over “hot” lines and other operating equipment. To alleviate this concern, a test lift was performed for the refinery personnel to demonstrate this new approach. After formulating a complete engineering package that included a Critical Lift Plan, Certificates of Conformance for all rigging equipment certified and stamped by California P.E., Barnhart was given the green light.

Before work started, a comprehensive safety plan was developed to meet the client’s stringent safety procedures and Barnhart’s corporate safety standards. Crews underwent Los Angeles Refinery Safety Operation training. Task safety meetings, including Job Hazard Analysis (JHA), were conducted by the Barnhart construction manager, with responsibilities assigned before each stage of theHeaters planned work.

Due to working elevations exceedcontinued from previous page to spreadatthe load. Movement in system determine how to spread the load to the Replaces Feedwater ing 6 feet, there was inside 100 percent tie off for crew the fact that jobs were going on within the vicinity the building was members. facilitated Coal-fired Power Plant launch padmultiple foundation.

However, was carefully defined, started and with a ofNASA Barnhart’s equipment andthe work area. Barnhart’s successthrough the use ofand air-casters Barnhart was calledThe uponprocess to extract was uncertain about amount the staging/assembly of equipment, lifting and removal ful cantilever system came from the company’s tool box and two old feedwater heaters and replace light-slide system. Barnhart President of load the foundation could withstand. existing vessels, placement of existing vessels involved many innovations including a synchronized Barnhart characterized theonto plan them at a strand coal-firedof power plant in Alan Still another challenge was deciding a transporter, transport lay downbut area, transport of jack elimination of counterweights withCity, an anchor as lesstoexpensive more tedious than Iowa. Weighing approxihowsystem, to erect the lifting structure Sioux pre-loaded new vessels to the work site and lifting and design, rocker design and installation, the use of an erection beneath the launch structure, which mately 80 tons each, the new feedwater alternative plans. Through its innovathe newin vessels place. Barnhart completed the sequence/straddle bargethe andlaunch the tilting Coffer Dam tive in strategy, heaters were 40to feet setting long and 6 feet also can rotate around pad. of the Engineering included crane drawings the slope of the dam face. sc o pe o f layout it s w or k i n t hthat that needed This would mean that the lifting towers diameter. The old heaters r ee were d ays , by the client’s civil engineer.

It wasplanned determined The cantilever system requiredone justatfive to truckloads of rigbe extracted from reviewed the building were would require two elevations, reducing the originally plant thatshorter. foundations have totime be installed in the existging equipment.

Barnhart project and slightly heavier Thewould 124 feet and one at 103 feet –supplied a 21 footengineering, evacuation by 75 percent. ing roadway supportUnder the outriggers on the crane, which management, risk management, superintendent strand heatersand were originally placed intothe difference between jacking points. $150,000: PSC Crane and was a Grove when Model GMK 6350 supplied

by Installation Maxim Crane.of jack technicians.

The customer lift crane, craft building during its construction, Barnhart used Modular Lift supplied Towers the Rigging’s Move and Safety for wasseveral built intoa the lift Generator plan process; the crane selabor, barges and water for the test lifts. the roof was off; however, and hydraulic jacks to bags lift and secure Diesel Package lected operated at 71 percent of capacity.

The layBarnhart’s safety program included highly trained crews the structure while innovatively taking reasons, the roof could not be opened up Last winter, PSC Cranecrane & Rigging plan of how to assemble thecomplex crane (with QUAL of cards), daily safety communications the replacement. out included a detailed advantage the launch pad’smeetings, rota- for successfully completed a very space waswith veryoff-loading tight. plans, meetings, PPE and fall protection, T h e can u sonsite t o m e r ’ sand o r ithe g i nrelated tional pre-lift ability for positioning purposes. job that began a l p l aequipment n riggingsince The crane Tri-Block Cantilever Beam an Assembly was riskAlready manager and a test lift. the maze of required a high-capacity concerned about and transferring 8 megawatt that and staged and assembled in a blocked off road parallel to Barnhart created a plan of how to work with heavy equipduct work, piping and steel, Barnhart would have driven up the cost of the Wartsila generator from a rail car the onto structure housing thea vessels. prior totrailer. the lifts, crews ment sitehad to move and transport the equipment.

Schedcrewsonalso to worry about high nine-lineJust Goldhofer PSC then job. Barnhart proposed a less expensive checked equipment and reviewed communication pro- – uling lifts and communication surrounding windsoverhead and lightning prevalent in the with the 332,000 pound generator alternative that used its all 800 ton hauled The lift director flagged the crane during the contractors imperative in order for allcapacity parties Demag involvedTC tocols. spring. On was several occasions, the job which measured 44 feet long, 10entire feet 10 3000 lattice boom process. All operators had QUAL each lift – to maximize a day’s of work. end, crane. the jobBoth was thelift was shut down at worth the first inches wide andcards.

14 feetBefore 2 inches high extraction of the sightIn ofthetruck the crews reviewed plan/shutdown completed in 30 days involved with no issues or violations. a mile to the Indian Powersequences Plant near old heaters and the installation of the contingency lightning safely because nobody with the client’s operators in case something catastrophic Barnhart with the such customer Rensselaer, Ohio. newother ones contracrequired movement along a wanted tocollaborated take chances with an and happened. tors on safety, sequence and apparatus. efficiency.

The existing opening in the buildcircuitous path through the building to expensive, highly technical The first vessel removed replaced in one day and a Under $150,000: Barnhart Crane & Rigging replaces brickand façade, which measured and from a hole in an exterior wallwasing’s After successfully completing the theabove second vessel removed replaced one day. two huge vesselsand in refinery moreand than 10 feetinwide, had The to be grade.waslittle project, Barnhart NASA concluded more than 100 feet project finished two days ahead of schedule withoutcould any Barnhart Crane & weighed Rigging about was contracted to provide enlarged before the generator were as tight as 2was inches. the launch structure 5 Clearances accidents. The use the Barnhart Cantilever engineering, labor,ofequipment and supervision to remove through.Tri-block PSC usedand a 500 ton J&R To adjust to inconsistencies in of pass million pounds, which Barnhart introduced the refinery to one of Barnhart’s two vessels from an existing replace with Beam Lift-NLock gantry system equipped flooring throughout theSystem building, lifted about 2.5 million pounds. structure and new vessels during a refinery turnaround with a 400 ton J&R Power Rotator to Ba rnin h aSouthern r t e n gi n e especialized r s d ev e l origging pe d a methods. $150,000-$750,000: Barnhart

DCS 6 t 6-0 repea

54 Wire Rope News & Sling Technology Wire Rope News & Sling Technology August 2006June 2011

My-te g 49 -06 p 2 t a e rep

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SC&R Foundation announces new officers

During the SC&RA Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA, the SC&R Foundation announced its officers for 2011-2013: President: Earl Johnson, Southern Industrial Constructor, Inc./Southern Crane, Raleigh, NC. Vice President: Robert Moore, NBIS, Atlanta, GA. Treasurer: George Young, George Young Group, Swedesboro, NJ. Also set were the Foundation Committee Chairpersons: Development/Public Relations: Tiea Cowley, Turner Brothers, Longview, TX. Research/Education: Dan Bumby, ECC Lift Systems, Woodland Park, CO. Scholarship: Stephanie Bragg, Bragg Crane Service, Long Beach, CA. The SC&R Foundation is a 501(c) (3) corporation with the mission to advance research and education while furthering other charitable, educational and scientific purposes for the industries served by SC&RA. The Specialized Carriers and Rigging Association (SC&RA) is an international trade association of more than 1,300 members from 46 nations. Members are involved in specialized transporta-

tion, machinery moving and erecting, industrial maintenance, millwrighting and crane and rigging operations.

The story of Grant Carpenter

Follow the World War II experiences of one of the pioneers in the Wire Rope industry, from his activation through his deployment with the Army’s 38th Engineers.

Grant Carpenter got his education in Mechanical Engineering (as well as leadership experience in R.O.T.C.) from Penn State University. With that, he landed a job at the Jones & Laughlin Wire Rope plant (Muncy, PA) and, soon after, began dating the beautiful, smart model he had met in New York City.

Then he got an invitation from Uncle Sam: He was to leave his perfect job and his perfect girl and report for active duty. It was May, 1941.

After months of training, he shipped out with the 38th Engineers for a three-month mission to build a secret airfield/fuel tank farm on Ascension Island, midway between South America and Africa. Once that job was completed, the Engineers were seen as too valuable to the war effort to be sent home. His three-month mission was extended – to well over three years.

His letters home are being posted to the blog as closely as possible to the dates he wrote them – plus seventy years. They give an historic (and often humorous) look at the life of an officer in the Army Corps of Engineers from 1941-1945. http://carpandjudy. blogspot.com/2011/03/first-date.html.

Interwire 2011 recharges industry with new programs and energy.

Attendance rebounds with 19% surge.

The Wire Association International (WAI), Inc.’s 81st Annual Convention and its flagship Interwire trade exposition came to a successful conclusion May 5th after a four-day conference at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, where attendance figures surged beyond the Association’s past two Interwire events. Total registration reached 4,022, up 19% from the 2009 event in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Attendees came from 53 countries.

“Interwire had tremendous support from the wire and cable manufacturing community. More than 750 wire and cable facilities sent representatives—many sent multiple attendees— all with action items to accomplish at continued on next page

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

55

continued from previous page Interwire,” said WAI President Dominique Perroud.

Convention highlights Three new theme days set the tone for the week, providing an organizational format into which a robust offering of nearly 100 technical and operational presentations were assembled.

Themes were metals and materials; manufacturing best practices; and green initiatives.

On Monday, May 2, WAI bestowed its highest honors on Dr. Kazunari Yoshida, Tokai University, Japan, and Thomas E. Moran, National Standard Co., winners of WAI’s Mordica Memorial Award and Donnellan Memorial Award, respectively. Also Monday, Southwire hosted a tour of two of its Carrollton facilities; and Tuesday evening more than 1,100 participants networked at WAI’s annual opening reception.

The first-time Global Continuous Casting Forum for copper practitioners, which ran concurrently with Interwire, exceeded planning estimates and reached full capacity at 205 participants from 25 countries. The program featured 34 industry-leading presenters. “The presenters, panel members, moderators, and keynote speaker rep-

resent the best of the best within our industry. Manufacturers, OEMs, and suppliers all networked and were supported by great exhibits on the floor.

This truly was the most comprehensive program of its kind ever developed,” said Gary Spence, VP Nonferrous Metals, Encore Wire.

Keynote speaker and astronaut Mike Mullane, encouraged listeners to “Dream Big” at his presentation on Wednesday, May 4, when he also shared experiences from living and working in space.

Exhibition highlights More than 400 companies were represented at the three-day exhibition.

Production solution demonstrations, held through the hall, covered topics ranging from surface treatment technology and roll straightening to FEP foaming technology, wiredrawing lubricants, and wire breaks.

Exhibitors shared optimism as a result of Interwire. “It’s GREAT to be back in Atlanta! Between location, improving business levels, and general optimism, the mood at Interwire was refreshing. Show days can be long— but traffic, developing projects, and positive sentiment made this Interwire productive,” said Dave Ferraro, VP

Sales & Mktg., Carris Reels.

“Interwire 2011 has seen improvements compared to recent years. It gave us an indication of an upward economical trend in North America. The OM Lesmo Group and Lesmo Machinery America, Inc. booths were visited by several customers and new prospects.

In all, we hope that the discussions at Interwire will turn to be real projects very soon,” said Allan Brown, Sales Mgr., Lesmo Machinery America, Inc. Interwire had the support of exclusive sponsors: Southwire and ExxonMobil Chemical; educational sponsors: Sonoco Products; Gem Gravure Co., Inc.; and Dow Wire & Cable Co.; Cyber café sponsors: Chemson Inc. and Sonoco Products; 5K sponsor: LEONI Wire Inc.; Directional sign sponsors: SIKORA International Corp. and Skaltek Inc.; Lanyard sponsor: Carris Reels Inc.; hospitality suite sponsors: C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc.; J.B. Hunt; Southeastern Freight Lines; and Tenold Transportation LP. The American Wire Producers Association (AWPA) reported more than 160 attendees at its 2011 Wire Rod Supply Chain Conference. The 33 sponsoring organizations included AWPA member companies, affiliated associations, and industry press. “Holding this conference alongside WAI’s convention continues to be a formula for success and we are looking forward to 2012 in Dallas, May 21-23,” said Kimberly Korbel, AWPA Executive Director.

Interwire will return to Atlanta, Georgia, USA, April 23-25, 2013.

