Wrn 2013 08 full

August 2013www.wireropenews.com

Wallenda’s Wire Rope WalkHis daredevil feat overthe Little Colorado River Gorgestory on page 16

Zipline for the BSAAn unforgettable experience at the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree Centerstory on page 8

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Page 75

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology August 2013 7

Cover photo:This past June, Nik Wallenda made his heart-stopping walk over the Colorado River Gorge, Grand Canyon, on cord manufactured by Wirerope Works, Inc., Williamsport, PA.See article, page 16.

Wire Rope A Major Part of NewBSA Center in West Virginia ............................8

Zip lines are now a major attraction at the permanent Boy Scouts of America Jamboree Center. By Peter Hildebrandt.

Wirerope Works, Inc., Aids inSuccess of Nik Wallenda’sHarrowing Walk Over Gorge .........................16

Wirerope Works, Inc., supplied the wire rope to help him accomplish his daredevil feat. By Kay Shirk.

A Bridge Grows in Brooklyn ..........................20This world renowned span across the East River in New York City was welcomed as a time-saving alternative to ferry rides across the cold waters. By Pete Hildebrandt.

Workers’ Compensation EmployersGrapple with Higher Costs ............................28

Higher workers compensation costs are forcing employers to change to alternative programs. By Phillip M. Perry.

A Note from the Editor .................................52

August 23, 2013

Publisher & Editorial DirectorEdward Bluvias, III

Contributing EditorBarbara Spencer

Circulation DirectorPatricia Bluvias

Graphics & LayoutDon Tywoniw

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ISSN 0740-1809Wire Rope News & Sling Technology is pub-lished 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 con-cerning advertising, production, editorial, and circulation to Wire Rope News, LLC, P.O. Box 871, Clark, New Jersey 07066-0871.

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Vol. 34, No. 6

Contents

Features

Advertiser’s Index ..............................................75Steel Industry News ..........................................38The Inventor’s Corner ........................................54New Products ....................................................68People in the News ............................................72Classified ...........................................................76

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Wire Rope News & Sling Technology August 20138

continued on page 10

The new permanent Boy Scouts of America Jamboree Center at the New River Gorge is now officially open and will in turn grow for a few weeks each fourth summer to become one of the largest “cities” in the state as visitors flock to the half billion dollar development. Wire rope zip lines now make the experience unforgettable for scouts lucky enough to attend. Those involved with all aspects of construction will no doubt rest easier now that all was completed by opening day in July, 2013.

By Peter Hildebrandt

Wire Rope A Major Part of New BSA Center in West Virginia

Bonsai Design, Grand Junction, Colorado is the main contractor in-volved with the wire rope construc-

tion on the project. They are primarily involved with the design and construction of aerial systems, whether tree-based, canopy tours, challenge courses, tower-based big zips, aerial adventure parks as well as climbing towers.

Though Bonsai Design’s systems are principally in trees, the industry has been expanding tremendously

lately and larger corporations are even starting to take notice. They’ve had to expand their services to include engi-neered systems for the big towers in addition to working with more ski re-sorts lately or more specifically those resorts without adequate trees and for-est coverage, yet still interested in the construction of a zip line onsite.

“The BSA Jamboree Center is out in the middle of a 10,000 acre forest where we are acting as part of a design

and consultant team. Two and a half years ago that went onsite and pro-vided some preliminary design services studying where they could put down different villages of installation,” ex-plains Thaddeus Shrader, Bonsai De-sign, Inc. Chief Executive Officer.

“The Boy Scouts wanted to find the best in each field and bring us all in. We were part of a team composed of our company, Bonsai Design, Gravity Log-

A view from the starting platform gives a good sense of the ride ahead. Photo © Boys Scouts of America

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continued from page 8ic, an excellent park-building company out of British Columbia and El Dora-do Walls, a Boulder, Colorado-based company. Spohn Ranch, the BMX bike ramp experts was involved too; they do cityscape bike park installa-tions throughout the country. We were proud to be part of this overall team of adventurous and studious providers.”

Bonsai Design is the zip line compa-ny onsite, informing others on all the different things they could do with zip lines and challenge courses. Since work started two years ago, Bonsai Design has been hard at work installing all of this equipment and getting it ready for the Jamboree in July, 2013. They have been onsite actually longer than 24 months at this point and currently have more than 5 miles total of zip line, according to Shrader.

Canopy tours require trees. Specifi-cally these feature tree-based zip lines and wire rope bridges. Sky bridges – basically suspension bridges - are ten-sioned between trees, spanning up to 200 feet in length across huge gorges. Hikes are part of this system too. Tow-er-based big zips will feature a steel-reinforced infrastructure on each end of the zip line with huge launch and landing decks. Bonsai Design has in-stalled five at 1200 feet in length, five at 1500 feet in length and then five at

3100 feet in length; on these riders can reach speeds of up to 60 and 65 mph.

The tower structures will use three quarter inch swaged cable. “This is a nice product that we found through Delta Rigging,” adds Shrader. “Some of the wire rope we first studied was from Israel and Germany, 37 by 19 lays, rota-tion-resistant and really dense cable but very expensive at six or seven dollars per foot. The product we ended up with is made in the United States. We tradi-tionally try to buy American cable and then have Korean cable as a backup.”

Bonsai Design has found that those two countries have the best wire rope product for longevity. Lately though, the US product has been falling off, ac-cording to Shrader. “The galvanization on wire rope within the last five years has been outsourced to Mexico and the quality control has not been where it used to be. The Korean product though is holding up just as well.”

For the Canopy tours they used a three eighths inch coated cable with nylon jacketing out to one half an inch. Bonsai Design tries to have a minimal maintenance and wear program as part of what they deliver to their cli-ents. Their covenant is to have no steel on steel; nobody in the challenge course industry does that.

Either their cables are coated with nylon and users can run a steel sheath

on them for their zip line trolleys or for the big zips it is not possible to waste that much space just with coating and the hanging weight gets to great. The working load limit on the super long lifts in turn goes up too high for the strength ratio. For those cases they use a galvanized cable or a form-fit lock joint cable. An injection-molded coat-ing is used on their shivs and the shivs that run on the cable have soft surface wear coating on them.

“One way or another we make sure that the cables are going to last for a really long time,” says Shrader. “For all our nylon-coated cable, this comes straight out of the factory in Pennsyl-vania. We go to Loos & Company for that material, an all in-house, all US-made product manufactured for us; this is a great product for us.”

For the big lifts they use a seven-eighths cable swage-compacted down to three quarters of an inch so that they can run a three quarters sheathing on it. This is produced by Delta Rigging, spun into cable here in the U.S. Traditionally that only comes in a greased form with injected, impacted grease contained in-side. “This does not come with galvaniza-tion. It is used in a wide variety of crane settings; but we can’t have the grease in our operations. Yet we have to have the galvanization so the cable can hang out-


Not much of a wait with this many ziplines running at once. Photo © Boys Scouts of America

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side and last for ten years.”Surprisingly, one of the biggest chal-

lenges Bonsai Design faces now is the really soft response from needed volun-teers to run the system. Internal audit-ing has revealed that the zip lines and canopy tours are the number one rated thing that scouts want to do, above the BMX pump tracks, the aquatics park and everything else. However the zip lines are also what requires the most time commitment from volunteers. Four to five days of high angle rescue training just to be safe to help participants out of a jam at 200 feet above the ground if they have to. Applicants must be in excellent physical shape and be able to manipu-late their bodies while in a full-body har-ness as well as pull themselves up.

The zip line runs stretch anywhere from 150 to 1500 feet long on the cano-py tours and the big zips are up to 3100 feet long; there are five of those. The topography is used quite a bit with the lines being attached to trees and guy systems are created that can flex with the forest and the wind; a lot of termi-nation techniques come into play. A line cannot simply be bolted to the tree and then left as that will damage the tree, according to Shrader.

The cables will in turn go out across gorges. Then riders will get the 200 foot heights above the ground. The canopy tour runs anywhere from 15 feet up to 70 feet up into the trees depending upon how big the tree is. Setting the course up is fairly comprehensive when the course is being planned out. Each one of the lines must have a specific catenary curve that’s calibrated both in its pitch and tension to achieve a safe entry speed in the deceleration zone for the participants.

“That’s just the normal thing,” ex-plains Shrader. “You must figure out how to get the course to work sequen-tially with the different lengths so that each line runs correctly. Then what we did was to tie all the eight canopy tours required to be in the same gorge to-gether. They are going over and under one another, looping in and out of each other. A kid might see somebody else zipping overhead or underneath him and realize that he’s not going on that same line, but is traveling on some oth-er course he’s not even on. This makes it really exciting for the kids.”

The canopy tours have brake systems at the end of each line that they can slow the riders down with but overall riders will be able to travel as fast as

the wind will allow them to travel. A closed-loop brake is used to slow riders down when they reach the end of each line; Bonsai Design came up with that design themselves.

The company ordered components from and worked with a variety of dif-ferent climbing equipment supply com-panies. Delta Rigging supplied wire rope as well as a lot of the hard goods that go into building a lot of courses, in-cluding fist links, rapid links and huge rigging sheaths.

Also, all of their nylon-coating wire was produced by Loos and Company in Pomfret, Connecticut.

“Delta Rigging really jumped through some hoops for us to find the right wire rope for us and that it was available,” adds Shrader. “The guys at Delta Rig-ging worked very hard to keep our business with this initial order. We had a very specific wire rope that we want-ed to; the Germans and Israelis didn’t have any available. I was extremely impressed with those guys.

At the jamboree’s opening this sum-mer there were some 32,000 scouts and leaders with an additional 8,000 staff for an approximate total of 40,000 par-ticipants. Although the AT&T summit

continued from page 10

Birdseye view of the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree Center. Photo © Boys Scouts of America


WIRE ROPE AD._YOKE.pdf 1 5/13/2013 9:31:54 AM


stadium has an expected maximum capacity of 70,000, the stadium had ap-proximately 41,000 in attendance at the stadium for the Saturday night show.

“Perhaps the biggest overall chal-lenge for us on this site has been inter-acting with all the different big, heavy infrastructure companies involved. They are preparing and moving mil-lions of yards of dirt to construct an amphitheater for 70,000 people and creating a small city that will go from up to 70,000 participants and visitors for ten days back to zero again. It’s an exercise in instant-urbanism, bringing all the necessities together.

“This was the biggest construction site in the United States while it was being worked on. Our workers are used to going into the forest and disappearing all day, seeing no one except for us. Trinity Works was the main contractor on the site.”

The philosophy on this job is to plan and think of the future, the future 100 years out, according to Shrader. The big, heavy infrastructure is being put in now and then for the next three or four years they will continue to con-struct buildings to eventually make this the mecca of the Boy Scouts.

The nylon jacketing on the wire rope allows for a smoother ride and experi-ence in addition to protecting the cable itself, according to Robert Davis, Loos and Company sales and marketing manager. “I have always understood that keeping the ride as quiet as possi-ble always makes for a more enjoyable experience. Running on bare metal will definitely be a noisier situation.