The Wire Association International, Inc., founded in 1930, is a worldwide technical society for wire and cable industry professionals. WAI is dedicated to the promotion, collection and dissemination of technical, manufacturing and general business information and trends in the industry. It organizes events such as the Interwire and Wire Expo trade shows, technical webinars, and annual International Technical Conferences. Its publications and technical products include Wire Journal International (WJI) and the annual WJI Reference Guide as well as a host of technical handbooks, reports, and DVDs. Contact WAI for details at Tel.: 001-203-453-2777; Fax: 001203-453-8384.

SC&RA elects slate of officers for 2011-2012

During its Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA, the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) elected, 56

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

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David Lowry, Bennett International Group, McDonough, GA as President.

Joining Lowry as officers for the 20112012 term are: Chairman: William Stramer, LinkBelt Construction Equipment Co., Lexington, KY. Vice President: Michael Battaini, Sheedy Drayage, San Francisco, CA. Treasurer: Bill Keen, Keen Transport, New Kingstown, PA. Assistant Treasurer: Ron Montgomery, Intermountain Rigging & Heavy Haul, Salt Lake City, UT. Also joining the Board are four newly elected Group Chairs: Allied Industries Group: Justin Cravens, Ridewell Suspensions, Springfield, MO. Crane & Rigging Group: Steve Freckmann, Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, Milwaukee, WI. Transportation Group: John McTyre, McTyre Trucking,Orlando, FL. Ladies Group: Margie Springer, Southern Industrial Constructors, Raleigh, NC. With the exception of the Board members and the Treasurer, all newly-elected officers will serve one-year terms that will expire at the Association’s 2012 Annual Conference, to be

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held April 17-21 at Hyatt Regency Lost Pines, Austin, TX. Additionally, SC&RA elected the following six new Board members to serve three-year terms: Frank Bardonaro, Terex Cranes, Wilmington, NC. Michael Battaini, Sheedy Drayage, San Francisco, CA. Mike Vlaming, Vlaming & Associates, Vallejo, CA. Geary Buchanan, Buchanan Hauling & Rigging, Fort Wayne, IN. John McTyre, McTyre Trucking, Orlando, FL. Toni Sabia, Transport Systems & Products, Inc., Stamford, CT.

SC&RA announces 21 Crane Operator Safety Awards at Annual Conference

The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) awarded 21 Crane Operator Safety Awards during its 2011 Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. This award was presented to certified crane operators who exhibit exemplary work achievements while accumulating 10,000 consecutive manhours and recording zero accidents or

incidents. Winners represent seven different companies: J.J. Curran Crane Co., Detroit, MI – Norm Bush, Mark DeBoard, Richard McComas, Aaron Oriz and John Ryznar.

Custom Service Crane, Inc., Mahomet, IL – David Berry, Robert “Tex” Gossett, Eric Reeves, Timothy Scott, Jason Starns, Dean Vandenbergh and Rodney Vollmer.

Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, Inc., Milwaukee, WI – Ronald Kading.

Dutcher-Phipps Crane & Rigging Co., Monahans, TX – Thomas Shoemaker.

Mountain Crane Service, Salt Lake City, UT – Rick Hull, Roy Justice, Craig Lever and Mike Rose.

Mr. Crane, Inc., Orange, CA – Mike McDaid.

Tri-State Crane & Rigging, Cedar Rapids, IO – Jeff Gardemann and Rory Kelly.

SC&RA presents 42 Longevity Awards

In recognition and appreciation of loyal membership, the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) presented the following Longevity Awards, ranging from 25 to 55 years, during its 2011 Annual Conference, continued on next page

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

57

continued from previous page April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. 55 Years White Brothers Trucking Co., Wasco, IL. 50 Years Central Contractors Service, Inc., Crestwood, IL. Hake Rigging Company, Lester, PA. KMX International, Hamburg, PA. W.J. Casey Trucking & Rigging Co., Branchburg, NJ. 45 Years Aycock Div. of Enerfab, Hummelstown, PA. Don R. Fruchey, Inc., Fort Wayne, IN. Erickson’s Incroporated, North Muskegon, MI. Hosea Project Movers, LLC, Covington, KY. Southern Industrial Constructors/ Southern Crane, Raleigh, NC. Walbridge Equipment Installation, Aurora, IL. Walker Crane & Rigging Corp., Plainville, CT. 40 Years United Riggers & Erectors, Inc., Walnut, CA. 35 Years Able Machinery Movers, Inc., Grapevine, TX. Emmert International, Clackamas, OR. Hilman Rollers, Marlboro, NJ. International Industrial Contracting Corp., Sterling Heights, MI. 30 Years Bane-Nelson, Inc., Kenosha, WI. Big Boy’s Rigging Service, LLC, Baltimore, MD. J.F. Lomma, Inc., South Kearny, NJ. Norris Brothers Co., Inc., Cleveland, OH.

58

Roadranger-Eaton & Dana Corps., Kalamazoo, MI. Rountree Transport & Rigging, Inc., Jacksonville, FL. Trail King Industies, Inc., Mitchell, SD. Valley Crane & Rigging, Inc., Fishersville, VA. Zartman Industrial Services, Northumberland, PA. 25 Years Allison Crane & Rigging, Williamsport, PA. Chellino Crane Inc., Joliet, IL. Demag Riggers & Crane Service, Williston, VT. Epperson Cranes, Inc., Miami, FL. Fontaine Trailer Company, Jasper, AL. Hi-Ball Company, Inc., Laingsburg, MI. Ideal Crane Rental, Inc., Madison, WI. Interstate Flag Car, Inc., Dellslow, WV. J.V. Rigging, Inc., New Kensington, PA. Orbit Movers and Erectors, Dayton, OH. Rig All, Inc., Frankfort, NY. Rushco Services, Inc., North Oxford, MA. Silk Road Translink, Inc., Arkport, NY. Transport Unlimited, Inc., West Mifflin, PA. Triple-E Machinery Moving, Inc., El Monte, CA. Universal Landsea Transport, Inc., Red Bank, NJ.

SC&RA honors Gordon Thomsen with Golden Achievement Award

Gordon Thomsen was named the 11th recipient of SC&RA’s Gold Achievement Award during closing night ceremonies at the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

(SC&RA) Annual Conference, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. This coveted award, which is not presented every year, goes to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the specialized carrier and rigging industry over a consistent and significant period of time.

In 1973, Thomsen started Western Ag Sales, a small home-based trailer company in Mitchell, SD that evolved into Trail King Industries, an industry leader with more than 500 employees, three manufacturing facilities, and 300 dealer locations across the U.S. and Canada. Today, Trail King offers trailers ranging in load capacities from 6,000 pounds to 1 million pounds, serving a wide variety of applications for markets as diverse as specialized hauling, construction, agriculture, transportation, waste and recycling.

Trail King has been responsible for numerous innovations. Among the most notable of these was the development of what many at the time considered the best hydraulic detachable gooseneck in the industry – a system that made hooking up and unhooking a simple, one-person “60-second connection.”

When presenting the award, SC&RA Chairman Bill Stramer characterized Gordon Thomsen as an innovative pioneer and a consumate salesman, known for saying, “Nothing happens until someone sells something.

“Our winner, while growing his business over the years, served SC&RA and the SC&R Foundation through active participation,” said Stramer. “He has contributed time, sponsorships, energy, passion, humor and, perhaps most importantly, he has influenced and inspired many of us in this room in many positive ways.”

Thomsen and his family remained active in the company after selling it to Carlisle Companies, Inc., in 1995.

The company was purchased by CC Industries, Inc., the holding and management firm of Henry Crown and Company, in 2010. Many long-time Trail King employees continue to work within the company, operating with the same sense of pride and quality commitment that Gordon Thomsen instilled in them years back.

Among the other honors Thomsen has earned over the years are Small Business Person of the Year, Small Business Administration’s Exporter of the Year and South Dakotan of the Year. His son, Jerry, served as SC&RA President in 2005-2006.

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Members are involved in specialized transportation, machinery moving and erecting, industrial maintenance, millwrighting and crane and rigging operations, manufacturing and rental. SC&RA helps members run more efficient and safer businesses by monitoring and affecting pending legislation and regulatory policies at the state and national levels; researching and reporting on safety concerns and best business practices; and providing four yearly forums where these and other relevant member issues can be advanced.

SC&RA presents Transportation Safety Awards

The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) announced the winners of the Fleet Safety,Fleet Safety Improvement and Zero Accident awards during its 2011 Annual Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, CA. The contests are part of SC&RA’s ongoing effort to encourage its motor carrier members to transport, lift and erect oversize/over-

duction in their accident frequency rate weight items safely. & Sling Technology August 2006 forNews miles traveled, compared to their Five SC&RA member companiesWire re- Rope ceived a Fleet Safety Award for having previous year accident frequency rate: Bennett Motor Express, McDonough, GA. the lowest accident frequency rate in Bragg Heavy Transport, Long Beach, CA. different mileage categories: DST Inc., Milwaukee, WI. Over 50 Million Miles – Landstar Kreitz Motor Express, Inc., HamSystems, Inc., Jacksonville, FL. 20 Million to 50 Million Miles – Ben- burg, PA. Landstar Systems, Inc., Jacksonville, FL. nett Motor Express, McDonough, GA. Landstar Ranger Inc, Jacksonville, FL. 5 Million to 20 Million Miles – RiechLeFebvre & Sons, Inc. Elk River, MN. mann Transport, Inc., Granite City, IL. Turner Bros, Oklahoma City, OK. 1.5 Million to 5 Million Miles – George Young Company, Swedesboro, NJ. 100,000 to 1.5 Million Miles – Unigroup Six drivers earn SC&RA Specialty Flatbed, Fort Wayne, IN. Million Miler Award Seven SC&RA member companies Six professional drivers from two received a Zero Accident Award for companies in the specialized carrier inhaving no recordable injuries during dustry received a Million Miler Award all of 2010: for Safety Excellence from the SpeAll Sunshine Crane Rental, Apopka, FL. cialized Carriers & Rigging AssociaBridger Crane & Rigging LLC., Boul- tion (SC&RA) during its 2011 Annual der, WY. Conference, April 12-16, at the Hotel Emmert International, Clackamas, OR. del Coronado, San Diego, CA. These George Young Company, Swedes- drivers each accumulated a minimum boro, NJ. of one million consecutive miles of safe George Young Installations PR, Hu- driving within the industry: macao, Puerto Rico Riechmann Transport, Granite City, Trans American, South Plainfield, NJ. IL. – Floyd Greene, Keith Fore and J. Unigroup Worldwide Specialty Flat- Orlando Vasquez bed, Fort Wayne, IN. AmQuip Crane Rental, Philadelphia, Eight companies earned a Fleet Safe- PA. – Charles Daniels, William Haag ty Improvement Award by showing a re- and Edward Sylvester Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

59

Inventor’s Corner

By William Fischer

Synthetic sling whose component parts have opposing slings Pat. 7,926,859 U.S. class 297/74 Int. class B66C 1/12 Inventor: George Frederick Dennis St. Germain, Chadds Ford, PA. Assignee: Slingmax, Inc., Aston, PA. This patent presents a sling for industrial lifting made of a load-bearing core and a cover. The cover protects the plurality of yarns that make-up the core. Each core yarn is made of a number of core threads twisted together. The core yarns are twisted together where the twist is in the same direction as the individual core strands and a different direction than the twist of the cover. The present invention describes the method of twisting the core yarns together by inserting core yarns substantially parallel into a cover that has a twist opposite of each core strand. As the core strands are inserted into the cover, the twists of the individual core yarns interact with the twist of the cove, resulting in the core yarns twisting together.

Referring to figure 32, a synthetic sling 20, in accordance with the present invention, is comprised primarily of a loadbearing core 1 and an outer cover 2. The cover 2 protects the load-bearing core from abrasion and from environmental conditions (e.g., exposure to acid, exposure to sunlight, or exposure to ultraviolet radiation, etc.). The load-bearing core 1 is comprised of a plurality of core yarns 3. Each core yarn 3 is made of a plurality of threads 4.

Figure 32: Cross-sectional view of a sling.

60

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

Figure 33: Enlarged view of individual core strands having a left-lay (i.e., an “S” twist) and a right-lay (i.e., a “Z” twist).

The cover 2 is made by a machine in a separate process from a plurality of synthetic fibers. The material used for the fibers are chosen for the type of environment the sling will be used in. For example, if the sling will be used in an environment having high temperatures (e.g., an iron smelting plant) the material used for the fibers to make the cover will be different than the materials used for the fibers if the sling will be used in a chemical plant that makes acids. Similarly, a sling that is used on an off-shore oil platform will have a cover made from different fibers that can withstand ultraviolet rays and salt water. However, almost all covers 2 are manufactured with either a right-lay or a left-lay.