“Supplying the material for this project wasn’t difficult for us to do; it was well within the realm of our capabilities as a manufacturer. What was most rewarding for us was to be able to work with our ex-pertise in the cable business and match up with the requirements that Bonsai Design had for durability and user ex-perience and then matching the correct product with their application. Loos and Company is very good at working in these specific applications and working within our competencies and capabilities. We fit well with niche situations.”

It helps to be able to provide them with a consistent and quality product that can be used without reinventing the wheel each time. Davis finds Bon-sai Design truly a niche application as projects continue to arise from the com-pany from California to Maine. “We’re shipping to adventure parks and cours-es that Bonsai Design is doing all over the country,” says Davis. “We are gen-erally shipping them cable all the time.

For a project such as this it tends to take a couple of months to get every-thing ready before we ship to them.

“I think it’s wonderful that the in-dustry is such that geographically dis-persed companies can work together on a project like this. To support the Boy Scouts in West Virginia a Colorado company contacted a wire rope com-pany in Connecticut; it’s just great to get our product down there and to be a part of this. It’s never the biggest or the most consuming projects that give you the most pride, it’s these smaller ones where we can find the right mix of cable know how and performance and get that out there to them. In addition to this we know the kids are going to be safe, Bonsai is a great company to work with; we make a great product here with Loos and Company.”

Delta Rigging is virtually the only rigging house between Denver and Salt Lake City an area that is also seeing a lot of growth in the oil, gas and energy industry. They take care of several coal mine operations as well as gas, oil drill-ing and crane services.

“This job was a lot of legwork match-ing safety factors of this job were differ-ent versus prior jobs; the strength fac-tor had to go up on the rope,” explains Justin Tate, Delta Rigging inside sales rep. “At one point their engineering was pushing to use a non-spin rotation-resistant rope because of the strength. But it was so expensive and their bud-get wasn’t close to that. We had to find some middle ground.

“Once you start looking at non-rota-tional, it’s very strong but very costly. Fifty thousand feet of rope all of a sud-den becomes very expensive very fast. We deal direct with mills quite a bit - avoiding the middle man – and this gives us better buying power as well as saving money.”

Delta Rigging was able push the mill to meet the due date that was required for the West Virginia project, according to Tate and to get a great price as well. “But every time we thought we had it figured out for them there seemed to be changes. The biggest challenge was meeting the deadline. For about half of the rope we went directly to the mill and for the other half we were able to pull from local suppliers. Once we got the strengths right that engineering was requiring – including changes – at that point we had to go to stronger rope. We had samples flown in to get them to try for a speed run.”

As soon as it was narrowed down they could concentrate on their May first deadline, having all the rope sitting in

West Virginia. On this project they had barely 90 days and they also had to push the mill to get it even sooner than that to where they could have the wire rope delivered on site to the project within in 90 days. The mill they worked with finally came through with no problem.

“It was literally six weeks of back and forth, back and forth as well as being nothing more than finding the best bang for the buck. We had to make sure that it was realistic; every time we pushed the envelope a little bit I had to make some phone calls be certain we could do it. I had to know we could do it. Sure we can say we can do it, but we don’t want to tell you that, unless we can actually do that. That was the biggest challenge, jumping through the hoops to make sure it would all work.”

Timing was critical in getting the right price. It is common for something to be needed immediately in the energy indus-try, according to Tate. “But we’d never dealt with a zip line manufacturer before – at least out of this office – so knowing what they were trying to do and who is very transparent was a great experience. This was something new that we’d never done out of here. We’re looking forward to doing a lot with Bonsai Design be-cause they are a great company, easy to work with and talk to.

“They gave us a shot at this; that’s all we wanted. Being able to meet their deadline was huge. The best quality for the best price, within the deadline all came together somehow. We had, at one point 30,000 feet of their ship-ment – here waiting to be delivered.” The remaining 17,500 feet came in as expected the next week.

Delta Rigging has dealt with Bonsai Design on a lot of other tooling as well, opening a door for them in other areas. Work started in the middle of December with working going forward earnestly in January. End fittings and pull testing still needs to be done on the second half of the order. This will happen once the rest of the order comes in from the mill.

“We are a full service rigging shop,” adds Tate. “We deal with all major manufacturers and build custom rig-ging in here every day; there’s not much we can’t do.”

For scouts zipping over and under-neath each other on a spider’s web of wire rope intermingled among the West Virginia forest, during the unforgetta-ble summer of 2013 there was little time to wonder about all the construction de-tails. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t appreciate all the hard work of getting things all set up and ready to go before July of 2013. WRN



Wallenda’s successful walk would never have been pos-sible without the efforts of

Wirerope Works’ engineering team who worked closely with Wallenda’s own group to design a rope that would meet his exact specifications. In fact, the 2,200-foot cord manufactured by Wirerope Works was the same one that Wallenda used to cross Niagara Falls in June 2012. Just two inches thick, the “special order” rope took about 16 to 18 weeks to produce. It weighed

eight tons—heavy enough so it would not sway too much in a breeze—and was composed of six strands, with 49 wires each and a steel center with 49 wires. It could have held up to 200 tons.

Kim Konyar, product engineer at Wirerope’s plant, said that Wal-lenda had approached three compa-nies that make wire ropes before he settled on Wirerope’s product. “He actually toured the facility,” Konyar said, and Wallenda chose to have his tightrope made by Wirerope Works

because he liked the plant’s manu-facturing process and the people he dealt with there. “He wasn’t sure what he wanted at the time.” Konyar said. “We made the decision on what type of wire rope Nik required and what the production and operating parameters needed to be. From that information, I was able to design the ropes and issue the specific require-ments for production and testing. We did a break test here to prove that it had the strength it needed.” He

Wirerope Works, Inc., Aids in Success of Nik Wallenda’s

Harrowing Walk Over GorgeEarlier this summer when Nik Wallenda crossed over the Little Colorado River Gorge near the Grand Canyon on a tightrope—without a safety net—he trusted the expertise of Wirerope Works, Inc., manufacturer of Bethlehem Wire Rope in Williamsport, PA, to help him accomplish his daredevil feat.

By Kay Shirk

Wirerope Works, Inc., manufactured the rope used by Nik Wallenda for his historic walks over Niagara Falls and the Little Colorado River Gorge, Grand Canyon.

Photos: Copyright © 2013 Keith Meehan / www.RK5ConstructionMarketing.com


continued on next page

added that those who came in contact with Wallenda found him to be an in-teresting person.

The 34-year-old Wallenda of Sara-sota, FL, comes from a family known for their death-defying feats. He is a seventh-generation high-wire art-ist—part of the famous “Flying Wal-lendas” circus family. For crossing 1,500 feet above the Little Colorado River Gorge, part of Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park, Wallenda did not wear a harness. The event on June 23 was broadcast live on the Discovery Channel and watched by millions. Wallenda said after the walk that the winds were at times “unpredictable”; dust blew into his eyes, making it especially challeng-ing for him to stay focused. He wore a microphone and two cameras; his leather shoes had elk-skin soles to help him keep a grip on the steel cable, and he could be heard praying quietly as he moved slowly over the gorge. The walk took more than 22 minutes, and twice he had to pause

and crouch as the winds whipped around him and the rope swayed.

“I sat on the edge of my chair and held my breath the entire time he crossed the Grand Canyon,” said Norm Szamocki, Wirerope’s director of oper-ations. Konyar added, “The strength is in the rope, integrity is in the rope....we just sat back, white-knuckled the walk and cheered him on.”

Although designing and manufac-turing the wire rope for such an event was a first for Wirerope Works, their Bethlehem Wire Rope products have

played a major role in many structural and offshore projects for six decades. Since beginning in 1886 as a small lo-cal wire rope mill, the company has evolved into an internationally recog-nized manufacturer of wire and wire rope, housed in a 46-acre facility, with more than 620,000 square feet under roof. It is now the single largest wire rope manufacturing facility in North America, manufacturing and selling wire rope, structural strand and re-lated products.

The company offers hoist, governor, compensating, standard rope, spin-re-sistant rope, specialized rope and plas-tic-infused wire ropes; spiral strand and other wire ropes; boom pendants, specialized pendants, ski ropes, cable assemblies and specialized assem-blies; and rotary and plastic-infused drill, tubing, specialized tubing, sand and swab, well measuring and ser-vicing products and mooring lines. Through its service centers it also provides customer support. Wirerope

• took nearly 18 weeks to produce.• weighs eight tons.• measures two inches thick.• is composed of six strands, with

49 wires in each strand and a steel center with 49 wires.

• is 2,200 feet long.• could hold up to 200 tons.

The wire rope manufactured by Wirerope Works, Inc., for Nik Wallenda’s high-wire feats:

Nik Wallenda used Wirerope Works’ rope in June 2012 to make his death-defying walk over Niagara Falls at night in a near-blinding mist.

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continued from previous pageWorks’ products are used in elevator, construction and industrial, logging, mining, ocean cable systems, oil field and marine, ski area and structural applications.

Wirerope Works can manufacture its products in a wide range of sizes, including wire that is slightly larger than a human hair to wire rope and strand measuring more than five inches in diameter. The largest wire rope ever produced in the United States—5¾" in diameter—was made by Wirerope Works in 1995.

The company has the necessary equipment and experience for testing wire for tensile strength, diameter, reduction of area, torsional capabil-ity of the wire and galvanized coating weight. In their laboratory, the rope can be tested for carbon and man-ganese, as well as analyzed for steel microstructure. Wirerope’s in-house tensile testing machine has a capaci-ty of 400,000 pounds for testing ropes through 2" diameter; larger diameter ropes are tested in the prestretch-ing track with a maximum load of 750,000 pounds.

Through the use of outside services, Wirerope Works’ tensile test capac-

ity is 5,000,000 pounds. The company also has available in-house proofloading ma-chines where employees can proofload attached fittings at loads up to 1,000,000 pounds.

Over the years the compa-ny’s products have been in-corporated into an extensive range of building or renova-tion projects for structures including Madison Square Garden in New York City, the Brooklyn Bridge, Denver International Airport and the Buzzards Bay Vertical Lift Bridge in Massachu-setts. In addition, its inter-national clients have includ-ed the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, the Puente Duarte Bridge in Domini-can Republic and the Petro-bras floating production, storage and offloading unit for the Barracuda oil field off the coastline of Brazil.

The design and manufacture of the wire rope for Nik Wallenda may have been the most unusual project ever tackled by Wirerope Works, Inc. But their innovative team of engineers and manufacturing per-

sonnel welcomed the challenge and subsequently played a critical role in Wallenda’s successful daredevil walks. Once again, Wirerope Works, Inc., demonstrated why it is interna-tionally renowned for the superior craftsmanship and performance that are the hallmarks of the company today. WRN

Kim Konyar, Wirerope Works’ engineer, worked with Nik Wallenda’s own team to design the rope used for the high-wire artist’s walk over the Little Colorado River Gorge, Grand Canyon.

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For New York, a city existing because of the superior water bodies surrounding it, the East River challenged the linking of the city’s five boroughs as well as to the rich farmland of the largest island on the Atlantic Coast – Long Island. The idea of a bridge crossing the river was miraculous and time-saving for those residents on both sides – who were long accustomed to crowded, chilly ferry rides across the East River.

By 1860, Brooklyn was the third largest city in the United States, with only New York and Phila-

delphia ahead of it. But 40% of Brook-lyn’s wage earners worked in Manhat-tan; by 1865, five ferry lines made some 1,000 trips across the East River each day. It’s hard for us today to picture the East River of those times, a rather hec-tic body of water.

About a tenth of the inhabitants of Brooklyn boarded a Union Ferry Com-pany vessel and crossed the East River twice each day in these cold, undepend-able and crowded boats. New York’s

legislature approved a construction bill for a bridge as early as 1857. During one cold winter in the 1860s the East River froze over, letting residents cross with ease; demand for a bridge became even more urgent.

At the time of its completion, the Brooklyn Bridge was the largest sus-pension bridge in the world. Brooklyn Bridge is the first steel-wire suspension bridge in the world. Initially, Brooklyn Bridge was known as ‘New York and Brooklyn Bridge’. It was given its pres-ent name by the city government, in 1915. In 1964, Brooklyn Bridge was des-

ignated a National Historic Landmark.From 1873 to 1874 work proceeded

on the iconic two neo-Gothic granite towers as well as the anchorages for the structures. They were designed to withstand strong winds and sup-port rail lines as well; 130 years later they’re still solid and strong.

John Roebling, the bridge’s designer also constructed the Cincinnati Bridge over the Ohio River. Originally from Germany, Roebling had always been fascinated with suspension bridges. Af-ter witnessing the deaths of two men due to the failure of hemp rope on the

A Bridge Grows in BrooklynBy Peter Hildebrandt

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Tourists on the famous Brooklyn Bridge Walk amid a web of wire rope. Photo copyright Don Tywoniw

Pennsylvania Portage Canal, he devel-oped the technology and rope-making techniques for constructing wire rope in this country.

Compared to the Brooklyn Bridge, the foundation construction on the Cin-cinnati Bridge structure was a snap; the bridge’s foundation is in water sev-eral feet deep at most. The East River’s bottom was sand and at that time no one had any idea how deep a founda-tion would have to be laid in order to support the tremendous weight of the bridge’s two huge towers.

Eventually it was discovered that the foundation would have to be sunk some 40 to 80 feet deep. John’s son, Washington Roebling largely took over supervision of this Cinconstruction to free up time for his father to involve himself with other projects. Roebling’s son gained valuable knowledge and

skills from this experience. John Roebling died before the con-

struction on the bridge had truly started from a foot crushing accident on an East River pier while he and his son Washington were inspecting the site where work was to begin. Roe-bling stepped to get out of the way of a boat about to land at the wharf, but instead his foot got caught on a knot on the wood and was crushed between the boat and the dock.

The injury eventually resulted in his death from tetanus 17 days later. Roe-bling’s lifelong dislike for doctors – his belief in homeopathic cures such as hy-drotherapy – most likely hastened his death; when he finally was in such ag-ony that he was brought to a doctor the infection was already too far advanced. Roebling died in extreme pain after the tragic accident.

The building of the bridge took place with the backdrop of the 19th century politics of “Boss Tweed.” Tweed unof-ficially ruled government in New York with great corruption swirling around even the building of the bridge. He was arrested in the midst of its construction.

“One of the biggest concerns was that, since this was a private – public partnership that the building of the bridge would be another money pit, an-other incredibly corrupt building proj-ect,” explains Julie Golia, Ph.D., public historian at the Brooklyn Historical Society. “In reaction to that the New York Bridge Company did everything exactly by the book, sending out pro-posals as per city policy, not just using Roebling’s wire.

“Instead the job was opened up to anyone who wanted to apply for it. In

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continued from previous pagethe middle of work on the bridge, it was determined that the wire rope of J. Lloyd Haigh of Brooklyn was not strong enough, it was too brittle and at that point it was too late to re-wire the entire bridge. Some seven million pounds of wire went into the construc-tion of the bridge. In the end, more wire rope had to be added to strengthen the bridge. This was one of many public re-lations disasters involved with the con-struction of the bridge; but the bridge

work succeeded, was built so strongly in the midst of this crazy political envi-ronment of the time.”

Construction on the bridge started in 1869 and the bridge took 14 years to complete; the cost then was $15 mil-lion dollars which would be $320 mil-lion dollars today. A pair of watertight chambers, caissons – two, one for each of the towers and each weighing 3,000 tons – were built from wood, floated downriver to where they were needed for the foundation work. Stones were

placed atop these air-tight wooden box-es until the caissons sunk to the bottom where the foundation would eventually be. Pressurized air in turn was pumped into the chambers to allow construction of the Brooklyn Bridge’s foundation.

As we may imagine, the work envi-ronment in these crude underwater containers was brutal. “Inside the cais-son everything wore an unreal appear-ance,” described E.F. Farrington, mas-ter mechanic under John Roebling’s son Washington Roebling. “There was a confused sensation in the head, like ‘the rush of many waters’.

“The pulse was at first accelerated, then sometimes fell below the normal rate. The voice sounded faint unnatural and it became a great effort to speak. What with the flaming lights, the deep shadows, the confusing noise of ham-mers, drills and chains, the half-naked forms flitting about, if of a poet temper-ament, get a realizing sense of Dante’s inferno. One thing to me was noticeable – time passed quickly in the caisson.”

Washington Roebling was himself a victim of the pressure sickness also known as “the bends” which ended up crippling him for the rest of his life. Nitrogen bubbles painfully form in the body’s bloodstream as a result of the pressure difference involved. Roebling’s wife Emily, however, was instrumental in helping her husband complete his work on guiding construc-tion of the bridge. She carried a steady stream of instructions from her hus-band’s sickroom to the worksite.

Roebling meticulously designed the caissons. They were ingenious, if ex-tremely dangerous due to explosions, wa-ter flooding the compartments and fire. Replacement of the caisson which was burned was expensive. When work was completed the caissons were filled with concrete. Over one hundred men suffered from what became known as “Caisson Disease”with the threat from the disease growing more critical as the the caisson went deeper into the river bottom.

When work at ever greater depths tested even the bravest and most hardy of the workers and engineers, Roebling made the daring decision to halt fur-ther foundation construction while the caisson on the Brooklyn side was still 30 feet above bedrock; to this day the Brooklyn tower still rests on sand above the river bottom’s bedrock. He was an invalid after his bout of the bends.

Immigrant workers ended up being paid some two dollars per day for this hazardous work. Twenty men were killed during the bridge’s construction,


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continued from page 22including John Roebling, the designer of the bridge and also someone who has been called the “Father of the Ameri-can Wire Rope.”

The bridge’s two towers were actu-ally higher – at 276 feet – than nearly all the buildings in New York at the time. Believe it or not, after it was completed, it was the world’s longest suspension bridge. With a total length of 5,989 feet, the bridge also contained four main cables containing 3,515 miles of steel wire rope cable each and holding the platform of the bridge deck aloft were more than 1,000 suspender cables. Zinc coating of the cables was done to prevent rust – first time this procedure had been attempted on a bridge. The structure was also the first bridge to have electric lighting.

By the winter of 1877 the temporary footbridge on the structure was done and workers began spinning the four main cables at the anchorages on the Brooklyn and Manhattan sides of the bridge. Those four steel cables were ca-pable of supporting 11,200 tons each, connecting the anchorages with the two towers; cables in turn pass over saddles inside each tower.

The four main cables each have a di-

ameter of 15 inches and are comprised of 19 strands incorporating a total of 5,434 steel wires. Following the spin-ning of the four large cables – accom-plished by the fall of 1878, additional wire ropes were strung from those down to the bridge floor, with over 14,400 miles of wire used for those suspender wire ropes. Now the deck beams could be constructed and diago-nal stays installed.

Cables constructed in place on the bridge. Wires were laid parallel. Roe-bling’s sons did not make the cables for the bridge. J. Lloyd Haigh in Brooklyn made the wire rope. A breakage in some wire rope alerted construction manag-ers to the fact that inferior wire rope had been used in the bridge. Haigh had submitted the same superior wire rope for inspections over and over. Haigh eventually went prison. Additional wire rope had to be added to strength-en the inferior rope that had been used. Roebling’s sons made the connecting wire rope attached to the main cables.

Emily Roebling was the first per-son to cross the bridge on its roadbed, the week before its official opening in May 1883. The bridge was built in an age when materials were brought to the site by horse and wagons, with-

out mechanized tools or telephones to transmit important information. Six story buildings were skyscrapers in those days, so crossing the bridge, which its incredible height for the time was truly a marvel for residents.

Emily Roebling’s remaining in the background, publicity-wise despite her being instrumental in the bridge’s con-struction was due at least partially to her own hand, according to Golia. “She was not a trained engineer but essen-tially self-trained herself to become one on site when her husband became sick. But the idea of a woman being inti-mately involved in such construction in the 19th Century was incredibly prob-lematic. In the background was some-what of a clandestine movement to try to get Washington Roebling removed as the chief engineer on the job.

“Emily was therefore protecting her husband’s role by downplaying her in-volvement to make sure no one would be questioning whether or not he had the professional willpower, health and vitality to be able to do this project. But we cannot overstate how cata-strophic it would have been for word to have gotten out that a woman was overseeing construction of what was

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continued from page 24the longest bridge in the world at the time; wouldn’t have been simply odd, it would have been problematic.”

The area ferries did eventually shut down, operating for some 40 more years. “Part of their decline was a re-sult of the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge but part also resulted from the same developmental push bringing about the bridge in the first place in the face of a rapidly growing population unable to be supported by a ferry sys-tem whether there was a bridge or not.

“In Brooklyn, Robert Fulton had es-tablished the first ferry system in the world in 1814, when Brooklyn was a tiny agricultural community of per-haps less than seven thousand. By the 1860s over a quarter of a million people lived there and by the turn of the cen-tury over one million people lived there – far too many to be serviced by a hand-ful of ferry boats.

“Lost to history is much information on the lost neighborhoods in the wake of the bridge construction. The free black community, one with little voice in the matter was displaced along with much of the industry in that area. These are stories you don’t often hear. The bridge was presented as a triumph, but the

people displaced have been largely for-gotten as have those people who were either killed during construction or who later died due to their affliction with the bends which often restricted them the rest of their lives. If all of those individuals are added in, over 100 people died in the construction of the bridge over time. Directly on site some 25-35 people died.”

Described as the Eighth Wonder of the world, the Great East River Bridge stood as proof of what Americans could achieve. More than a suspension bridge, connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan; it symbolizes New York. The excitement at the time it was first opened has not really gone away as the bridge’s magnif-icent design still inspires. It represents magnificence, change, unity, improve-ment, and influence. When Armstrong landed on the moon in 1969, a Long Is-land woman was interviewed about it; she reported in a newspaper interview that that accomplishment was alright – but it was nothing like like the day the Brooklyn Bridge opened.

In 1867, John Roebling reported that he considered the bridge he designed and was about to construct be more than simply a construction project but also a work of art. We don’t typi-

cally think of wire rope or the Father of the American wire rope industry when we see the Brooklyn Bridge. But if it weren’t for wire rope’s durability, strength and existence there would not be a Brooklyn Bridge, at least not as we see it today. WRN

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Workers’ CompensationEmployers Grapple with Higher Costs

By Phillip M. Perry

Employers are getting hit with higher workers’ compensation costs as the insurance industry changes its calculation for the “experience modification factor,” the critical number in the premium calculation formula. In response to escalating medical costs and a declining number of carriers, business owners are instituting programs to control the impact of workplace accidents.