The invention discloses a load-bearing core 1 with a specific twist and its relationship/interaction with a cover 2 manufactured from fibers twisted in the opposite direction.

A sling 20 manufactured in accordance with the present invention offers greater strength than a sling with a load-bearing core with no twist. In addition, this invention discloses a method of manufacturing that greatly reduces the time and expense of manufacturing an improved sling. Testing has proved that a sling made in accordance with this invention has significantly more strength from a sling made from conventional methods using the same amount of material; this allows either a stronger sling or a sling of the same strength with less material than conventional slings made with conventional covers. The load-bearing core 1 is encased by the cover 2 which runs the length of the sling. The load-bearing core 1 bears the entire load when the sling is used to lift, move or tow an object. No weight is supported by the cover.

The invention involves the formation of a synthetic sling 20 having a helically-laid load-bearing core 1 and, more specifically, the relationship between individual core yarns 4 and the cover 2 during the manufacturing process of the sling. The present invention also covers the method of forming the sling.

Referring now to figures 33-38, the present invention involves different parts of the sling, each having a twist. First,

a single core yarn 3 can be made from individual threads 4 having a left-lay (“S” twist) 5 or right-lay (“Z” twist) 6. The best mode of the invention has an individual core yarn with a S twist. Second, the fibers used to weave the cover can have three possible configurations, a S twist, a Z twist, or no twist.

The important feature of this invention is that the core yarns 3 have the opposite lay when compared to the fibers used to weave the cover 2. The interaction of the core yarns 3 with the inner side of the cover 2 during the manufacturing process causes the resulting load-bearing core 1 to form in a helically-laid bundle. The lay of the load-bearing core depends on the lay of the core yarns 3 and the lay of the fibers of the cover 2. The interaction between the various surfaces is especially acute when using the machine disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/981,110, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,568,333. In a preferred embodiment, the core yarns 3 have an S twist and the fibers in the cover 2 have a Z twist; this configuration results in a sling with a load-bearing core hav-

Figure 34: Illustrates a right regular lay.

Figure 35: Illustrates a left regular lay.

Figure 36: Illustrates a right lang lay.

Figure 37: Illustrates a left lang lay.

Figure 38: Illustrates a right alternate lay.

ing a S twist. In another embodiment of this invention, the core yarns 3 have a Z twist and the fibers in the cover 2 have a S twist; this configuration results in a sling with a loadbearing core having an Z twist.

When the plurality of core yarns 3 having a specific lay are pulled through the cover 2 having the opposing lay, the friction of the core yarns moving past the cover results in the core yarns twisting about each other during the formation of the load-bearing core. The loops of core yarns form a heli-

cally-laid load-bearing core. The resulting synthetic sling is capable of bearing more weight than other slings that do not have twisted load-bearing core yarns.

Accordingly, a synthetic sling made according to the subject disclosure with the same amount of core yarns will be stronger than a sling that does not use twisted core yarns.

Alternatively, a sling made according to the subject disclosure can be made from less material to produce a sling with the same load-bearing rating as a sling that does not have helically-twisted core yarns.

It is known in the art of wire-rope slings to twist the metal wires together. Various methods exist to force the wire’s strands to twist together which include using a spinning wheel with holes where the individual wire stands are fed through. However, it has been shown that a similar method does not work with synthetic yarns because the synthetic yarns do not have the rigidity of the wire strands. Previous to this invention, there was no way to twist the synthetic core yarns together without special machinery and substantial input of time. As set forth in a publication printed by the Wire Rope Technical Board—Wire Rope Users Manual, Fourth Edition, page 9, wire rope is identified not only by its component parts, but also by its construction, i.e., by the way the wires have been laid to form strands, and by the way the strands have been laid around the core.

Looking at figures 34-38, the first two illustrations 34 and 35 show regularly lay ropes. Following these are the types known as lang lay ropes (36 and 37). Note that the wires in regular lay ropes appear to line up with the axis of the rope; in lang lay ropes the wires form an angle with the axis of the rope. This difference in appearance is a result of variations in manufacturing techniques: regular lay ropes are made so that the direction of the wire lay in the strand is opposite to the direction of the strand lay in the rope; lang lay ropes are made with both strand lay and rope lay in the same direction. Finally figure 38 is called “alternate lay” consisting of alternating right and left lay strands. Preliminary testing has shown that there is no significant difference when manufacturing the core strands using a right regular lay versus a right lang lay. As stated previously, the important factor is that the lay of the core yarns be in opposition to the lay of the fibers in the cover.

Referring again to figure 38, the non-metal equivalent is to have load-bearing core’s strands twisted together in an S twist 12 alternating with immediately adjacent individual core strands having a Z twist 13. By using the alternate lay configuration for the core strands, it has the benefit of allowing the core strands 3 to interact with a cover that has either an S twist or a Z twist. This is an important feature since cover manufacturers are not aware of the effect the particular lay of the cover fibers can have on the manufacturing of a sling. Accordingly, a sling manufacturer can buy covers from any manufacturer and ensure that the load-bearing core will result in a helically-laid bundle regardless of the lay of the fibers used to make the cover.

Spreader frame for cargo container Pat. 7,905,528 U.S. class 294/81.53 Int. class B66C 1/66 Inventor: Eric P. Marcel, Mamou, LA. Assignee: Eric P. Marcel, Mamou, LA. This patent presents a spreader frame for hoisting a container having a lifting block, which includes a rigid frame structure, a twist lock received by the rigid frame structure, the twist lock being rotated relative to the rigid frame structure between a locked position to engage the lifting block continued on next page Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

61

continued from previous page and an unlocked position to disengage from the lifting block.

It also includes a safety feature which cooperates with at least one of the rigid frame structures and the twist lock in the locked position which keeps it from being rotated relative to the rigid frame structure absent personnel changing a position of the safety feature.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a spreader frame 100 according to an embodiment. Spreader frame 100 is adapted to support a container 500. In the specific embodiment illustrated, container 500 is an ISO container. In other embodiments, container 500 can be of different design. Container

Figure 2: Perspective view of the spreader frame of figure 1, showing the spreader frame and a cargo container attached.

Figure 1: Perspective view of a spreader frame.

500 is a box structure formed by cooperation of four longitudinal walls 504 and spaced end walls 508. One or both of the end walls 508 can include a door (not shown) providing access to interior space (not shown) of container 500. Container 500 includes a hollow lifting block 510 on each corner 512 for securing the container 500 to compatible equipment.

The lifting block 510 has a central cavity. The lifting block 510 also has a generally rectangular opening which permits access to the central cavity.

Spreader frame 100 is adapted to be attached to container 500 for hoisting the container 500. In the specific embodiment shown in figure 1, spreader frame 100 is suspended above container 500 prior to being attached thereto. Container 500 initially rests upon and is supported by support surface 600. In the specific embodiment illustrated, support surface 600 is a deck 610 of a supply ship engaged in supplying an off-shore oil platform. In other embodiments, the support surface 600 can be any suitable terminal facility floor or deck, or a carrier such as a railcar or trailer.

Spreader frame 100 is adapted to be hoisted and moved by hoist equipment 104. As used herein, “hoisted” means raised or lowered using hoist equipment. It is to be understood that any suitable hoist equipment 104 can be used with spreader frame 100. For example, hoist equipment 104 can include a hoist, crane, lifting equipment having a hoist or lift cable, overhead crane, overhead hoist, hoist supported on an overhead trolley, hoist supported on a rail or boom, single point lift, or any suitable equipment having a hoist cable.

Hoist equipment 104 is operable for hoisting and moving the 62

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

spreader frame 100 having container 500 attached thereto, as shown in figure 2. In the specific embodiment illustrated, hoist equipment 104 includes a hoist cable 105 having a hook 106 at a terminal end thereof. It is to be understood that hook 106 can include any suitable terminal fitting adapted for use with hoist equipment 104. For example, hook 106 can include a clasp and pin combination, a D-ring fitting, or a terminal loop of hoist cable 105. Hoist equipment 104 includes a hoist drum (not shown) operable for reeling and unreeling the hoist cable 105 to raise and lower hook 106 in the vertical direction.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the spreader frame 100 of figure 1. Figure 2 shows the spreader frame 100 attached to and supporting container 500. Container 500 thus is hoisted above support surface 600. Spreader frame 100 includes a rigid frame structure 142. Rigid frame structure 142 has suitable mechanical strength to support with an adequate safety factor the container 500 when fully loaded. As used herein, “fully loaded” means that the container is loaded to maximum gross capacity. It is to be understood that the

Figure 3: Bottom plan view of the spreader frame.

rigid frame structure 142 can be constructed in any manner suitable to provide mechanical strength adequate to support the container 500 when fully loaded.

In the specific embodiment illustrated, the rigid frame structure 142 includes a pair of parallel elongated longitudinal frame members 146. The rigid frame structure 142 includes a spaced pair of parallel end members 148 joining the pair of longitudinal frame members 146 at opposite ends thereof. Each end member 148 extends between the pair of longitudinal frame members 146 in perpendicular relation thereto. The end members 148 and longitudinal frame members 146 thus cooperate to define a generally rectan-

gular outer perimeter having four corners 162 disposed respectively in two opposite pairs. Intermediate the pair of end members 148 and parallel thereto, the rigid frame structure 142 includes a plurality of generally equidistant, spaced, parallel cross-members 150 joining the pair of longitudinal frame members 146. The cross-members 150 extend between the pair of longitudinal frame members 146 in perpendicular relation thereto.

In the specific embodiment illustrated, the rigid frame structure 142 includes six cross-members 150. The crossmembers 150 are joined to the longitudinal frame members 146 in a suitable manner. In the specific embodiment illustrated, intermediate the ends 148 four of the cross-members 150 each abut the longitudinal frame members 146 and are joined thereto at respective welded `T� joints 152. In the illustrated embodiment, two of the cross-members 150 are joined at respective corners 162 to the ends 148 of the longitudinal frame members 146 by welded joints and respective braces or gussets 164 (see FIG. 4). Gussets 164 form an overlapping layer which overlaps adjacent portions of the longitudinal frame members 146 and cross-members 150.

According to the disclosure, the cross-members 150 and ends 148 of longitudinal frame members 146 are joined at corners 162 in any suitable manner. Longitudinal frame members 146 and cross-members 150 are formed of any suitable rigid material having adequate mechanical strength. In the specific embodiment illustrated, the longitudinal frame members 146 and cross-members 150 are formed of carbon steel having a rectangular cross-sectional profile.

Spreader frame 100 is attached to the hook 106 of hoist equipment 104 by a set of wire rope slings 107. Each wire rope sling 107 has an end attached to the hook 106 and an opposite end attached to a respective eye 165 on the rigid frame structure 142. The hoist 104 is operated to lift the hook 106 and thus raise the spreader frame 100 having container 500 attached thereto.

Container lifter being able to lift two 40 feet containers Pat. 7,918,354 U.S. class 212/323 Int. class B66C 1/10 Inventor: Jiango Shan, Shanghai, CN. Assignee: Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery Co., Ltd., Shanghai, CN. The invention is a container lifter which is able to lift two 40 foot containers at a time. It includes two sets of the crane main lifting mechanisms with the wire rope winding systems being separate. Pulleys arranged at the crane upper frame cooperate with two lifting pulley groups arranged on the carrier. The first crane lifting mechanism and the second crane lifting mechanism are equipped with a barrel, a crane

Figure 4: Schematic view used to show the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon of the crane having two hoisting devices, being able to hoist two 40 feet containers at a time.

Figure 5: Illustrates two sets of the hoisting mechanisms of the hoisting devices in the machine room.

lifting mechanism motor, a brake and a crane lifting reduction gear box respectively. The two sets of the crane lifting mechanisms are synchronously operated. By using the container lifter of the invention, the efficiency of the load and unload is increased, high repayment is obtained with less increasing the equipment cost, the larger beneficial result is occurred, also it has the wider applicable prospect.

Reference to figures 4 to 7, an embodiment of the container

Figure 6: Side view of the arrangement of the hoisting pulleys and the head block pulleys.

crane of the present invention being able to hoist two 40 feet containers at a time is equipped with two separate hoisting devices, a first hoisting device 1 and a second hoisting device 2. Each of the hoisting devices has its own hoisting mechanisms, and a wire rope winding system for simultaneously operating the two hoisting mechanisms is also provided, the first hoisting device 1 and the second hoisting device 2 is connected by a connection cylinder. Head block pulleys are arranged on the head blocks of the hoisting devices and hoisting pulleys are arranged on the trolley, wherein each hoisting device has its own head block pulleys and hoisting pulleys. As shown in figure 6 and figure 7, the first hoisting device 1 uses a first hoisting pulley 5 and a first head block pulley 12, and the second hoisting device 2 uses a second hoisting pulley 6 and as second head block pulley 13. The position of the first head block is denoted by the reference numeral 3 and the position of the second head block is denoted by the reference numeral 4 in figure 6.