Employers have long been con-cerned about the cost of work-ers’ compensation insurance.

This year, though, the premium en-vironment seems particularly harsh as the insurance industry changes the way it calculates the “experi-ence rating modification,” or x-mod, that powerful pricing engine gear as-signed to each employer. The change is expected to result in higher rates at a time when premiums are already

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continued from page 28rising quickly in response to escalat-ing medical costs.

As if all that weren’t enough, a growing number of carriers are leav-ing the market, diminishing the sup-ply of competing policies and putting even more upward pressure on the price of this mandated benefit.

It all boils down to a challenge for employers. “We are currently in an environment of rising workers’ com-pensation costs,” says Peter Burton,

Senior Division Executive for State Relations at the National Council on Compensation Insurance, Boca Ra-ton, FL (ncci.com). The new math

For business owners, the most im-mediate concern is the change in the x-mod. The portion of each claim that will flow into the experience rating formula at its full primary value will increase to $10,000 from the former level of $5,000. (See sidebar, “Calcu-lating the New X-Mod.” on page 32)

The reason for the change, says Bur-ton, is the growing mismatch between the cost of claims and the premiums employers pay. “The split point por-tion of the experience rating formula has not been updated for 20 years, a period during which the average cost of a claim has tripled,” says Burton. “So our actuaries looked at the pro-gram and saw it was out of balance.”

Some industry observers recognize the connection. “The new x-mod calcu-lation is a reflection of medical costs which have gone up exponentially in recent years,” says Daniel C. Free, President and General Counsel of In-surance Audit & Inspection, Indianap-olis, IN. (insuranceaudit.com). “The NCCI is really just catching up. The new mod can be seen as a ‘true-up.’”

Be that as it may, employers are sit-ting up and paying attention to the new math. “The x-mod changes are a big deal for employers,” says Karl Ahlrichs, benefits consultant for In-dianapolis based insurance broker Gregory & Appel (gregoryappel.com). Those employers with historically safe workplaces are going to be better off under the new system. Those with more frequent, higher level claims will see their x-mods increase. “The impact will vary based on the number and size of claims the employer has had.”

Carriers leaving the marketA third factor contributes to pre-

mium angst: A dwindling supply of carriers serving the market. “We are seeing a growing number of cases where multiline (auto, property, um-brella, general liability) carriers are refusing to renew workers’ comp in-surance for an employer whose ex-perience is unfavorable,” says Mike Salazar, Vice President and Manager of Client Services at Gregory & Ap-pel. The reason for carrier’s growing reluctance is clear: “In a low inter-est rate environment carriers cannot make up workers’ comp losses with profits from property and other insur-ance products.”

“Employers turned down by the multiline outfits must apply to the single line workers’ comp insur-ance carriers,” says Salazar. While the premiums at such carriers may not be much higher, there is an-other problem: Insurance carriers are become more judicious in what they underwrite, due to the rising costs of the workers’ compensation system. “Single line carriers are be-coming more prone to accept only employers with strong claims man-

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agement and risk control engineer-ing,” says Salazar.

Employers with poor histories may have to go to the state pools for cov-erage. “These are pools you do not want to go swimming in,” says Sala-zar. “They are expensive. They charge standard premiums, adjusted for the employers’ experience, plus a 20 to 25 percent surcharge. And you do not get the same service. For example, there is no engineer to come in and help you manage your safety program.”Hire smart

Employers can take a variety of steps to keep workers’ comp costs under control. Right out of the gate, say consultants, vetting potential hires can obviate problems down the road. “Change your hiring practices to reflect your drive to get people who value safety,“ says Ahlrichs. “It’s legitimate, for example, to ask safety related questions that are work related.”

Also look at pre-hire assessments that can predict safety behaviors. It is valid to ask applicants to perform the activities required of a position, for example. “This is called a ‘fit for duty’ assessment,” says Salazar. “Can

the applicant do the job safely based on its requirements?”

Finally, conduct pre-employment

drug screens. “That’s a good way to avoid hiring people who will file work-

continued from page 30Calculating the New X-Mod

Workers’ compensation premiums are rising at a rate of between two and five percent in many states this year. Reason? Several factors. One is the rising cost of medical care, translating into higher costs to return in-jured workers’ to health. Another is the departure from the market of some multiline insurance carriers, reducing competition for employers.

There’s also a third factor: a change in the calculation for the “experi-ence modification factor,” or x-mod, which is assigned to each employer. A higher x-mod translates into higher workers’ compensation premiums.

The details of the change in the x-mod calculation can be found at the web site of the National Council on Compensation Insurance (ncci.com). Click on “Experience Rating Split Point” at the lower right corner of the screen.

When calculating an employer’s x-mod, the states will look at three years of losses and payrolls. However, the most recent year is excluded. “The rea-son for that is that when a claim is made no one can predict the cost of the claim and set money aside to pay it,” says Salazar. “The reality is we have to see how the claim settles out.”

Expect more costly x-mod adjustments ahead. “It is significant that the split point will continue to rise,” says Mike Salazar, Vice President and Man-ager of Client Services at Gregory & Appel. “It will move to $15,000 and adjust for inflation in future years.”

Rising costs in workers’ comp seems to have the greatest effect on those employers without the resources to institute safety programs, or which have especially high costs of labor. “My experience has been that small businesses have a tough time absorbing these cost increases,” says Salazar.


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ers’ comp claims,” says Salazar. “Peo-ple who take drugs are more likely to have accidents, hurting themselves or others.” Drug abusers, too, can suf-fer from poor health. “Employees who are in poor health when they do have accidents usually end up with more expensive claims.”

However, don’t fall into the trap of discrimination. It is improper, and il-legal, to reject older applicants under the belief that they will have more ac-cidents. “Older workers tend to work more safely than younger workers’ because they know the job better,” says Burton.

It’s true that older workers, when they do get injured, often have cost-lier injuries because they do not heal as quickly as younger ones, notes Bur-ton. However, this is offset by the fact that older workers tend to be higher paid and this correlates to higher pre-miums being collected in the workers’ compensation system. “In the aggre-gate older workers do not adversely affect the costs of workers’ comp.” Install safety programs

Given that the x-mod rating is based on an employer’s accident record, it is wise to put an emphasis on workplace

safety, says Burton. “The message to the employers is this: Clean up your act, have a safe workplace and you are likely to reap greater benefits under the revised experience rating system.”

Undertake a program of constant safety vigilance. “Hold a monthly meeting during which you review

every single accident and near miss accident,” suggests Salazar. “Investi-gate every event and develop a correc-tive strategy so the accident does not happen again to that employee or an-other worker.” The response might be something as simple as fixing a hole in your parking lot.


continued from page 32Controlling costs at the state level

Nervous about rising workers’ compensation insurance? State govern-ments are trying to do something about it.

“Medical cost containment is one of the biggest topics this year in state legislatures,” says Peter Burton, Senior Division Executive for State Relations at the National Council on Compensation Insurance, Boca Ra-ton, FL (ncci.com). “Medical fee schedules are being examined. States are also considering limiting the ability of physicians to dispense injured workers’ repackaged drugs that can be purchased much more inexpen-sively at the pharmacy.”

There is also a major initiative by legislative organizations to place con-straints on the abuse of prescription drugs, according to Burton. “More individuals die from overdoses of prescription drugs than from cocaine and heroin abuse.”

“Because many injuries qualifying under workers’ compensation are traumatic in nature, drugs for pain relief are often prescribed,” says Bur-ton. “This may be abused over time. Also, the longer workers stay on these drugs the longer it takes the injured workers’ to return to work.”

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continued from page 34Many employers have redesigned

their work stations, and introduced stretching and exercise programs to assure good employee health. “Strains and sprains, and slips and falls are the most common claims in workers’ comp industry,” says Sala-zar. “They can be engineered out of the workplace.”

Wellness program can also play a role. “My sense is that there will emerge a body of data that links effective wellness programs with effective safety programs,” says Ahlrichs. “The combination should produce a great result on workers’ comp costs. Right now it’s diffi-cult to find supporting data, but it makes sense that a company with a

focus on safety and well being will gain a competitive advantage.”Back to work

Another good technique is to have early return to work programs for em-ployees who have been medically re-stricted by physicians. The trick here is to identify alternative positions for which the injured worker is capable.

“Suppose the worker has a medical restriction such as ‘Can’t lift more that 15 pounds,’” poses Salazar. “See if you have tasks that require lifting less than 15 pounds that you can assign the employee to while recovering.”

There is an advantage to employees who cooperate, since most employers will compensate them at their nor-mal salary, but only provide partial compensation to workers who stay

home. And there’s another reason: Adjustors will suspend the workers’ comp claims of employees who refuse temporary positions. “Workers’ comp is there for people who cannot work for medical reasons, not for those who refuse to work,” says Salazar.

Can’t find a temporary position for an injured worker? Then keep open lines of communication with the home bound person. “Once people are hurt really badly they lose their desire to be part of a team,” says Free. “They feel forgotten and alone. Their spouses may be off at work while they are home with a broken leg. So we always tell our clients to visit them. Bring some fruit, talk for a half hour, show the person you care about him and want him back as soon as possible. That really helps. The little things that employers do make all the difference.”

All of these steps together can communicate an attitude of caring. “Adopt policies that send the right message to your workforce,” says Ahl-richs. “Your message should be this: ‘We have a culture of safety. We at-tempt to control the variables so peo-ple do not get hurt. If you do get hurt we will get you back to work quickly.’ When that message gets out, people who are prone to accidents will ap-ply at another business that does not make safety a front burner issue.”Get help

Employers can seek help from con-sultants who specialize in workplace safety. “Some of these people go through special training,” says Free, who suggests employers look for des-ignations such as “Associate in Loss Control Management” or “Certified Safety Professional.” Such people can teach employees in good workplace practices, including lifting properly and avoiding shoulder injuries.

Consultants can make a big differ-ence, but lay out parameters before the safety guru arrives. “One of the bad raps consultants get is that they make recommendations that are too expensive,” says Free. So emphasize you want suggestions on improve-ment that are cost neutral. “In such cases these improvements pay for themselves as losses go down.”

A safe workplace can reduce your accident load and thus cap or even reduce your workers’ comp premiums as your x-mod improves. That’s all to the good. The cost of insurance is an integral component in competition, whether you produce a product or service. WRN



Preliminary steel imports decrease 14% in June Import market share 23% in June

Based on preliminary Census Bu-reau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that the U.S. imported a total of 2,442,000 net tons (NT) of steel in June, includ-ing 1,956,000 net tons (NT) of finished steel (down 14% and 9%, respectively, vs. May final data). Year-to-date (YTD) total and finished steel imports are 15,714,000 and 12,351,000 net tons (NT), respectively, down 11% and 9% vs. 2012.

Annualized total and finished steel imports in 2013 would be 31.4 and 24.7 million NT, down 6% and 4% respec-tively vs. 2012. Finished steel import market share was an estimated 23% in June and is estimated at 23% YTD.

Key finished steel products with a significant import increase in June 2013 compared to May are plates in coils (up 30%), mechanical tubing (up 18%) and hot rolled sheets (up 10%).

In June, the largest volumes of fin-ished steel imports from offshore were all from Asia and Europe. They were from South Korea (234,000 NT, down 17% vs. May final), China (153,000 NT, down 17%), Japan (129,000 NT, down 24%), Germany (106,000 NT, up 67%) and Turkey (99,000 NT, down 42%). For six months of 2013, the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (1,752,000 NT, down 7%), Ja-pan (955,000 NT, down 5%), China (896,000 NT, up 11%), Turkey (740,000 NT, down 18%) and Germany (556,000 NT, down 13%). Below are charts on estimated steel import market share in recent months and on finished steel imports from offshore by country.

AISI says USTR nominee would “work well with steel industry”

The American Iron and Steel Insti-tute (AISI) said it was encouraged by the Senate Finance Committee hear-ing to confirm Michael Froman, one of President Obama’s key trade advis-ers, as the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). Thomas J. Gibson, President and CEO of AISI, said he was pleased that Froman appears to be willing to listen to the concerns of the steel in-dustry regarding the surge of steel imports, currency manipulation by a number of foreign countries, the trade disparities caused by state-owned en-terprises and their government subsi-dies for manufacturing, and other un-

fair trade practices.“AISI works closely with the Office

of the USTR and looks forward to con-tinuing our open and frank dialogue to address the critical trade issues facing the industry. Michael Froman has been a responsive partner in ensuring the interests of the manufacturing sector are brought to the table. As the sena-tors at the hearing heard today, he is a well-versed advocate for fair trade and will make an excellent trade ambassa-dor,” Gibson said.

Froman, who currently serves as Deputy National Security Adviser for International Economic Affairs, ad-dressed the AISI Board of Directors at its November Board Meeting in Wash-ington, D.C. He currently serves as an Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Adviser for interna-tional economics, and has been deeply involved in the Obama administra-tion’s international economic agenda for the past four years, working from the White House on the discussions for

the proposed US-EU trade and invest-ment negotiations and leading the ad-ministration’s preparations for major economic summits.

Bright outlook for wire & Tube Southeast Asia 2013

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continued from page 38for these industries in the region, wire and Tube Southeast ASIA 2013 will feature an impressive representation of market leaders, including national pavilions and country group exhibits from Austria, China, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Taiwan and the U.S. Orga-nized by Messe Düsseldorf Asia, over 300 companies will be exhibiting at both events, showcasing innovations and trends on high-performing ma-chinery, processing and automation in the wire, cable, tube and pipe industry.

Southeast Asia: Gateway to a Single Market & Production Base in 2015

Southeast Asia remains resilient amidst persistent global economic un-certainty, projecting an average annual growth rate of 5.5% over the next five years to 2017. This indicates that trade fairs continue to fulfill the industries’ needs as an international business me-dium into the region. Southeast Asia is increasingly becoming a manufactur-ing and industrial hub for many global companies.

According to global industry analysts, the global market for seamless pipes and tubes is projected to reach 113.8 million tons by 2018. In addition, the global market for spiral welded pipes and tubes is expected to reach 24.6 million tons by 2018, driven by eco-nomic recovery, increase in activity in

the energy sector and growing pipeline construction projects. Industry reports indicate that the Asia-Pacific region represents the largest market world-wide, driven primarily by increased use in transporting natural gas. Similarly, business opportunities in the wire and cable industries are estimated to con-tribute approximately 3% of the world’s production of wire and cable. “wire and Tube Southeast ASIA is taking place at a critical time for the wire, cable, tube and pipe industries both in the region and globally. Companies scanning the region for market opportunities to di-versify products, markets and suppli-ers will find wire and Tube Southeast Asia the ideal platform for lucrative business exchange and networking op-portunities,” commented Gernot Ring-ling, Managing Director of Messe Düs-seldorf Asia.

According to Gernot Ringling, this year’s trade fairs will see a compre-hensive display of products and ser-vices aimed particularly at enhancing productivity and operations, as well as cost-effective solutions. “In response to this emphasis, exhibitors will focus on innovation, from the latest processes and systems to services and products in order to meet supplier demands for productivity and efficiency gains. Trade visitors can also expect to see more machinery and equipment at this year’s events.”

Integrating Market Opportuni-ties with Industry Growth

Organized as a prelude to wire Southeast Asia 2013, a series of tech-nical seminars have been designed to bring the trade fair closer to the wire and cable industry by providing unique insights into the trends shaping this sector. The first round of technical sem-inars will start in Seoul, Korea on July 22, followed by Jakarta on July 24 and ending in Bangkok on July 26. These seminars are designed to provide a targeted learning platform for approxi-mately 500 wire and cable manufactur-ers in these countries.

The program for the technical semi-nars will include presentations focus-ing on the technological developments in the industry by Niehoff Group, Sikora AG, Reber Systematic GmbH + Co KG, EDER Engineering and Rosen-dahl Maschinen GmbH. The speakers will present the latest advancements in the fields of wire drawing, automotive wires, process filtration and measuring technology. Business strategies focused on innovation, production efficiency and productivity will be addressed dur-ing the sessions.

Online visitor pre-registration is now open until September 9, 2013 at www.wire-southeastasia.com and www.tube-southeastasia.com

For further information on visiting or exhibiting at wire or Tube Southeast ASIA 2013, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone: (312) 781-5180; Fax: (312) 781-5188; E-mail: [email protected]; Vis-it our web site www.mdna.com; Sub-scribe to our blog at blog.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at twitter.com/WireTube_MDNA.

Successful staging of Metallurgy Trade Fair quartet in Russia

At the recent staging of wire Rus-sia 2013, International Wire and Cable Trade Fair in Russia, 250 ex-hibitors from 26 countries displayed their latest technologies at the Expo-centre in Moscow. Held concurrent-ly were Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/Non-Ferrous 2013 with 330 exhibitors from 30 na-tions and Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013. Some 10,850 visitors from all parts of the Russian Federa-tion came to get a broad overview of pioneering trends.

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well as Russia Essen Welding & Cut-ting confirmed the importance of these trade fairs in the Russian Federation. The number of visitors shows that in-terest in an international specialist trade show for the wire, cable and wire-processing industries as well as for the metallurgy, foundry and tube-process-ing industries has increased even fur-ther in Russia. These trade fairs pro-vided the exhibiting companies with an excellent opportunity to present prod-ucts until now not shown in Russia to a broad expert audience and to deepen customer relationships, get new con-tacts and develop new business.

In addition to the individual exhibi-tors, countries such as Austria, China, France, Italy and the U.S. participated with country group exhibits again. As in the past, exhibitors from Germany took part in the official joint stand managed by the German Ministry of Economics and AUMA (Association of the German Trade Fair Industry). The North American group stand was organized by Messe Düsseldorf North America and supported by the Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Associa-tion (WCISA).

wire Russia, Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/ Non-Fer-

rous 2013 were again jointly organized by Messe Düsseldorf and its subsidiary Messe Düsseldorf Moscow and co-orga-nized by VNIIKP (All Russian Cable Scientific Research and Development Institute) and Metal Expo. Messe Es-sen was responsible for Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013.

Numerous international and na-tional industry associations supported the trade fairs. IWMA (International Wire & Machinery Association), IW-CEA (International Wire & Cable Ex-hibitors Association), VDKM (German Wire and Cable Machine Manufactur-ers Association), VÖDKM-AWCMA (Austrian Wire and Cable Machinery Manufacturers Association), IWCEA-France (International Wire and Cable Exhibitors Association-France), ACI-MAF (Italian Wire Machinery Manu-factures Association), SECRI (Shang-hai Electric Cable Research Institute) and WCISA (Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association) all contributed to making wire Russia 2013 a success-ful event.

ITA (International Tube Associa-tion), MC-CCPIT (Metallurgical Coun-cil of China Council for the Promotion) and AMAFOND (Italian Association of the Foundry Supplier) were the sup-

porting associations of Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/ Non-Ferrous 2013.

Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013 was supported by DVS (German Association of Welding and Associated Processes) and the Russian partner as-sociation NAKS (National Agency of Control and Welding).

The dates for the next staging of wire Russia, Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia, Aluminium/Non-Ferrous and Russia Essen Welding & Cutting will be announced at a later date. For in-formation on visiting or exhibiting at these events, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone: (312) 781-5180; Fax: (312) 781-5188; E-mail: [email protected]; Vis-it our web site www.mdna.com; Sub-scribe to our blog at blog.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at twitter.com/WireTube_MDNA.

Steel group lauds passage of bridge amendment

The American Iron and Steel Insti-tute (AISI) applauded the Senate pas-sage of an amendment to ensure that bridges most in need of repair are fixed

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continued from previous pageahead of any others. The measure, in-troduced by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), calls for bridges that have been classified by the Federal Highway Ad-ministration (FHWA) as “functionally obsolete” or “structurally deficient” to receive priority consideration for new federal bridge funding under the $500 million “Bridges in Critical Corridors” fund. The new program is included in the Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appro-priations bill.

Thomas J. Gibson, president and CEO of AISI, said, “Our nation’s infra-structure needs are at critical mass. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, nearly 25 percent of our nation’s bridges are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, and our deteriorating surface transpor-tation infrastructure could cost the American economy more than 876,000 jobs. Investments in surface transpor-tation directly impact the competi-tiveness of the manufacturing sector, especially by increasing demand for steel fabricated products which cre-ates valuable steel jobs. Senator Port-man’s amendment will help address this serious national concern and put

critical bridge repair funds where they are needed most.”

AISI calls on MTA to reconsider decision to use Chinese steel

The premier trade association representing North American steel producers asked the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) to reconsider their decision to allow an expected 15,000 tons of steel plate made in China to be used in the upper deck replacement project for the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.

In a letter to the MTA, Thomas J. Gibson, President and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), said, “At a time when our na-tion remains in a recovery from high unemployment and economic reces-sion, we cannot afford to ship American manufacturing jobs overseas. Sourcing 15,000 tons of steel from China for re-pairs on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge is particularly offensive as the vast majority of Chinese steel companies are government-owned and controlled, and heavily subsidized. In addition, the Chinese government deliberately engages in unfair trading practices like currency manipulation to give Chinese

exports an unfair competitive advan-tage. We urge you to reconsider the decision.”

Gibson cited a recent Wall Street Journal article entitled U.S. Icons Now Made of Chinese Steel, indicating that the Chinese trade association repre-sentatives tout their competitiveness against the North American industry.

“The taxpayers of New York, and the many American tourists who cross the Verrazano Bridge, should not be forced to have their toll dollars go toward im-proving the economy of China when American manufacturing needs their support,” Gibson concluded.

AISI supports OCTG imports investigations filed today

The trade association representing North American steel producers lent its support to petitions filed with the Department of Commerce (DOC) and the International Trade Commissions (ITC) seeking antidumping relief on certain Oil Country Tubular Goods (OCTG) from India, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Taiwan, Thai-land, Turkey, Ukraine and Vietnam. Petitioners are also seeking counter-vailing duties on certain OCTG from India and Turkey.