As shown in figure 5, the first hoisting mechanism 7 of the first hoisting device 1 and the second hoisting mechanism 8 of the second hoisting device 2 are equipped with a winding barrel 71 and a second winding barrel 81, a first hoisting continued on next page Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

63

continued from previous page

Figure 7: Plan view of the arrangement of the hoisting pulleys and the head block pulleys.

mechanism motor 72 and a second hoisting mechanism motor 82, a first brake 73 and a second brake 83, and a first hoisting reduction gear box 74 and a second hoisting reduction gear box 84 respectively. The first hoisting mechanism 7 and the second hoisting mechanism 8 are connected by a wire rope winding system so as to make the first hoisting mechanism 7 and the second hoisting mechanism 8 work simultaneously. A hydraulic station is denoted by the reference numeral 9, the water side and the land side are denoted by the reference numerals 10 and 11 respectively.

The first hoisting mechanisms 7 and the second hoisting mechanism 8 are synchronously operated by electrical synchronization or by mechanical synchronization so that the two sets of reduction gear boxes are combined as one set in order to operate two 40 feet containers. A single 40 feet container of 60 t under the crane is operated or two 20 feet containers of 60 t under the crane are operated when the weight

Figure 8: Schematic perspective of the main lifting wire rope winding system.

of two 40 feet containers exceeds the designed value. The operation of a single 40 feet container of 60 t under the crane or the operation of two 20 feet containers of 60 t under the crane may be achieved by the separate individual use of the two hoisting mechanisms. If a reduction gear box is shared between the two hoisting mechanisms, the output of the reduction gear box and power mechanism is directed only to a set of the winding barrel.

As shown in figure 4, the approach and separation of the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon are achieved by a connection cylinder 15 between the first head 64

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

block of the first hoisting device 1 and the second head block of the second hoisting device 2. The reference numeral 16 shows a shifting cylinder arranged in a direction along the length of the hoisting device in the figure.

The two 20 feet separable spreaders and their head blocks are arranged at the water side and land side respectively, the two separable head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon are connected by two cylinders being arranged parallel, and the joint of the head blocks is connected by sphere gemels so as to achieve the approach and separation of the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon. The centre distance between the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon is 2500 mm when the two hoisting devices are closed, the centre distance is 3700 mm when the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon are separated, thus the range of the gap between the two containers is from 0 to 1200 mm. The shifting of the two head blocks and the spreaders mounted thereon in the direction along the length of the containers is attained by the shifting cylinder 16, the range of the shifting distance is from 0 to 400 mm.

The loading and unloading of two 40 foot containers in any position can be achieved by fast releasing of the connection of the cylinders of the two hoisting-devices, also one of the two 20 feet hoisting devices can be hoisted to its highest position i.e. in the unused position. The loading and unloading of a 40 foot container with 60 t weight or two 20 foot containers with 60 t can be achieved by another hoisting device.

The fixing of containers of the two 40 feet container cranes is performed sequentially, i.e. the fixing and locking of containers by the first hoisting device is performed first, then the fixing and locking of containers by the second hoisting device is performed. After the fixing and locking of the two 40 feet containers is confirmed, the two 40 feet containers are hoisted and operated at the same time. If the gap between two 40 feet containers accidentally exceeds the stretch and contraction range of the cylinder, the fixing of a container by one of the hoisting device is performed first, then the trolley is operated so that the fixing of a container by the second hoisting device can be operated, thus flexibility can be achieved.

If the weight of two 40 feet container exceeds 80 t and the operation of the two 40 feet containers can not be carried out at same time, one of the hoisting devices must be hoisted and fixed to the highest position by the hoisting mechanism, the operation of two 20 feet containers with 60 t weight or a single 40 feet container with 60 t weight may be carried out by the other hoisting device.

As shown in figure 8, a first hoisting wire rope 21 unwinds from the first winding barrel 71 of the first hoisting mechanism 7, turns around a first end pulley 22, winds the first hoisting pulley group 5 on the trolley, reaches and winds the first head block pulley group including at least two first head block pulleys 12 and retraces to the first hoisting pulley group including at least two first hoisting pulleys 5, finally gets one terminal of the main front girder of the crane and connects to a first turning device including two pulleys 23. A second hoisting wire rope 31 unwinds from the second winding barrel 81 of the second hoisting mechanism 8, turns around a second end pulley 32, winds the second hoisting pulley group including at least two second hoisting pulleys 6 on the trolley, reaches and winds the second head block pulley group including at least two second head block pulleys 13 and retraces to the second hoisting pulley group 6 on the trolley, finally gets one terminal of the main front girder of the crane and connects to a second turning device including two pulleys 33.

Method and apparatus for managing wire rope slings Pat. 7,918,414 U.S. class 242/588 Int. class B65H 75/00 Inventor: Edward W. Davis, Madisonville, LA., Thomas A. Leblanc, Maurice, LA., William H. Hidalgo, Patterson, LA. Assignee: Edward W. Davis, Madisonville, LA., Thomas A. Leblanc, Maurice, LA., William H. Hidalgo, Patterson, LA. An apparatus for the storing and management of a plurality of wire rope slings is presented, such slings being those typically comprised of a length of wire rope having at least one end loop. The apparatus has a base frame upon which is rotatably mounted a sling storage bin. The storage bin has a plurality of arm members that extend from the storage bin for engaging and holding an end loop of a selected wire rope sling. Rotation of the storage bin causes the selected wire rope sling to be coiled around said projecting arms within the storage bin. The apparatus may be provided with pad eyes and forklift tine guides to facilitate its transportation.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to figure 9, there is shown an exploded perspective view of sling spool apparatus 10 for managing, storing, and transporting conventional wire rope slings 50. It is contemplated that the wire rope slings 50 would be those comprised of a length of wire rope having a loop 52 at each end as shown though other sling configurations such as those with a loop 52 only at one end of the sling 50 or those with a clevis or hooked end at the ends of the sling 50 rather than a loop might also be utilized with the apparatus 10.

In the embodiment shown in figures 9 and 10, a substantially horizontally orientated sling storage plate 20 is rotatably mounted upon a substantially horizontally orientated base frame 30 to form a bin assembly 21. As can be seen in figures 10-12, the sling storage plate 20 has at least one and preferably two pair of substantially vertically projecting continued on next page

Figure 9: Exploded perspective view of an embodiment of the sling spool system.

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

65

continued from previous page

Figure 12: Elevation view of the embodiment of the sling spool bin.

Figure 10: Perspective view of the embodiment of the sling spool bin depicted in figure 9 with slings in place.

posts or sling retainers 22. Each projecting sling retainer 22 in each pair of retainers 22 is preferably positioned on the sling storage plate 20 at a location substantially opposite from the other projecting retainer 22 in each pair. The projecting sling retainers 22 are positioned and configured to slidably receive and hold the end loops of a typical wire rope sling 50. The sling storage plate 20 may have upwardly extending sidewalls 24 extending around the periphery of the sling storage plate 20 to form a bin area 26 for retaining the stored slings 50.

The sling storage plate 20 may also have a substantially centrally orientated bushing 32 for receiving a vertically extending axle post 34 mounted substantially centrally on the base frame 30 about which sling storage plate rotates.

A bearing assembly 36, such a ball thrust bearing, is positioned between the based frame 30 and the sling storage plate 20 to facilitate such rotation. The sling storage plate 20 may also be further supported on the base frame 30 by a plurality of casters or rollers 28, shown in figures 9, 13 and 14 to further provide means for facilitating the spinning or rotating of the sling storage plate 20 about the axle post 34 on the base frame 30. The sling storage plate may also be provided with lifting eyes 46 for inserting a hook or clevis to provide means for lifting the sling storage plate for its placement onto or off of the base frame 30.

Wire rope slings 50 such as those depicted in figures 9 and 10 are loaded on the sling spool for storage, one sling at a

time, by placing a selected end loop 52 of each sling 50 over a selected sling retainer 22. The sling 50 is then retained or held on the sling retainer by means of the end loop 52 and the retainer 22. To start the loading process, one of the end loops 52 of a first sling 50 is placed over one of the extending sling retainers 22. Then the sling storage plate 20 is rotated as a worker “walks� or wraps the length of wire rope on the sling 50 around the other extending sling retainers 22. The remaining end of the first sling is then positioned on the storage plate 20 within the bin 26 to complete the storage of that sling 50. The next sling 50 to be stored is preferably then be started so that its first end loop 52 is placed over the sling retainer 22 on the opposite side from the sling retainer 22 where the first loop of the previous sling was started with

Figure 13: Plan view of the embodiment of the sling spool base.

Figure 11: Plan view of the embodiment of the sling spool base depicted in figure 9.

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

the above rotating process repeated for this second and any subsequent sling 50. The process is repeated until a desired quantity of slings 50 is placed on the sling spool 10.

Slings 50 are removed from the sling spool 10 one at a time in a manner opposite to that utilized in placing the slings on the sling spool. A loop from the top sling 50 on the sling spool 10 is removed from its corresponding retainer 22 and pulled to rotate the sling storage plate 20 to unwind the sling 50 from around the extending sling retainers 22 on the sling spool 10. The remaining loop of the sling 50 is then removed from its corresponding retainer 22 and the process is repeated until the desired numbers of slings 50 is removed.

Only two workers are typically utilized to place and remove slings 50 from the sling spool 10, one to spin the sling

Figure 14: Cross-section view of the base and bin combination of the sling spool system.

storage plate 20 and one to handle the sling 50. The workers may rotate the jobs as slings 50 are added or removed from the sling spool 10. However, the device may be utilized with only one worker if necessary.

Rotation and extension/retension link mechanism Pat. 7,926,370 U.S. class 74/22R Int. class F16H 21/00 Inventor: Ichiro Kawabuchi, Tokyo, JP., Susumu Tachi, Tsukuba, JP., Naoaki Kawakami, Tottori, JP. Assignee: Ichiro Kawabuchi, Tokyo, JP. A rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism which realizes a rotary joint having a virtual rotation axis is provided. A rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism 1 is configured so that a first link 5 having a first virtual center line 3 and a second link 9 having a second virtual center line 7 are coupled through a rotation and extension/retraction joint mechanism 11. The rotation and extension/retraction joint mechanism 11 is configured to couple the first link 5 and the second link 9 so that when the second virtual center line 7 rotates relative to the first virtual center line 3 from a state where the first virtual center line 3 entirely overlaps with the second virtual center line 7, while crossing the first virtual center line 3, an intersection between the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7 is displaced on the first virtual center line 3 by a predetermined

distance corresponding to an angle of the rotation.

Figure 15 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 16 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a main portion of the rotation and extraction/retraction link mechanism in the embodiment of the present invention in a state before the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism makes a rotation movement. Figure 17 is an exploded perspective view of figure 16, and figure 16 is a diagram used for explaining an operation in the embodiment in figure 18.

Figure 19 shows a perspective view and a plan view showing driven states of the embodiment shown in figure 16.

Referring to these drawings, reference numeral 1 indicates the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism in the embodiment of the present invention. This rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism 1 is constructed so that a first link 5 having a first virtual center line 3 and a second link 9 having a second virtual center line 7 are coupled through a rotation and extension/retraction joint mechanism 11. The first link 5 and the second link 9 are members that are constrained by the rotation extension/retraction joint mechanism 11, coupled to each other through the rotation and extension/retraction joint mechanism 11, and operate in conjunction with each other. While the first link 5 and the second link 9 are formed from a metal material, these may be formed from a plastic material having durability. The first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual continued on next page

Figure 15: Perspective view showing a configuration of a rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism.

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67

continued from previous page center line 7 mean the center lines assumed to be located inside the first link 5 and the second link 9, respectively. Specifically, when the first link 5 and the second link 9 entirely overlap with each other, these center lines entirely overlap with each other as well. When the first link 5 and the second link 9 are orthogonal to each other, these center lines are orthogonal to each other as well.

In this rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism 1, when the second virtual center line 7 of the second link 9 rotates relative to the first virtual center line 3 of the first link 5 from a state in which the first virtual center line 3 entirely overlaps with the second virtual center line 7, while the second virtual center line 7 is crossing the first virtual

Figure 19: Perspective view and a plan view illustrating driven states of the embodiment shown in figure 16.

Figure 16: Perspective view showing a configuration of a main portion of the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism in a state before the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism makes a rotation movement.

center line 3, an intersection 13 between the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7 moves.