Thomas J. Gibson, President and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), said, “Imports from these countries have surged by 111 percent in the past few years, and the petitioners present that these im-ports have caused material injury to the domestic steel industry. U.S. laws against unfair trade exist to counter market-distorting practices – like sub-sidies – and to restore conditions of fair trade, but this cannot occur unless all parties play by the rules. It is vital for U.S. companies to have the chance to compete for business on a level play-ing field. We applaud these domestic steel companies for taking a stand and we urge the DOC and ITC to take a hard look and provide antidumping and countervailing duty relief for our industry.”

Gibson said that in recent years the volume of U.S. imports of OCTG from the subject countries soared from 840,313 net tons (NT) in 2010 to 1,771,320 NT in 2012. In the first quar-ter of this year, 425,987 NT of imports entered the market from the subject countries.

Petitioners include: Boomerang Tube; Energex Tube, a division of JMC Steel Group; Maverick Tube Corpora-tion; Northwest Pipe Company; Tejas Tubular Products; TMK IPSCO; Unit-


ed States Steel Corporation; Vallourec Star, L.P.; Welded Tube USA, Inc.

Steel industry says climate plan will raise electricity costs

The trade association representing the nation’s largest steel producers said the plan laid out in President Obama’s speech on climate change “would place the steel industry at a substantial dis-advantage to its foreign competitors and raise electricity costs.”

“The regulations proposed by the President will invariably raise electric-ity costs and decrease service quality for major industrial customers, like the steel industry,” said Thomas J. Gib-son, President and CEO of the Ameri-can Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). “The North American steel industry is heavily dependent on affordable and reliable energy, which is typically 20 percent or more of the cost of making steel. We are the most energy efficient steel industry in the world, having vol-untarily reduced our energy intensity by 27 percent since 1990. However, we compete globally against countries, like China, where the industry is often state-owned, controlled and subsidized, including for electricity costs. Policies, like those proposed by the President, raise energy costs on domestic compa-nies and threaten our ability to remain competitive in this international man-ufacturing environment.”

Gibson said that increasing regula-tions on the utility sector to force a quick reduction in carbon emissions is also unfair to many specific regions of the country and will encourage “fuel-switching,” since there are no proven technologies to control CO2 emissions from power plants: “The shift from coal to natural gas is already well un-derway due to the low price of natu-ral gas and other EPA Clean Air Act regulations. However, certain areas of the country – including many of the states where there is a high con-centration of steel production – have more abundant coal sources; whereas, other regions are better suited for pro-duction from wind and solar sources. The Administration’s plan makes coal-fired electricity supply less affordable and less reliable to major industrial customers, such as steel producers – which will threaten the loss of valu-able manufacturing jobs in the United States. We will be closely watching to see how EPA handles the transi-tion period to minimize the cost and reliability impacts on regions that are still dependent on coal-intensive elec-tricity generation.” continued on next page

April steel shipments up 0.7 percent from MarchYear-to-date shipments down 6.3 percent from prior year

The American Iron and Steel Insti-tute (AISI) reported that for the month of April 2013, U.S. steel mills shipped 7,978,531 net tons, a 0.7 percent in-crease from the 7,922,265 net tons shipped in the previous month, March 2013, and a 3.2 percent decrease from the 8,245,339 net tons shipped in April 2012. Shipments year-to-date (YTD) in 2013 are 31,547,910 net tons, a 6.3 percent decrease vs. 2012 shipments of 33,663,439 net tons for the first four months of the year.

A comparison of April shipments to the previous month of March shows the following changes: cold rolled sheet, up 10 percent, hot dipped galvanized sheets and strip, up 5 percent and hot rolled sheet, down 4 percent.

July SIMA import permits down 6 percent, import market share 21 percent in July

Based on the Commerce Depart-ment’s most recent Steel Import Moni-toring and Analysis (SIMA) data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that steel import permit applications for the month of July total 2,476,000 net tons (NT). This was a 6% decrease from the 2,626,000 permit tons recorded in June and 1% increase from the June final imports total of 2,460,000 NT. Import permit tonnage for finished steel in July was 1,929,000, down 2% from the final imports total of 1,974,000 in June. For the first seven months of 2013 (including July SIMA), total and finished steel imports were 18,208,000 NT and 14,298,000 NT, respectively, down 11% and 10% from the same period in 2012. July 2013 total and finished steel import permit tons would annualize at 31,214,000 NT and 24,511,000 NT, down 7% and 5%, respectively, vs. the 33,475,000 NT and 25,826,000 NT imported in 2012. The estimated finished steel import market share in July was 21% and is 23% year-to-date (YTD).

Finished steel imports with large in-creases in July permits vs. the June fi-nal included wire rods (up 74%), sheets and strip all other metallic coatings (up 31%), hot rolled sheets (up 27%), hot rolled bars (up 15%) and wire drawn (up 11%). Products with significant year-to-date (YTD) increases vs. the same period in 2012 include heavy structural shapes (up 25%), standard rail (up 18%) and tin plate (up 18%).


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The new facility is strategically lo-cated near the Port of Houston and near to many of Miller’s distributors on Houston’s south side, at Loop 610. The facility will also result in reduced ship-ment time and cost for customers in the US west and central regions since all shipments previously originated at Miller’s plant in Massachusetts. Kloss also highlighted the enhanced ability to support Miller’s growing offshore customer base in the Gulf of Mexico for inspection, refurbishment, and recerti-fication of specialized lifting products.

Miller Lifting Products is a manu-facturer of high quality lifting and rig-ging components sold worldwide for all types of cranes and material handling

In July, the largest finished steel import permit applications for off-shore countries were for South Korea (268,000 NT, up 12% from June final), China (155,000 NT up 1%), Japan (140,000 NT, up 6%), Germany (90,000 NT, down 15%) and Taiwan (70,000 NT, up 30%). Through the first seven months of 2013, the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (1,996,000 NT, down 11% from the same period in 2012), Japan (1,091,000 NT, down 9%) and China (1,053,000 NT, up 14%).

Miller Lifting opens facility in Texas New Houston distribution site brings product closer to market

Miller Lifting Products is pleased to announce the operation of a new dis-tribution facility located in Houston, Texas. The 5,000 square-foot office and high-bay warehouse facility completed staffing and inventory placement in the spring, and is currently making daily shipments. The facility is now stocking Miller’s complete swivel line with capacities up to 300 tons, heavy eye hooks, DIN shank hooks, headache ball assemblies, and tag line insula-

applications in the energy, construc-tion, utility, communications, manu-facturing, maritime, military and other industrial sectors. Products include load hooks, hook blocks, ball bearing swivels, sheaves, and insulated lifting devices used for industrial cranes and for power line electrical safety. Miller Lifting Products has locations in Charl-ton, MA and Houston, TX and is a brand division of GHM Industries, Inc.

Spider launches 5th edition of Solutions Catalog

Spider, a division of SafeWorks, LLC, announces the release of the 5th edi-tion of its Spider Solutions Catalog, the most comprehensive product catalog in the suspended scaffold industry.

With over 65 years of market leader-ship, Spider presents its best Solutions Catalog yet, nearly a decade in the making. Here are the highlights:

• New & improved products: • 7 ft modular platform.• SpiderRail™ temporary, non-pen-

etrating guardrail.• SpiderLine™ temporary horizon-

tal lifeline system.• Astro E1500 hoist.• Beta Max Hoist, Inc. material

hoists & accessories.• Improved harness & lanyard fea-

tures.• Innovative wind turbine access so-

lutions.• Spider Systems Group –dedicated

team of experts specializing in project management, systems engineering, field support & safety code expertise for critical access projects.

• Twenty-one in-depth case studies to showcase Spider’s expert solutions capabilities for various access applica-tion challenges.

• Reorganization to improve the flow and product categorization, making it easier for customers to locate the solu-tions they need.

• Updated product content - key fea-tures, specifications, drawings, photo-graphs & accessory lists – to ensure the information is reliable.

Over the past decade, Spider’s So-lutions Catalog has become a trusted desktop reference guide, so we have kept the best features - codes & regu-lations, usage guidelines, training op-tions, counterweight formulas, and a glossary of industry terms - to assist customers in the proper use of their equipment and answer frequently asked questions.

“Spider is committed to putting the

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solutions our contractors and facility owners need most directly into their hands,” states John Sotiroff, Vice Pres-ident – Sales & Distribution. “There is no better tool to accomplish this than the 280 pages of our Solutions Catalog. This 5th edition is truly our best yet. Our product offering continually ex-pands and improves to meet the most crucial needs of our customers, and the reorganized, updated reference guide makes it easy for them to find every-thing they need to solve their access & fall protection challenges safely & reli-ably in one convenient place.”

Catalogs can be requested or down-loaded online at www.spiderstaging.com, or by calling 877-774-3370.

Lift-It Manufacturing provides international training

Michael J. Gelskey, Chief Executive Officer, Lift-It Manufacturing Co., Inc. presented two workshops for the EPRI 2013 Generation European Workshop in Rome, Italy. Mr. Gelskey presented an early morning session titled, Rig-ging for Success and another session in the afternoon that detailed Industry, Association and Regulatory Updates

from the American rigging perspective.Delegates from four continents at-

tended the presentations and were en-thused and extremely complimentary in their post conference evaluations. Mr. Gelskey remarked, “Thankfully, the attendees were far more advanced in their language skills than most of my United States students as the ma-jority of the European attendees are bi-lingual.”

The one resounding comment that was received from the participants of both sessions was the passion Mike Gelskey has in presenting top-ics that will enable the attendees to make a difference in the lives of those they are tasked with protect-ing. Gelskey comments, “Long be-fore it was fashionable or profitable, I would travel anywhere at my own expense to present sling and rigging training for anyone that would have me. Now, training is very much in vogue. My goal has always been to in-spire and help my students leave with a new found perspective on the direct correlation that exists between rigging right and going home at night.”

The first of many international pre-sentations, Mr. Gelskey will follow up the European presentations with on site, sling and rigging training in the Dominican Republic and Australia. Gelskey remarks, “Translation ser-vices will be necessary for my students in the Dominican Republic and what would normally be an eight hour pre-sentation will end up being a 20 hour presentation over two days. “

Lift-It Manufacturing Co., Inc. pro-vides quality rigging to discriminating



sling and rigging customers through-out the world and now offers on-site, international training. Monthly events are presented at the Lift-it Learning Center in Pomona, CA. Contact Mi-chelle Brown, Conference Coordinator at 909-469-2251 or view the details at www.lift-it.com.

AISI launches mobile optimized website

The American Iron and Steel Insti-tute (AISI) launched a new component of their website which will make it eas-ier for individuals to view the site on their mobile devices. The new “mobile optimized website” is a companion to the steel.org group of websites repre-senting AISI, the Steel Market Devel-opment Institute (SMDI) and the Steel Recycling Institute (SRI) – which are business units of AISI. The mobile op-timized site offers current news and in-formation in a format compatible with all handheld devices, including iPhone and Android phones. Users accessing the www.steel.org site via mobile hand-held device will automatically be redi-rected to the optimized version of the website. New features will be added to the mobile site in the future based on audience usage and preferences.

“Our robust network of sites offers visitors access to anything they might need to find out about the North Amer-ican steel industry policies and advoca-cy, market applications, general statis-tics or commitment to sustainability,” AISI President and CEO Thomas J.

Gibson said. “This new mobile tool will help provide that information faster and on-the-go.”

To view, visit www.steel.org from a mobile device.

Crosby contributes to “The Coldest Journey” Antarctic Expedition with their Cold Tuff® products for extreme conditions

Crosby is excited to be chosen as a partner for the world’s greatest living explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, in his toughest challenge yet: a trek across the Antarctic in winter, known as ‘The Coldest Journey’. With the support of the Commonwealth and sponsors, in-

cluding Crosby Europe, Sir Ranulph and five colleagues are currently test-ing the limits of human endurance in temperatures that fall as low as -90° C as they cover 2,000 miles in 6 months crossing the polar plateau.

Not only does the expedition aim to complete the first ever trans-Antarctic crossing during the polar winter, but importantly it is attempting to raise $10 million for “Seeing is Believing”, a global charitable initiative to fight avoidable blindness. All donations will be matched by expedition sponsor, Standard Chartered.

Crosby is supporting this expedition with its full range of COLD TUFF® products, which are specifically man-ufactured to improve working in ex-treme environments. Crosby’s range of G-2130A (Grade 80) alloy shackles are forged, quenched and tempered, hot dip galvanized and DNV type ap-proved. These features, along with oth-er critical performance requirements such as ductility, an 8:1 design factor, as well as impact properties and full traceability, provide the needed reas-surance when working in extreme en-vironments like those expected during Sir Ranulph Fiennes’ expedition.

“As an innovator in the industry, this recognition of our brand is very re-warding. Our drive to assist working in these types of environments, from the demands of the energy markets to the safe transportation of vital equipment, makes this expedition very motiva-tional to all involved in the design and manufacture of our equipment”, states Richard Oldknow, Sales and Market-ing Director for Crosby’s European op-erations.

As with all users of Crosby equip-ment, Crosby is offering full support through training and worldwide tech-


, regardless as to how much, how fast or how far you need to lift, pull or position your load, has remained the same for more than 25 years. With the widest range of hoists, winches, capstans, traction drives and small cranes available from any single source, we're ready to meet your specific application requirements· be it an AC, DC, hydraulic or pneumatic powered unit. A call or email is all that's needed to get things moving your way.

• 28,000 lb hoisting capacity with over 12 fpm line speed

• Equipped with automatic brake, remote pendant controls and integral lifting eyes

• Fully sealed gears and bearings in oil bath designed for continuous duty cycles

This promise, regardless as to how much, how fast or how far you need to lift, pull or position your load, has remained the same for more than 25 years. With the widest range of hoists, winches, capstans, traction drives and small cranes available from any single source, we're ready to meet your specific application requirements· be it an AC, DC, hydraulic or pneumatic powered unit. A call or email is all

COLUMBIA H28000 PNEUMATIC WINCH SHOWN


nical support. “We are extremely hon-ored to be supporting this project and aiding the continued efforts of ‘Seeing is Believing’ in this way”, adds Old-know.

On December 6, 2012, the expedition team left London, bound for Antarc-tica. March 21, 2013, the equinox, the six expedition members began a six month journey to reach the Ross Sea. Using the very latest technological in-novations, this mission will pave the way for year-round exploration in the Antarctic.

To find out more about COLD TUFF® products, contact The Crosby Group at (800) 797-4611 or visit www.thecrosby-group.com.

Muncy announces policy change

Muncy Industries, LLC., has an-nounced they are discontinuing the 20+ year old $10 small-order fee. As of June 7, 2013, the $10 fee, which was attached to orders received totaling under $100, will no longer be applied. Muncy will also not apply the fee to customers who pick up orders at either of our locations, in Turbotville, PA or Lafayette, LA.

Muncy Industries welcomes small

and non-standard fitting orders. We strive to make fast, reliable, and qual-ity heavy-lifting hardware available in an expeditious manner while maintain-ing a competitive price. By eliminating the small-order fee, our production pro-cess has been streamlined which gives our customers a competitive edge in the market.

This change in our policy is effective immediately. If you have questions, please call us at 570-649-5188 or fax 570-629-5850. Visit us on the web at www.MuncyIndustries.com.

US and European wire rope engineers meet in San Diego, California

Representatives of the Wire Rope Technical Board (WRTB) and the Eu-ropean Federation of Wire Rope Indus-tries (EWRIS) met in San Diego, Cali-fornia, USA, in April, for three days of discussions. This event, which occurs annually, in alternate years in the United States and Europe, is held to review standards developments in the wire rope industry. Participants of the respective associations are designated to represent WRTB and EWRIS in this exchange of information, particularly in the areas of design requirements

and operation, and to provide recom-mendations to various standards writ-ing organizations in the US, Europe and internationally.

This year, of particular interest, the representatives discussed the contro-versy over the CEN standard prEN 13001.3-2 titled “Limit states and proof of competence of wire ropes in reeving systems”. This controversy centers on a proposed theoretical approach to de-termining the life of a wire rope used on cranes versus the established wire rope design factors and discard criteria found in long-standing international standards, ISO 4308 Cranes and lifting appliances – Selection of wire ropes – Part 1: General and ISO 4309 Cranes – Wire ropes – Care and maintenance, inspection and discard. The material in the ISO standards relies on proven engineering practice and established criteria of wire ropes which can easily be used by inspectors in the field.

CEN is the European Committee for Standardization (Comité Européen de Normalisation, Europäisches Komi-tee für Normung), an international non-profit organization which pro-vides a platform for the development of European Standards (ENs), certain



of which, so called “harmonized stan-dards”, are part of the EU regulations on products. The International Organi-zation for Standardization (ISO) is the world’s largest developer of voluntary International Standards, which are developed by various working groups in order to help the end users to order, use, and maintain the products they need.

Other standards which were dis-cussed include ISO 16625 Cranes and hoists – Selection of wire ropes, drums and sheaves; ISO 6984 Round non-al-loy steel wires for stranded wire ropes for mine hoisting – Specifications; American Petroleum Institute (API) RP 9B Application, Care, and Use of Wire Rope for Oil Field Service and the European standards of the same sub-ject; and the new wire rope volume in American Society of Mechanical Engi-neers (ASME) B30.

The 2014 meeting will be held in France, next Spring.

The Wire Rope Technical Board (WRTB) is an association of engineers from companies that account for more than 90 percent of the wire rope pro-duced in the United States. It’s objec-tives include; to promote development of engineering and scientific knowledge relating to wire rope; to assist in estab-lishing technological standards for mil-itary, governmental and industrial use; to promote development, acceptance and implementation of safety stan-dards; to help extend the uses of wire rope by disseminating technical and engineering information to equipment manufacturers; and to conduct and/or underwrite research for the benefit of both industry and user. www.wirerop-etechnicalboard.org

The European Federation of Wire Rope Industries (EWRIS) is a Europe-an organization established to promote and develop the common interests of Steel Wire Rope Manufacturers. Its Technical Working Group is very much involved in helping to develop product standard in order to control quality, use and discard of rope products. EWRIS’ members are individual firms as well some European National Associations representing over 35 companies in 14 countries. www.ewris.com.

Spider provides suspended access solutions to World Trade Center Towers

Spider, a division of SafeWorks, LLC, is providing suspended scaffolding and

material hoisting solutions for the glass curtain wall and glazing installa-tion on two towers of the World Trade Center: One World Trade Center and Tower Four.

Spider is supplying Portland-based glazing contractor Benson Industries with twelve complete swingstages to access the towers’ facades. Standard 20-foot and 30-foot modular platforms - powered by Spider’s market-leading SC1000 traction hoists - as well as Modulo® platforms are enabling access to hard-to-reach areas. A custom mod-ular outrigger beam monorail system was specially engineered to support the platforms.

In addition, four Beta Max Leo XXL VFD material hoists are being used to lift over 3,000 massive glass panels into position. With hoists on each side of the building, installers carefully bring the large, delicate panels up at a rate of 40-80 feet per minute and precisely posi-tion for the install.

Spider’s New York Operation Center, led by Operations Manager Joe Sim-one and District Sales Representative Marc Frato, provided on-site, hands-on training to ensure safe operation of the

equipment.“From the minute the Spider team

set foot on site to assess the project and explain our access and material hoist-ing options, we were confident they would provide the best solution. And they have exceeded our expectations,” states Frank Colletta, General Fore-


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man One World Trade Center.“The reliability and flexibility of Spi-

der’s equipment are essential for us to complete the upper portion of the proj-ect,” adds Danny O’Brien, Field Su-perintendent with Benson Industries. “Their New York team provides great service, on-time deliveries, and helpful technical support to ensure that we are working safely at height, staying on schedule, and maximizing productiv-ity. We couldn’t ask for more.”

“The equipment and service Spider provided was exceptional, enabling us to flawlessly complete our glass repairs and louver work,” says Eddie Nelson, Foreman Tower Four also with Benson Industries.

“Spider takes pride in being an inte-gral part of these highprofile projects,” says John Sotiroff, Vice President Spi-der Sales and Distribution. “As the na-tion watches the progress of the iconic World Trade Center towers, Spider swells with patriotism and remains fo-cused on keeping these and other qual-ity contractors around the country safe at extreme heights.”

2013 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition

Dates: November 15-21, 2013Venue: Manchester Grand Hyatt,

San Diego, CA.Format: Global technical conference

includes over 2,000 technical papers and posters on aerospace, energy, dy-namic systems, safety engineering, manufacturing technology, nanotech-nology, microsystems, and mechatron-ics, among other topics in mechanical engineering.

Theme: Advanced manufacturingHighlights: Keynote session focusing

on advanced manufacturing.• Advanced Manufacturing Impact

Forum.• 3-D Printing.• Student Design Competition.• Honors Assembly.For more information, please visit

their website: www.asmeconferences.org/Congress2013/

About ASME:ASME helps the global engineering

community develop solutions to real world challenges. Founded in 1880 as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASME is a not-for-profit professional organization that enables collaboration, knowledge sharing and skill development across all engineer-ing disciplines, while promoting the vital role of the engineer in society.

ASME codes and standards, publica-tions, conferences, continuing educa-tion and professional development programs provide a foundation for advancing technical knowledge and a safer world. For more information visit www.asme.org.

Bright outlook for wire & Tube Southeast Asia 2013

The upcoming staging of wire South-east ASIA 2013, 10th International Wire & Cable Trade Fair for Southeast Asia and Tube Southeast ASIA 2013, 9th International Tube & Pipe Trade Fair for Southeast Asia, is expected to outperform the successful 2011 edition with higher profile exhibitors from large international companies, approximately 15% of whom are first-time exhibitors. Over 40% of the inter-national exhibitor participation will be from Europe. The events will be held concurrently from September 17 - 19, 2013 at the Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC) in Thailand.