That is, the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism 1 is configured to couple the first link 5 and the second link 9 in such a manner that the second link 9 rotates relative to the first link 5 while this intersection 13 moves on the first virtual center line 3 just by a predetermined distance according to a rotation angle of the second link 9.

Herein, the intersection 13 between the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7 means a point at which the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7 cross each other when the first link 5 and the second link 9 operate in conjunction with each other. In this case, when the second link 9 rotates relative to the first link 5, the intersection 13 moves on the first virtual center line 3 just by the predetermined distance corresponding to the rotation angle of the second link. Alternatively, in the embodiment of the present invention, through the rotation and

Figure 17: Exploded perspective view of figure 16.

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

extension/retraction joint mechanism 11, the first link 5 and the second link 9 mutually rotate about respective virtual axes of rotation (virtual centers of rotation) for which no real structural members are present.

The embodiment of the present invention shown in figure 15 further includes a driving force applying mechanism 35 which generates at least one driving force among a driving force that causes the first sector gear 25 to roll relative to the first rack gear 23, a driving force that causes the first sector gear 25 to linearly move along the first virtual center line 3, a driving force that causes the second sector gear

Figure 18: Diagram used for explaining an operation of the embodiment in figure 16.

29 to roll relative to the second rack gear 27, and a driving force that causes the second sector gear 29 to linearly move along the second virtual center line 7. This driving force applying mechanism 35 is provided to drive the rotation and extension/retraction link mechanism 1. This embodiment includes a common shaft 37 with an axis line thereof located at an intersection between the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7, which vertically extends with respect to the virtual plane 31 and rotatably passes through the first sector gear 25 and the second sector gear 29, a driving wire rope 41 which passes over a pulley 39 supported by the common shaft 37 and extends both along the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7, a rope winding device 43 which winds up the driving rope 41, and a rope tension generating mechanism 45 which adjustably generates tension of the driving rope 41.

The pulley 39 is the pulley over which the driving rope 41 is wound and rotates about the common shaft 37. The rope winding device 43 and the rope tension generating mechanism 45 use a motor as a driving source not particularly shown as a driving source. The driving source is not limited

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to the motor. A leading end of the driving rope 41 pulled out partition includes two laterally spaced structures wherein from the rope winding device 43 is fixed to one of the first each structure includes a plurality of hingedly coupled panlink 5 and the second link 9. Tension is given to the driving els. A lateral restraint mechanism is located and configured rope 41 by being wound up by the rope winding device 43 to prevent lateral displacement of one or both of the two and by the rope tension output generating mechanism 45. laterally spaced structures. In one embodiment, a cable is The driving force that causes the first sector gear 25 to lin- disposed between and extends from along the lower edge of Sialong nglthe es first • Do Dvirtual oubcenter les •line Tr3ip lethe s •drivRegthe ula r laterally and He an Hspaced eavystructures.

Woode Wo n cable Blociskmaintained Bl s two The early move and ing force that causes the second sector gear 29 to linearly in tension, at least while the partition is in a deployed conmove along the second virtual center line 7 can be thereby dition, to prevent or minimize the lateral displacement of one or both of the structures such as when a draft or other both generated.

In the driving force applying mechanism 35 including the external force acts on the structures. In one embodiment, rope tension generating mechanism 45 described above, the the cable may be operatively associated with one or more driving rope 41 cannot be pulled out unless an external force continued on next page works. Then, a return mechanism which always generates a force for relatively rotating the first virtual center line 3 and the second virtual center line 7 is provided between the first link 5 and the second link 9. In this embodiment, a spring 47 is employed as the return mechanism. When the spring 47 is employed as described above, the driving force applying mechanism 35 can give tension necessary for winding up or pulling out the driving rope 41 to the driving rope 41, and can further prevent a deflection of the driving rope 41.

Accordingly, rigidity can be given to the rotation and extenAll Material Factory Certified sion/retraction link mechanism.

Wooden Shell Blocks 3� to 16�

Lateral restraint for a movable partition, movable For more Associated Wire Rope & Rigging, Inc. Waterman Supply Co., Inc. partitions incorporating same and related methods information, 8125 Saran Drive, Playa Del Rey, CA 90293 910 Mahar Ave., Wilmington, CA 90748 Pat. 7,926,538 U.S. class 160/84.08 Int. class E06B 9/06 contact: Ph:Coleman, 1-800-901-1135 Ph: 1-800-322-3131 Fax: 310-522-1043 Inventor: W. Michael Salt Lake Fax: City,310-448-5446 UT. Email: awrrinc@earthlink.net Email: waterman@bigplanet.com Assignee: Won-Door Corporation, Salt Lake City, UT. Methods and apparatuses are disclosed for laterally restraining a movable partition. In one embodiment, a movable Figure 20: Elevation view of a movable partition.

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology

August 2006

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

37 69

continued from previous page drive components used to displace the movable partition. In another embodiment, the cable may be coupled to a take-up mechanism.

Referring to figures 20-22, an elevation view, a plan view and a perspective view are shown, respectively, of a movable partition 100. It is noted that in figure 22, various portions of certain structures or components are partially sectioned for sake of clarity and simplicity in showing various aspects of the described embodiment. In the example shown in figures 20 and 21, the partition 100 may be in the form of a folding door. In certain embodiments, the partition 100 may be used, for example, as a security door, a fire door or as both.

In other embodiments, the partition need not be utilized as a fire or security door, but may be used simply for the subdividing of a larger space into smaller rooms or areas.

The partition 100 may be formed with a plurality of panels 102 that are connected to one another with hinges or other hinge-like structures 104 in an alternating pattern of panel 102/hinge structure 104. The hinged connection of the individual panels 102 enables the panels to fold relative to each other in an accordion manner such that the partition 100 may be compactly stored, such as in a pocket 106 formed in a wall 108A of a building when the partition is in a retracted or folded state.

When in a deployed state, the partition 100 may extend from one wall 108A to a second wall 108B to act as a barrier (e.g., a fire or security barrier) or to divide one area or room into multiple rooms 110A and 110B. When it is desired to deploy the partition 100 from a stowed condition to an extended position, for example, to secure an area during a fire, the partition 100 may be motivated along an overhead track 112 (see figure 22) across the space to provide an appropriate barrier. When in a deployed or an extended state, a leading edge of the partition 100, shown as a male lead post 114, may complementarily engage with a jamb or door post 116 that may be formed in a wall 108B of a building.

As best seen in figure 21, the partition 100 may include a first barrier or structure 118A and a second barrier or structure 118B, each including a plurality of panels 102 coupled with one another by way of hinges or hinge-like structures 104. The second structure 118B is laterally spaced from the first structure 118A. Such a configuration may be utilized as a fire door wherein one structure (e.g., structure 118A) acts as a primary fire and smoke barrier, the space 120 between the two structures 118A and 118B acts as an insulator or a buffer zone, and the another structure (e.g., structure 118B) acts as a secondary fire and smoke barrier. Such a configuration may also be useful in providing an acoustical barrier when the partition is used to subdivide a larger space into multiple, smaller rooms.

Figure 21: Plan view of the movable partition.

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

Figure 22: Perspective view of a movable partition.

Various means may be used to displace the partition 100 from a stowed condition to a deployed condition and vice versa. For example, depending on the intended use of the partition 100, it may be displaced manually (i.e., by an individual pushing or pulling it along the track 112). In another embodiment, an appropriate actuator may be used to displace the partition 100. For example, a drive may include a motor 122 coupled to a pulley or gear 123 configured to drive a transmission member such as a belt or chain 124. In one embodiment of the present invention, a wire cable 126 may be coupled to the drive belt or chain 124 as a component of a lateral restraint mechanism.

A portion of the belt or chain 124 may be coupled to a trolley 125 that is configured to ride along the track 112. The trolley 125 may be coupled to a component of the partition 100 such as, for example, the lead post 114. Thus, actuation of the motor 122 and belt or chain 124 in a first direction results in displacement of the trolley 125 and lead post 114 so that the partition may be deployed. Actuation of the motor 122 and belt or chain 124 in a second direction results in displacement of the trolley 125 and lead post 114 so that the partition may be retracted.

Additionally, while not specifically shown, various sensors and switches may be employed in association with such a drive to assist in the control of the partition 100. For example, as shown in figure 20, when used as a fire door, the partition 100 may include a switch or actuator 128, commonly referred to as “panic hardware.� Actuation of the panic hardware 128 allows a person located on one side of the partition 100 (e.g., in room 110A) to cause the partition 100 to open if it is closed, or to stop while it is closing, so as to provide access through the barrier formed by the partition 100 for a predetermined amount of time.

A lateral restraint mechanism 130 is operatively associated with the partition 100 to minimize or prevent lateral displacement of a lower edge 132 of the first structure 118A,

the second structure 118B or both. In one embodiment, the lateral restraint mechanism 130 may include a cable 126, as previously mentioned, having one end thereof coupled to the lead post 114 and another end thereof coupled to a portion of the drive belt or drive chain 124.

The wire cable 126 extends between the lead post 114 and a first redirect structure or mechanism 134 such as, for example, a pulley or a static guide, located at a longitudinal end of the partition 100 opposite that of the lead post 114 (e.g., in or adjacent the door pocket 106, if a door pocket is being used). In one embodiment, the portion of the cable 126 extending between the door post 114 and the redirect mechanism 134 may also be disposed between, and extend substantially parallel to, the first and second structures 118A and 118B such that it is substantially concealed from a user after installation and during conventional operation of the partition 100.

Another portion of the cable 126 extends from the first redirect mechanism 134 to a second redirect mechanism 136, which may be located near the overhead track 112 such as, for example, near the motor 122. Again, the redirect mechanism 136 may include a dynamic mechanism, such as a pulley, or a static mechanism, such as an eyelet, a bent channel or some other similar structure. Yet another portion of the cable 126 extends from the second redirect mechanism 136 in a direction substantially parallel with the drive belt or drive chain 124 and has a portion thereof, such as at or near its end, coupled to a portion of the drive belt or drive chain 124.

Figure 24: isometric view showing a motor, batteries, handle, rotating drum, guiding rollers, safety clamp, tensioning roller and clip-in attachment point.

provide the rotational motion desired for pulling the rope or cable. A motor power source 104 can also be included that is appropriate to the rotational motor used, such as gasoline or other petroleum products, a fuel cell, or electrical energy supplied in ac (such as from a power outlet in a typical building) or dc (such as from a battery) form.

In one preferred embodiment, the rotational motor is a dc electric motor and the motor power source is one or more

Powered rope ascender and portable rope pulling device Pat. 7,934,698 U.S. class 254/371 Int. class B66D 1/30 Inventor: Nathan Ball, Cambridge, MA., Timothy Fofonoff, Cambridge, MA., Bryan Schmid, Boston, MA., Daniel Walker, Cambridge, MA. Assignee: Atlas Devices, LLC., Boston, MA. A device for pulling an elongate member includes a rotational motor having an output and a rotating drum connected to the output of the rotational motor. The device further includes a guide mechanism for guiding the resilient elongate element onto, around at least a portion of the circumference of, and off of, the rotating drum. When the rotational motor turns the rotating drum, the rotating drum thereby continuously pulls the resilient elongate element through the device.

Referring now to figure 23, a device 100 of the invention for pulling a resilient elongate element such as a cable or a rope 114 is illustrated diagrammatically. The device includes a rotational motor 102 from which the pulling motion of the device is derived. A number of different types of motors, such as two or four stroke internal combustion engines, or ac or dc powered electric motors, could be employed to

Figure 25: Front view of the device shown in figure 24.

Figure 23: Diagrammatic view of a device of the powered rope ascender.

rechargeable lithium ion batteries.

The rotational motor can also have speed control 106 and/ or a gearbox 108 associated with it to control the speed and torque applied by the rotational motor to the task of pulling a rope. These elements can be integrated into a single, controllable, motor module, be provided as separate modules, continued on next page Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

71

continued from previous page

Figure 26: Side view of the device shown in figure 24.

Figure 27: Close-up profile and isometric view of the rotating drum.

or be provided in some combination thereof. In one embodiment, speed control elements can be provided integrally with a dc rotational motor, while a separate, modular gearbox is provided so that the gearing, and thus the speed and torque characteristics of the rope pulling device, can be altered as desired by swapping the gears.

A rotating drum 110 is connected to the rotational motor, either directly or through a gearbox (if one is present). It is the rotating drum, generally in the manner of a capstan, that applies the pulling force to the rope that is pulled through the device 116. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the rotating drum provides anisotropic friction gripping 112 of the rope. In particular, in a preferred embodiment, the surface of the rotating drum has been treated so that large friction forces are created in the general direction of the pulling of the rope (substantially around the circumference of the drum), and smaller friction forces are created longitudinally along the drum so that the rope can slide along the length of the drum with relative ease.

A rope or cable is referenced in figure 23. The device of the present invention is intended to be able to pull any elongate resilient element that can withstand a tension. Cables and ropes are the most common of these, but the invention is not meant to be limited by the reference to ropes or cables. A preferred embodiment of a rope pulling device 100 of the invention is shown in figures 24 (Isometric view), 25 (front view) and 26 (side view). In this embodiment, rotational motor 4 applies rotational power to rotating drum 8 via gearbox 6. Batteries 3 apply necessary power to motor 4. A rope handling mechanism guides a rope to and from the rotating drum. In particular, rope 21 enters through rope guide 1 and continues through safety clamp 2. The rope is further guided tangentially onto the rotating drum 8 by a pulley 7 and rotating guide

15. Once the rope is on the drum 8 it is guided around the drum 8 by the rollers 9 (and non-labeled adjacent rollers). On the last turn, the rope passes between the tensioning roller 10 and the drum 8. A user attaches to the device, such as by a tether, at attachment point 11.

As noted above, the operation of a rope pulling device of the invention can be aided by designing the surface of the rotating drum 8 to have anisotropic friction properties. In particular, the drum can be designed to have a high friction coefficient in a direction substantially about its circumference and a lower friction coefficient in a substantially longitudinal direction. In the embodiment illustrated in figures 24 through 26, the surface of the drum is provided with longitudinal splines to create this anisotropic friction effect.

A preferred embodiment of such a splined drum is shown in figure 27. In this embodiment, a cylinder, preferably constructed of aluminum or another lightweight metal or material, is extruded to include the illustrated longitudinal splines. More specifically, the rotating drum 8 embodiment of figure 27 can include longitudinal shaped-shaped splines 12 and a hole for a shaft with a keyway cutout 14. Forming the longitudinal splines as shaped features angled into the direction of motion of the rotating drum 8 further enhances the friction between the rope and the drum. A person skilled in the art will recognize that the drum of figure 27 is one preferred embodiment and that other features or methods of manufacture can be used to create the desired anisotropic friction effect. Weight-reducing holes 13 can also be utilized to minimize weight of the entire device.

Returning now to figures 24-26 to further describe the features and operation of this embodiment of a rope pulling device of the invention, rope 21 enters the device through the clip-in rope guide 1. As illustrated, a solid loop is provided,

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

however, the rope guide 1 is preferably a carabineer-type clip into which the rope is pushed, rather than having to thread the rope through by its end. The rope then passes through the safety clamp 2, which allows rope to only move through the device in the tensioning direction.

In the case that rope is pulled backward through the device by any means, the safety clamp 2 grips the rope and pinches it against the adjacent surface. The handle on the safety clamp 2 allows a user to manually override that safety mechanism, by releasing the self-help imposed clamping force which the clamp applies to the rope against the body of the device. The safety clamp 2 is simply one as used in sailing and rock climbing, and uses directionally gripping surfaces along a continuously increasing radius to apply a stop-clamping force proportional to the rope tension which squeezes the rope against its guide.

Hydraulic elevation apparatus and method Pat. 7,934,889 U.S. class 406/197 Int. class B65G 53/00 Inventor: Ross Guenther, Penn Valley, CA. Assignee: Ross Guenther, Penn Valley, CA. In various embodiments, a method for transporting objects within a multiple chamber framework may include loading objects into a transport container, elevating the container in a delivery chamber and lowering the container in a return chamber. Preferably, fluid elevation is employed to elevate object transport containers and their contents within the delivery chamber. Such methods may be utilized in vertical or incline lifting environments, and an auxiliary chamber may be incorporated into the multiple chamber framework for use as an alternative to, or in conjunction with, elevating objects by employing fluid elevation. The auxiliary chamber may be laterally disposed to the delivery chamber or the return chamber.

In a first embodiment of the present invention, the hydraulic elevation apparatus is used in a vertical lifting envi-

Figure 30: Side view of a hatch and seal.

Figure 31: Perspective view of a transport container.

ronment which may be either below ground or above ground.

The chamber framework internally disposed within a single shaft structure includes a tripartite cavity structure, which incorporates a vertically positioned cavity creating a return chamber, a vertically positioned cavity creating a delivery chamber, and a vertically positioned cavity creating an auxiliary hoist chamber. The return and auxiliary hoist chambers are laterally positioned on either side of the delivery chamber. Empty, collapsed or filled transport containers may be lowered within the return chamber via a wire rope hoist or similar device. In the auxiliary hoist chamber, multiple empty transport containers may be returned simultaneously in one hoisting cycle by employing collapsible, stacked, or tapered containers fitting inside each other.

Elevation apparatus 10 of the present invention employs fluid to elevate animate or inanimate objects from beneath the earth’s surface or from one elevation above the earth’s surface to another elevation within preferably at least one single shaft elevation structure 20, which may be positioned downward into the earth’s interior, or positioned above the earth’s surface. Shaft elevation structure 20 incorporates an internally disposed chamber framework 30 by which objects are transported within shaft elevation structure 20. Shaft elevation structure 20 is typically a single shaft structure, but may consist of multiple shaft structures incorporating chamber framework 30. Chamber framework 30 may be constructed within shaft elevation structure 20 by various shaft rehabilitation techniques, and may be incorporated into existing shaft structures. Chamber framework 30 may alternatively be constructed within newly drilled shaft structures.

Figures 28 and 29 depict preferred embodiments of elevation apparatus 10 in a vertical lifting orientation. Figure 28 shows the first embodiment of elevation apparatus 10 employing a chamber framework 30 comprising a tripartite cavity structure 32 positioned within shaft elevation structure 20. Tripartite cavity structure 32 of chamber framework 30 includes a return chamber 40, a transport container continued on next page Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

73

continued from previous page

Figure 28: Perspective view showing a multiple chamber single shaft structure including a tripartite cavity structure with an auxiliary hoist chamber.

Figure 29: Perspective view showing a multiple chamber shaft structure including a dual cavity structure.

50, a delivery chamber 60, and an auxiliary hoist chamber 70. Auxiliary hoist chamber 70 may be optionally positioned laterally and adjacent to delivery chamber 60. A surface hoist 72 comprising a pulley mechanism 74, an operatively attached transport container 76 is employed within auxiliary hoist chamber 70 as an optional lifting mechanism to transport objects within chamber framework 30.

Figure 29 shows the second embodiment of the elevation apparatus 10 employing a chamber framework 30 comprising a dual cavity structure 34 positioned within shaft elevation structure 20. Dual cavity structure 34 of chamber framework 30 includes a return chamber 40, a transport container 50, and a delivery chamber 60. As depicted in figure 29, transport container 50 may be lowered within return chamber 40 via a hoist, pulley, or similar such mechanism.

Return chamber 40 includes a lower section 42, operatively positioned in relation to a transport channel 44. The out74

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

wardly extended top portion of transport channel 44 is connected to bin 46, which stores material to be elevated within chamber framework 30. Transport channel 44 is operatively positioned to engage transport container 50, which travels within return chamber 40 and delivery chamber 60.

As shown in figures 30 and 31, transport container 50 is constructed with a top end hatch 52 and a bottom end hatch (not shown). Transport container 50 may be rectangular or cylindrical in shape, constructed in a collapsible form, or otherwise suitably fitted to facilitate vertical or horizontal movement within chamber framework 30. Transport container 50 may be constructed from an array of durable materials conducive to airtight sealing and elevation by flotation, including plastic, synthetic polymers, polymer blends and the like, and metals, all characterized by imperviousness to rugged use and inert both to the materials being transported and its environs. Transport container 50 may include reinforcing ribs 51 interiorly and/or exteriorly disposed. Where transport container 50 is configured to be flexible, it is contemplated to compress parallel to its long axis but may compress transverse thereto. Durable elastomers, preferably reinforced with fiber characterized by resistance to chafe and distention include, by way of example, but not limitation: kevlar, boron graphite, fiberglass coated with rubber, neoprene, hypalon, and pvc. WRN

Certified Slings & Supply names Eric Parkerson to new position of General Manager of Operations

Certified Slings & Supply has promoted Eric Parkerson to the newly created position of General Manager of Operations. In his new role Parkerson will be responsible for the daily operations and management of the company’s seven service center locations. Reporting to Mr. Parkerson will be the company’s Service Center Leaders. Additionally, Parkerson

(QHSE) Quality, Health, Safety and Environment committee projects. He is also an active member of the (WSTDA) Web Sling Tie Down Association Technical Committee for Testing.

Most recently he completed courses and is a Certified ISO-9001 Internal Auditor.

Parkerson has a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University and a Masters Degree in Organizational Management from St. Joseph College.

About Certified Slings, Inc.: Established in 1958, Certified Slings & Supply is an award winning manufacturer and distributor in the State of Florida. Products include: wire rope, chain and nylon web slings, safety and fall protection equipment, overhead lifting and hoisting assemblies, cargo tie downs, excavator/drag line buckets and replacement parts. Certified Slings is a Slingmax® Rigging Solutions Dealer with locations in Tampa, Casselberry, Fort Myers, Miami, Orlando, West Palm Beach and Ocala.

Spider hires Joe McCoy as District Sales Representative – New Orleans

Eric Parkerson

will continue to lead and be actively involved in the technical (engineering) and quality (ISO-9001-2008) aspects for the company. Parkerson was previously Director of Engineering & Quality Systems for Certified Slings & Supply, a position he held for the past five years.

“We are excited about being able to find the best qualified candidate for this important position from our own ranks” said Doug Worswick, CEO of Certified Slings & Supply. “It shows to all of our team members that there are additional opportunities at our company if you are willing to work hard and learn by your experience.”

Eric Parkerson has used his experience and previous positions to further his value for the company by becoming a member of the (AWRF) Association of Wire Rope Fabricators Technical Board and is the Quality Representative of the Associations

Spider, a division of SafeWorks, LLC, recently hired Joe McCoy as District Sales Representative for its New Orleans location. In the Louisiana/Mississippi territory, Joe is responsible for solving the suspended access and safety challenges of contractors and facility owners in energy, oil & gas, infrastructure, O&M and construction end markets. Joe comes to Spider from Halo Equipment, LLC, an offshore rigging products supplier, where he most recently served as vice president, overseeing all operations,

Joe McCoy

sales and financing, and launching new products in their rental division.

Throughout his career, he has held management roles with various Louisiana-based construction and distribution organizations. “We’re excited Joe has joined the Spider team,” states John Sotiroff, Vice President Sales & Distribution. “Joe’s impressive work in Louisiana’s offshore rigging and construction markets fits well with Spider’s reputation for the reliable, trusted solutions we provide our Gulf customers. Joe will deliver a first rate experience for Spider customers.”

Media Contact: Heidi Krueger – Marketing Specialist Heidi.Krueger@ SafeWorks.com.

About Spider: Founded in 1947, Spider, a division of SafeWorks, created the powered suspended access business by introducing the wellknown Spider basket. Since then, our product and service offering has expanded greatly to serve the needs of an ever-growing marketplace. Spider is the largest manufacturer and distributor of access and safety solutions in North America, serving more customers from more locations with a wider variety of products and services than any other company. From baskets, traction hoist and platform rental, to safety and training, to specialty-engineered products - Spider has a strong team of professionals, along with an international network of sales, service and support capabilities to provide you with the most reliable access solutions available.

Bilco promotes Alex Meder to new postion

It is with extreme pleasure that The Bilco Group announces the promotion of Alex Meder to Purchasing/ Inventory Control Manager effective immediately.

Alex has been with The Bilco Group for 2 years “learning the ropes” starting in our sling and web divisions and most recently heading up our new computer system.

C.E.O. Barry I. Lemberg states, “Alex is second generation, enthusiastic and eager to accept any challenge he has taken on”.

Alex is a graduate of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, single and currently resides in Hoboken, New Jersey.

We all wish him much success!

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

75

Loos & Company announces the Loosco Stretch Calculator iPhone/iPad app

The LoosCo Stretch Calculator is the first release in the Loos Mechanicals line of mobile applications designed to assist the wire rope and aircraft cable professional in the field. The Stretch Calculator application provides real time wire rope and aircraft cable elastic stretch estimates based on construction, diameter, length and load inputs provided by the user. According to the company release, the application allows you to calculate the estimated stretch of your assembly or sling right in the palm of your hand.

The LoosCo Stretch Calculator application is based on the popular download available on www.loosco.com, and is available for both the iPhone and iPad. The calculator provides the following features: •Elastic Stretch estimates for 1x7, 1x19, 7x7, 7x19, 6x19, 6x37 Constructions Elastic Stretch estimates for Stainless and Galvanized Steel •Elastic Stretch estimates for Cable Diameters 1/64” to 1-1/4” You can download your free installment of the LoosCo Stretch Calculator on our website, www.loosco.com, by clicking on the “Downloads” link. Select “Mobile Phone Applications” and you will be taken to the official LoosCo Stretch Calculator iTunes page. Coming this spring for Android OS. For questions concerning the download and use of the new LoosCo Stretch Calculator, contact Robert Davis by calling 860-630-4248.

Loos & Co., Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of Military Specification Aircraft Cable and Aircraft Cable assemblies. Loos has over 50 years of experience in the cable industry and supplies flight control assemblies to all major aircraft manufacturers. Refer to our website (www.loosco.com) for a complete listing of capabilities, including: Stainless Steel and Specialty Alloy Wire and Wire Products, Aircraft Cable, Wire Rope, and Military and Commercial Cable Assemblies.

Platforms lift the worker to the work

Having built a reputation as the industry authority in the supply of ergonomic lift tables and tilters that bring work to the worker, Southworth Products Corp announces the availability of worker platforms that bring the worker to the work.

76

For assembly or maintenance operations where large structures, such as aircraft or heavy equipment, must be accessed at elevated or varying heights, Southworth now offers custom-configured lifts that can be designed into most production lines. Offering more flexibility and safety than scaffolding or ladders, these worker platforms are also appropriate for stock picking from higher shelves, such as the vertically stacked compartments of storage carousels, according to a company release.

With the industry’s largest, most experienced engineering staff, Southworth designs stable scissor lifts in stationary or movable configurations and in a multitude of platform sizes and lifting ranges, working with the customer to accommodate budgetary limitations as well as unique, applicationspecific requirements.

Options include custom controls; soft start/stop; indexed lifting and lower-

ing; slide-out sections that increase platform size when necessary; folddown safety gates and handrails; custom deck treatments (non-skid, antistatic, etc.); and bellows skirting that keeps dust, debris, and moisture out of the lift mechanism.

For more information, contact Brian E. McNamara, president, Southworth Products Corp, P.O. Box 1380, Portland, ME 04104-1380, TEL: (207) 8780700, FAX: (207) 797-4734, e-mail: salesinfo@southworthproducts.com, www.SouthworthProducts.com.

DCM-Pro Manulift Electric Chain Hoist designed for fast, safe one handed operation

Demag’s DCM-Pro Manulift electric chain hoist is designed to handle loads quickly and safely with just one hand.

Based on Demag’s workhorse DC-Pro electric chain hoist, the DCM-Pro includes a DSM-C control unit that is securely connected to the hoist with a helical cable, and is then rigidly connected to a variety of load handling

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

attachments, according to a company release. It can be operated left-handed or right-handed, and the operator can operate the chain hoist and accurately guide the load with one hand.

A quick-disconnect coupling allows any variety of load handling attachments to be attached and detached quickly and easily. A universal coupling pin is used to accommodate Demag and customer-designed attachments. For added versatility, Manulift load handling attachments can also be used with Demag’s DC-Pro line of chain hoists with an easy-to-install adapter.

The DCM-Pro Manulift is available in two models and features load capacities of 275 lbs. or 550 lbs. and lift heights of 9 and 14 feet respectively.

The hoists are easily integrated into Demag KBK crane kit profile sections and I-beams.

About Demag Cranes and Components Demag Cranes & Components based in Cleveland, OH, a subsidiary of Demag Cranes AG, is a world class manufacturer of high quality industrial cranes and components, electric chain and wire rope hoists, and load handling attachments and accessories for material handling flow, logistics and industrial drive applications. The company offers a complete range of services and support programs including replacement parts, maintenance and refurbishment.

Thern introduces ATLAS II Worm Gear Power Winch with 2-Ton load capacity for industrial applications

Industrial operators around the world choose Thern winches for their continued on page 78

dustrial applications, visit www.thern. com/manufacturing.

Thern, Inc. is a major designer and manufacturer of winches, cranes and hoists for a broad range of water, wastewater, processing and industrial applications. Founded in 1948, Thern is headquartered in Winona, Minnesota and markets its products worldwide. Learn more about Thern products at www. thern.com or contact us via email at info@thern.com or call 1-800-843-7648.

(E&E). DSM’s continued from strategy, page 76 named Vision 2010 - Building on Strengths, focuses applications for profitable the capability, duraon accelerating and innovability, and reliability they provide. tive growth of the company’s specialties According the company release, the portfolio.toMarket-driven growth, ATLAS II power winch is designed innovation and increased presence as in aemerging versatileeconomies option forare industrial operakey drivers of tors OEMs. The group has annual this and strategy.

Built and lightweight, it feasales of compact over EUR 8 billion and employs tures impressive load capacity some an 22,000 people2-ton worldwide.

DSM for handling smalland medium-sized ranks among the global leaders in loads a fields. durableThe castcompany aluminum many and of its is body.

Machine cut operates in headquartered in gearing the Netherlands, an enclosed oil bath, reducing wear and with locations in Europe, Asia, Africa extending operating life.

The ATLAS II and the Americas. is well suited for lifting applications, About W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. with holding mechaniW.an L.internal Gore &load Associates, Inc., a cal brake. And worksiteprovider portability is technology solutions with made easy with lifting handles built nearly $2 billion in sales and more than onto 7 , 0 0 the 0 a sframe s o c i afacilitate t e s , s p e easy c i a l i attachzes in ment f l u o rof o plifting o l y m straps. er innovations that Thern the portable improve qualitypower of life.winches Over its are 47designed to deliver the muscle where year history, Gore has applied its and you w o r when ld-ren o wneed n e d it e x–pon e r tthe i s emanuwith facturing plant floor,and in the processing membranes, fibers laminates to plant, or in of theproducts field. For informathousands inmore performancetion on Thern winches for use in in-

78 54

Pipe Coil Technology to manufacture world’s largest wire rope take-up stand

most complex ropes in the world, and will further cement the company’s position as a global technology leader, according to a company release.

The innovative stand design allows full drums to be loaded and unloaded either directly from the factory floor or from a transport trailer without the need for an overhead crane. This ability, combined with a lightweight design, offers significant operational benefits over the traditional style of large take-up stands used in the wire rope sector and was the primary factor behind Bridon’s selection of PCT

Pipe Coil Technology Ltd are delighted to have won a contract from Bridon International for Wooden bridge at River Camp by St. Joe in Panama City, Florida using stainless steel cable. the supply of two wire take- such as automotive, Bridges of Tallahassee, Florida are the drivenrope markets, up stands, one energy, electronics and industrial recipients of the Ultra-tec ® Cable of which will be filtration. The company operates in Railing Design Award, according to the largest of facilities its more than 45 worldwide with Raymond Kechely, vice president of type in the world headquarters in Newark, Delaware, The Cable Connection the manufacwith USA.a lift Forcapacmore information, visit t ure r o f U l t r a -t e c ® ca b l e r a i l i ng ity of 650 tons. www.gore.com/omnibend. products. ® The stands The award was given for the design Dyneema is a registered trademark will form and fabrication of a wooden bridge at of Royal DSMpart N.V. of Aal l new o t h ewire r t r a d e m a r k s a r e t h e River Camp by St. Joe in Panama City, rope closing linerespective owners.

Florida. The bridge was built in 2005 property of their which will prousing stainless steel cable as the supplier duce someRailing of the largest wire ropes in as Cable Design railing in-fill.on this flagship project.

Bridon’s Colin commented “We the world when it goes into service in Award announced According to Pratt Kechely, the award is awarded this contract after a rigor2012.

The state-of-the-art facility that Goddard Specialty Construction of given for the design of the railing in six month process, during Bridon is building on Tyneside will ous Peachtree City, Florida and Nature relation to itstender setting and for the PCT clearly demonstrated that manufacture some of the largest and which appearance and quality of fabrication their innovative machine of theunique railing.and The Cable Connection solution would meet Bridon’s operasupplied the tensioners and mounting tional requirements.” devices for the cable. Nature Bridges The the contract award is a testament built bridge.

Goddard Specialty to the technical innovation of the PCT Construction installed the cables. design team and the provensteel ability of “Thin, yet strong stainless cable the company to deliver high quality, was the perfect choice for this project,” bespoke engineering solutions to global explained Brian Fischer of Goddard industry leaders in manufacturing secSpecialty Construction. “You hardly tors such as wire rope, sub-sea umbilisee the cable, so the view is unimcal, power cable partner, and flow-lines. paired.”

Brian's Don Goddard, PCT Ltd is a privately owned comadded, “The Cable Connection had all pany based in Newcastle UK with the right stainless steel tensionerssuband sidiaries in the USA us andtoChina. fittings that enabled install The the company designs and supplies coiling cable quickly and at a very reasonable and solutions flexible cost. packaging We are proud of this for project and products such as plastic pipe, sub-sea thrilled to receive the design award. umbilical and power cables, flow-lines and steel wire rope.

NEMA calls for Vietnam Bridon International, headquartered admission into thenine WTO in Doncaster UK, operate manufacturing units worldwide with as soon as possible market focused technical and sales offices, supNEMA, the National Electrical ported by globalAssociation, network of agents and Manufacturers has hailed distributors. the recent conclusion of negotiations

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology

August 2006

Advertisers Index Please turn to the pages indicated below for a detailed view of advertisers’ products or services.

All Material Handling .......................................52

Morse-Starrett Products Co. . ..........................56

Alps Wire Rope ...............................................46

My-Te Products . .............................................57

Associated Wire Rope & Rigging, Inc.........50, 58

C.S. Osborne & Co. . .......................................69

Buffalo Lifting and Testing ...............................67

Pewag ............................................................51

C. Sherman Johnson Co., Inc. . .......................34

Quality Marine Hardware .................................19

Cableway Technical Services ..........................81

Renfroe & Sons ................................................3

Caldwell Company, Inc. .............................30, 84

Rope Block/Sea Link..........................................6

Chant Engineering Co., Inc. .............................17

Rud Chain, Inc. ...............................................53

Chicago Hardware ..........................................16

Sea Catch .......................................................78

Columbus McKinnon . .....................................33

Sea-land Distributors . .............11, 27, 31, 35, 41

The Crosby Group . ...............................2, 38, 45

Slingmax Rigging Products ...............................5

Distributor Computer Systems . .......................54

Slinguard Protectors . ......................................47

Downs Crane & Hoist Co., Inc. ........................69

Southern Weaving Company ...........................21

Elite Sales .......................................................15

Strider~Resource . .........................................57

Esco Corporation ............................................24

Suncor Stainless, Inc. ............................... 42-43

Gaylin International Co. Pte. Ltd. . ....................83

Taylor Chain Company ....................................78

GBG Industries . ..............................................18

Van Beest BV ..................................................44

Holland 1916 ..................................................23

Vanguard ........................................................25

Huskie Tools ...................................................55

Wichard, Inc. ..................................................65

Ken Forging, Inc. .............................................28

Windy Ridge Corporation ................................59

KWS, Inc. .......................................................59

Wirop Industrial Co., Ltd. . ...............................29

Landmann Wire Rope Products .........................4

Yale Cordage . .................................................39

Letellier M.H.E. ...............................................77

Yoke Industrial Corp. .........................................9

Lincoln Hoist . .................................................13

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

79

HELP WANTED Looking for an outside sales person for wire rope shop and fall protection company. Email resume to azwire@aol.com or email marty@ultrasafeusa.com.

Established rigging shops across the U.S. looking for experienced wire rope splicer. Must be able to manufacture flemish eye slings along with hand splicing, both 4 tuck and hidden tuck. Competitive wages, and benefits including 401, health, and paid vacation. Reply to: Box 10-02, Wire Rope News & Sling Technology, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia, NJ 07067 Seeking to fill and inside customer service/sales position with at least 3 years in wire rope and rigging hardware sales experience, aggressive and good communication skill, hard working with integrity. Our company is located in Southern California and has been in business for 15 years. We offer a competitive salary plus commission. Please fax resume to (909) 548-2884.

Established wire rope distributor in the Mid-Atlantic area is looking for an exp. outside sales representative to cover the Gulf Coast area. Strong background in cranes and wire ropes preferred. Ideal candidate has the ability to establish accounts and build strong business relationships.

Excellent base and commission, comp. vehicle and benefits. Submit qualifications to: hoistemployment@gmail.com.

Assistant foreman for East Coast’s largest importer & sling shop. We stock wire rope, hardware and mfg web slings.

Must be “hands-on” and capable of directing shop personnel. Long term position with all benefits company paid, including profit sharing. The Bilco Group, BilcoDoran-Shaw, Barry I. Lemberg C.E.O, Phone:(908) 351-7800 Fax: (908) 3555544, E-mail: blemberg@bilcogroup.com.

We are looking for Sales Rep and Area Sales Manager for US market. YOKE USA, a highly respected brand in Grade 80 chain accessories, aggressively expanding its distribution and requires sales personnel. Experience in chain and wire rope sling industries is an asset.

Send resume to Steven Hong, President of YOKE GROUP, 12850 Florence Ave., Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670. Fax 562903-1468 eMail: adrianaa@yoke-usa.com.

POSITION AVAILABLE Sales manager needed for Chicago market. Must have strong understanding of wire rope, chain, hardware. Must be able to establish goals and achieve desired results. Computer literate, minimal travel.

Salesforce knowledge a plus. Competitive salary and benefits. Reply to box 114, care of Wire Rope News, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia, NJ 07067.

80

58 year old, well respected rigging company in Southern California, seeking very experienced lead rigger, full time. Must have extensive splicing experience, and management skills. Great pay, excellent benefits and bonuses to the right person.

Contact Esaul Mota at 310-834-8535.

Experienced Wire Rope Splicer/Fabricator needed. QC21 Lifting Products is seeking quality craftsmanship and shop leadership for our recently relocated wire rope and synthetic operations in Harrison, OH. Knowledge of and hands-on ability to fabricate wire rope and chain assemblies, along with ability to direct workflow is required. Only self-starters with a strong work ethic need apply. We offer a smoke/ drug-free, results-oriented work environment with excellent wages and benefits.

QC21 Lifting Products is an F&M Mafco, Inc owned company and a leader in the specialty rigging and nylon sling industry. If you are interested in joining our team, credentials can be faxed to (513) 202-8820 or e-mail hremployment@ fmmafco.com or apply online at www. fmmafco.com (under employment tab).

EOE/M/F/V/D Fabrication manager/customer service. Work in a family oriented business with an opportunity to earn part ownership. Need someone 35-55+ years old who started at the bottom and looking to finish at the top. Need hands on splicing experience, lifting rigging experience, test bed knowledge, able to direct small growing crew. Basic computer knowledge. Willing to train and mentor young employees.

Top wages and benefits for the right individual. Problem solver that our customers can depend on. Honesty and integrity a must. Call Chuck Farmer, President, Rouster Wire Rope and Rigging, Inc., 304-228-3722, in confidence.

Outside Sales Representative needed for well established family owned business in Nashville, TN. Contractors & Industrial Supply Co., Inc. founded in 1970 is a distributor of wire rope, rigging hardware, chain and related industry products is expanding our sales team. The qualified individual will possess industry knowledge and the ability to develop new accounts and maintain existing.

We offer a competitive base salary plus commission and an outstanding benefits package. If qualified, please email your resume with salary history to kreff@cisrigging.com.

Outside sales rep. CCISCO of Summerville, SC is looking for experienced sales reps for the Carolina & Georgia markets.

Computer skills including Microsoft Office and ERP distribution software required. Knowledge of wire rope, rigging, construction and industrial supplies preferred. Traveling required. Company vehicle and expenses along with competi-

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

tive base salary and commissions. Reply to careers@hanessupply.com.

Established wire rope distributor in North America is expanding into crane/ container rope and fabrication. We are looking for an experienced individual that can assist in formulating a marketing and business plan. This position will eventually evolve to a sales manager or general manager. Fax your resume in strict confidence to 330-452-2331 attention Kris Lee or email to klee@afdindustries.com.

Texas Wire Rope Company expanding inside sales department. Individuals must have a strong technical, mechanical and basic mathematical aptitude, including basic computer knowledge.

Selected candidates must be quality conscious and able to handle multiple tasks. Previous experience in the industrial supply market is necessary. We offer a drug-free, results-oriented work environment with excellent wages and advancement opportunities. Resumes received confidentially at wremployment@gmail.com.

Outside sales representatives needed Southwest WireRope, the heavy-lift division of Teleflex, Inc, is a well-established distributor / fabricator of wire rope & related products. We are expanding our sales force and looking for experienced Outside Sales Professionals. Our ideal candidate has the ability to establish accounts and build strong business relationships. Knowledge of DCS based computer system, a plus.

We offer a competitive base salary and commission program and vehicle allowance. Our excellent benefit package includes medical, dental, life, disability, paid vacation and an excellent 401(k) Plan. Relocation packages are available for candidates meeting our eligibility requirements. Visit our website at www. swwrinc.com.

If qualified, please fax your resume with salary history to: (713) 453-1677 or e-mail to mherz@swwrinc.com.

POSITION WANTED Former Division-Product Manager, Regional Outside Sales Manager desires southeast territory to manage and solicit accounts in the wire rope, chain, fittings, and related industries. Over 25 years experience including District Manager, Bethlehem Wire Rope, Regional Manager, Wire Rope Ind Product Manager, Rud Chain, Inc. Interested parties reply to M.E. (Mike) Givens mike90309@aol.com, ph 256-476-7700.

REPS WANTED Kennedy Wire Rope and Sling Company is seeking a qualified inside sales representative for their South Texas rigging shop located in Corpus Christi, Texas. continued

We service various markets locally and globally. Solid sales skills working closely and interacting with customers directly, on the phone and in e-commerce is paramount. The candidate must have two years experience in sales and marketing of lifting products. Current knowledge of sling manufacturing and field use of rigging is very helpful. Basic computer skills are a must. Kennedy Wire Rope and Sling utilizes DCS software. We offer competitive salary and insurance benefits.

If you are interested in a challenging and rewarding career opportunity on the Texas Riviera please send a resume to Box 10-01, c/o Wire Rope News & Sling Technology, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia NJ 07067.

Sales rep wanted for an established manufacturer of labels and sling tags.

We are looking for a sales rep that currently calls on sling makers and rigging companies and is familiar with the business. Etiflex is a registered trademark and manufactures custom sling tags for synthetic and wire rope slings and has an excellent reputation in the field. We advertise in trade journals and exhibit at industry shows to generate brand awareness. Please contact us at info@etiflex. com or call 866-ETIFLEX for information.

Manufacturer Represtentatives for Lifting Equipment & Accessories wanted

by ALL MATERIAL HANDLING, Inc. Territories are now available and sup-

ported by our 4 USA Warehouses where our highly competitive and top quality products are stocked to the roof. Partner with us as we continue to grow market share. Check us out at www.allmaterialhandling.com and reach us at 877 5438264, or e-mail peter@allmaterialhandling.com.

Well established manufacturer of wire rope assemblies seeks manufacturer representatives for most major U.S. and Canadian markets. Visit our web site at www.thecableconnection.com. Please contact ray@thecableconnection.com or call Ray at (800) 851-2961 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES Dragline range & depth extended using gravity return. Contact Nielsen by fax for details (fax) 904-342-0547 INVESTMENT OPORTUNITIES Opportunity for investment by a big wire ropes industry, at the center of Europe, partner for installing wires drawing project, is sought. Reply by email to box 11-2 at: info@wireropenews.com.

ACQUISITIONS SOUGHT Estd. Int’l firm seeks to acquire small to med-sized rigging company on the Atlantic seaboard/Gulf Coast. Flexible. Will consider partial buyout, retaining current management. Also open to explore mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances in lieu of acquisition. Pelase reply

CABLEWAY TECHNICAL SERVICES GRAVITY RETURN Call Nielsen

Ocala, FL 24 Hour Fax (904) 342-0547 to buyUSrigging@gmail.com. Strict confidentiality will be exercised.

Company seeks acquisitions – Well established thirty year old manufacturer of mechanical cable assemblies, controls and related products seeks to acquire small to mid-sized mechanical cable assembly manufacturers and specialty producers of miniature and small diameter strand and cable. The company has the financial ability to structure a transaction that is responsive to the owner’s needs.

Be assured that we will exercise the appropriate confidentiality. Interested parties may reply in complete confidence to: P.O. Box 168, Oak Ridge, NJ 07438-0168.

In lieu of an acquisition, other potential business opportunities to explore include mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances with our company.

EQUIPMENT WANTED Wanted: refurbished/used Esco 500 ton press in good working order. Please contact Wayne.Lyons@ftfarfan.com or telephone 868-674-7896/71. continued

Fax: (1-732) 396-4215 Only $1 per line. Ads answered through private box numbers, $3 extra.

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Published bi-monthly: Dec., Feb., April, June, Aug., Oct. Material must be received by the 20th of month preceding date of publication (e.g. May 20th for the June issue).

Publisher assumes no liability for errors, or, in assigning or forwarding mail for classified advertisers using publication box numbers.

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

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continued from previous page

Wanted 600t wire rope swaging press complete with dies in good order, please contact Tony@cman.co.nz, or Tele 0064 3 366 1528.

Wanted: used wire rope cable, sizes 1-1/8”, 1”, and 7/8”. Please call for pricing.

(740) 452-5770.

FOR SALE 3/16" Campbell Chain L3x51 LinksZinc; 3200 pieces 48" with 5/16" S Hook; 1100 pieces 15" with 5/16"x2.5" O ring; In NC. Best Offer abarker@rmcord.com, 800-342-9130 x 124, Andy.

New wire rope with galvanized finish, 8 x19, Seale, fiber core, traction grade (1180/1770 N/mm²), right regular lay: 1/2” diameter, 14,900 lbs breaking load, .36 lbs/foot net weight, 25,000 feet; 5/8” diameter, 23,700 lbs breaking load, .58 lbs/foot, 16,489 feet. Contact Draka Elevator Products at 1-877-372-5237 for pricing.

Excess 3/16” 7x19 GAC non-preformed specs available 150 5000 ft. reels wrapped 12 per pallet FOB IN $250.00 per reel.

Also 1/8” stainless 7x7 at 15 cents per foot FOB IL. Also plastic covered GAC. Joe 800-473-0984.

New wire rope 1-1/8” drill line 5000 ft. 6x195 BR RR IFWV $30,000 Aud &

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freight. Reply to Brayd Gross, Alpha Rigging SErvice, 11-13 Gerberte Court, Wurruk, Victoria, Australia, 3850. Phone 0011+61351461088. Email: bgalpha@bigpond.net.au.

500 pcs 1-3/4” screw pin anchor shackle – overstock inventory sale – made in China. $28.00 each SWL 25T FOB Avenel, NJ. Call Art Jeronimo, Steelstran Industries 732-574-0700.

Sleeve hammer used for moving sleeves on cable. Different sizes for different size sleeves. All hand made in use now for use safety purposes for employees. Saves on time. Our product does work guaranteed.

Please call us today for use in oilfield.

901-357-4940.

Overstocked inventory for sale, 1-3/8” Shackle, WLL 13½ ton, galvanized, round pin, import. Super savings. Sold in minimum lots of 50 at $9 each. Eric Parkerson, Certified Slings, 407-331-6677.

Crosby 7/8” G213 LPA shackles. NEW! 205 pieces available. Contact Gary Lee @ 1-800-844-3517. Fax 251-456-8860.

Impacto Cable cutters and parts available from Windy Ridge Corp. Tamworth, NH, USA. 800-639-2021. Fax 603-3232322.

WIRE ROPE FOR SALE Used steel cable for sale. 1-1/8” x 475’, 7/8” x 875’, 5/16” x 320’. Coiled on reels.

Ongoing supply. Call: 561-840-2910.

F.O.B. Rivera Beach, FL. HARDWARE FOR SALE 1200 RA2482-4 MFG/ACCO $1.45; 600 RA2482-5 MFG/ACCO $2.99 each; 16500 RA2500-3 MFG/ACCO $.70 each; 200 MS21260-56RH $3.25 each. Call James Currie or Greg Bailey (562) 942-8076.

Wire Rope News & Sling Technology June 2011

EQUIPMENT FOR SALE 1-800 ton Esco, 1-500 ton National, 1-500 ton Esco, 1-350 Esco. 713-641-1552.

150 ton, Wirop C-type hydraulic swaging machine for sale. Brand new, with 4 sets of dies. $19,500 or B/O. Call Oscar at 909-548-2884.

Wire Rope Grips for proof test machines. Sizes: 1-1/2”, 2”, 2-1/2”. Load cells & digital read-outs also available. Call Joe Roberts (912) 964-9465.

Prooftesters for sale. Capacities from 20,000 lbs. to 3,000,000 lbs. Call Joe Roberts (912) 964-9465.

500 ton National Press, with dies.

15,000 lb. Bessemer coiling machine. Call 800-448-7380, Bill Lindsey.

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