Recognized as the leading trade fairs for these industries in the region, wire and Tube Southeast ASIA 2013 will feature an impressive representation of market leaders, including national pavilions and country group exhibits from Austria, China, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Taiwan and the U.S. Orga-nized by Messe Düsseldorf Asia, over 300 companies will be exhibiting at both events, showcasing innovations and trends on high-performing ma-chinery, processing and automation in the wire, cable, tube and pipe industry.Southeast Asia: Gateway to a Sin-gle Market & Production Base in 2015

Southeast Asia remains resilient amidst persistent global economic un-certainty, projecting an average annual growth rate of 5.5% over the next five years to 2017. This indicates that trade fairs continue to fulfill the industries’ needs as an international business me-dium into the region. Southeast Asia is increasingly becoming a manufactur-ing and industrial hub for many global companies.

According to global industry analysts, the global market for seamless pipes and tubes is projected to reach 113.8 million tons by 2018. In addition, the global market for spiral welded pipes and tubes is expected to reach 24.6 million tons by 2018, driven by eco-nomic recovery, increase in activity in the energy sector and growing pipeline construction projects. Industry reports

indicate that the Asia-Pacific region represents the largest market world-wide, driven primarily by increased use in transporting natural gas. Similarly, business opportunities in the wire and cable industries are estimated to con-tribute approximately 3% of the world’s production of wire and cable. “wire and Tube Southeast ASIA is taking place at a critical time for the wire, cable, tube and pipe industries both in the region and globally. Companies scanning the region for market opportunities to di-versify products, markets and suppli-ers will find wire and Tube Southeast Asia the ideal platform for lucrative business exchange and networking op-portunities,” commented Gernot Ring-ling, Managing Director of Messe Düs-seldorf Asia.

According to Gernot Ringling, this year’s trade fairs will see a compre-hensive display of products and ser-vices aimed particularly at enhancing productivity and operations, as well as cost-effective solutions. “In response to this emphasis, exhibitors will focus on innovation, from the latest processes and systems to services and products in order to meet supplier demands for productivity and efficiency gains. Trade visitors can also expect to see more machinery and equipment at this year’s events.”Integrating Market Opportunities with Industry Growth

Organized as a prelude to wire Southeast Asia 2013, a series of tech-nical seminars have been designed to bring the trade fair closer to the wire and cable industry by providing unique insights into the trends shaping this sector. The first round of technical sem-inars will start in Seoul, Korea on July 22, followed by Jakarta on July 24 and ending in Bangkok on July 26. These seminars are designed to provide a targeted learning platform for approxi-mately 500 wire and cable manufactur-ers in these countries.

The program for the technical semi-nars will include presentations focus-ing on the technological developments in the industry by Niehoff Group, Sikora AG, Reber Systematic GmbH + Co KG, EDER Engineering and Rosen-dahl Maschinen GmbH. The speakers will present the latest advancements in the fields of wire drawing, automotive wires, process filtration and measuring technology. Business strategies focused on innovation, production efficiency and productivity will be addressed dur-ing the sessions.

Online visitor pre-registration is now continued on next page


open until September 9, 2013 at www.wire-southeastasia.com and www.tube-southeastasia.com.

For further information on visiting or exhibiting at wire or Tube Southeast ASIA 2013, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone: (312) 781-5180; Fax: (312) 781-5188; E-mail: [email protected]; Vis-it our web site www.mdna.com; Sub-scribe to our blog at blog.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at twitter.com/WireTube_MDNA.

Successful staging of Metallurgy Trade Fair Quartet in Russia

At the recent staging of wire Russia 2013, International Wire and Cable Trade Fair in Russia, 250 exhibitors from 26 countries displayed their lat-est technologies at the Expocentre in Moscow. Held concurrently were Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/Non-Ferrous 2013 with 330 exhibitors from 30 nations and Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013. Some 10,850 visitors from all parts of the Russian Federation came to get a

broad overview of pioneering trends.The positive development of wire

Russia, Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia, Aluminium/Non-Ferrous as well as Russia Essen Welding & Cut-ting confirmed the importance of these trade fairs in the Russian Federation. The number of visitors shows that in-terest in an international specialist trade show for the wire, cable and wire-processing industries as well as for the metallurgy, foundry and tube-process-ing industries has increased even fur-ther in Russia. These trade fairs pro-vided the exhibiting companies with an excellent opportunity to present prod-ucts until now not shown in Russia to a broad expert audience and to deepen customer relationships, get new con-tacts and develop new business.

In addition to the individual exhibi-tors, countries such as Austria, China, France, Italy and the U.S. participated with country group exhibits again. As in the past, exhibitors from Germany took part in the official joint stand managed by the German Ministry of Economics and AUMA (Association of the German Trade Fair Industry). The North American group stand was organized by Messe Düsseldorf North America and supported by the Wire

and Cable Industry Suppliers Associa-tion (WCISA).

wire Russia, Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/ Non-Fer-rous 2013 were again jointly organized by Messe Düsseldorf and its subsidiary Messe Düsseldorf Moscow and co-orga-nized by VNIIKP (All Russian Cable Scientific Research and Development Institute) and Metal Expo. Messe Es-sen was responsible for Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013.

Numerous international and na-tional industry associations supported the trade fairs. IWMA (International Wire & Machinery Association), IW-CEA (International Wire & Cable Ex-hibitors Association), VDKM (German Wire and Cable Machine Manufactur-ers Association), VÖDKM-AWCMA (Austrian Wire and Cable Machinery Manufacturers Association), IWCEA-France (International Wire and Cable Exhibitors Association-France), ACI-MAF (Italian Wire Machinery Manu-factures Association), SECRI (Shang-hai Electric Cable Research Institute) and WCISA (Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association) all contributed to making wire Russia 2013 a success-ful event.

ITA (International Tube Associa-


To our advertisers and subscribers:As you are now all aware, we suffered the loss of my father, Edward J. Bluvias. Due to his extensive knowledge and love of the industry, I believe you will agree that these are difficult shoes to fill.

I would like to thank you for your loyalty and support during this recent transition. Due to the great team of people that my father has assembled over the past few decades, the publication of Wire Rope News & Sling Technology will continue with pride. This team’s perseverance and support are immeasurable.

We assure you that we are working diligently to provide you with the same service and quality magazine that you have been accustomed to in the past.

Your patience and support has been greatly appreciated. Sincerely,

Note from the Editor


tion), MC-CCPIT (Metallurgical Coun-cil of China Council for the Promotion) and AMAFOND (Italian Association of the Foundry Supplier) were the sup-porting associations of Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia and Aluminium/ Non-Ferrous 2013.

Russia Essen Welding & Cutting 2013 was supported by DVS (German Association of Welding and Associated Processes) and the Russian partner as-sociation NAKS (National Agency of Control and Welding).

The dates for the next staging of wire Russia, Metallurgy-Litmash, Tube Russia, Aluminium/Non-Ferrous and Russia Essen Welding & Cutting will be announced at a later date. For in-formation on visiting or exhibiting at these events, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601. Telephone: (312) 781-5180; Fax: (312) 781-5188; E-mail: [email protected]; Vis-it our web site www.mdna.com; Sub-scribe to our blog at blog.mdna.com; Follow us on twitter at twitter.com/WireTube_MDNA

Bridon International launches exclusive partnership with Kanoo Machinery at customer-focussed technical conference

Bridon International, the global technology leader in the manufacture of steel wire and fibre ropes, hosted a customer-focussed technical confer-ence on May 21, 2013, at the Grand Ball room, Mövenpick hotel Al Kho-bar, Saudi Arabia. The technical con-

ference gave Bridon the opportunity to launch its partnership with Kanoo Machinery, its exclusive stockists of crane and industrial lifting products for Saudi Arabia, and firmly mark its position in the area.

Bridon’s partnership with Kanoo Ma-chinery was launched publically at the conference with an introduction by Bob Jennings, General Manager, Kanoo Machinery, followed by an introduction by Steve Hodgkins, General Manager, Bridon Middle East.

Bridon’s lead technical specialist, David Hewitt, led the remainder of the event, conducting various training ses-sions over the course of the day. He cov-ered key aspects of the steel wire rope industry, including design, testing, manufacturing and vital information on the best practices to ensure longev-ity of products and safety of personnel.

Over 40 major drilling, steel, mining and construction companies partici-pated in the event, covering a broad spectrum of representatives from management to technical and ground personnel. The event proved to be an insightful and illuminating day and was well received by the customers involved.

Antoine Chartouny, General Manag-er, OFSAT ARABIA (L.L.C), remarked:

“The seminars enabled me to ac-quire valuable information on wire ropes and I now feel that I am in a po-sition to understand many important details when placing any significant orders. I am confident that I can dis-cuss the most appropriate ropes for our operations with my field people, as well as the best way of deploying these products in a variety of chal-

lenging applications.”The customer interaction at the

event also gave Bridon a wider per-spective of the market in Saudi Arabia. This provided the company with the understanding to recommend and sup-ply unique specifications of its products to meet individual customers’ needs.

David Hewitt, Technical Application Specialist at Bridon, said:

“The day was a success, with a re-ally strong turnout. It was a great opportunity for us to further develop our in-depth understanding of our customers’ needs in this region, and to collaborate with them on tailor-made solutions for some of the tough-est challenges they face.”

In November 2012, Bridon opened a $30 million state-of-the-art factory in the UK that is able to manufacture the largest and most complex ropes ever made, in package weights of up to 650 tons. Soon after, in February this year, the company launched the Bridon Technology Centre, one of the world’s most advanced facilities for the development and testing of off-shore ropes. These investments give Bridon the capacity to produce highly engineered ropes boasting enhanced breaking loads, optimised bend fa-tigue performance, effective lubrica-tion, and minimal rotation under load – firmly marking the company out as the global technology leader in the manufacture of steel wire and fibre rope solutions.

Maaden End user team.

Left: Mr Bob Jennings, General Manager, Kanoo Machinery, centre: Mr Steve Hodgkins, General Manager, Bridon Middle East, right: Mr David Hewitt, Lead Technical Specialist, Bridon.

Photos © Bridon International


Lift system for an elevatorPat. 8,316,786 U.S. class 114/268 Int. class B63B 27/00Inventors: William R. Johanek, Saint Simons Island, GA., Dale Hengel, Minneapolis, MN.Assignee: Par Systems, Inc., Shoreview, MN.

A lift assembly is provided for a platform such as used on a ship. The platform can have four spaced apart hitch points. In one embodiment, the lift assembly includes four trolley drive assemblies, each trolley drive assembly including a trolley guidable along a guide rail, and a drive configured to displace the trolley along the guide rails, each trolley being coupled to at least one hitch point. In a second embodiment, a tension leveling assembly is provided in a trolley drive as-sembly and is configured to couple each of the wire ropes to the trolley and maintain substantially the same amount of tension in each wire rope. In a third embodiment, the lift assembly can be provided on a ship that also includes a ves-sel for holding water. The lift assembly includes an electric drive that operates as generator and generates current dur-ing lowering of the platform, A resistive device is disposed in the vessel and connected to the drive to receive current, the resistive device being configured to dissipate heat into the vessel.

A lift mechanism 20 for, for example, a deck edge elevator platform 22 on a ship herein exemplified as an aircraft car-rier 24 is schematically illustrated in figure 1. The platform 22 is suspended by wire ropes 26 at four hitch points 28A, 28B, 28C and 28D. At ends remote from the hitch points 28A-28D, the wire ropes 26 are connected to a lift assem-

bly 30 typically located internally in the aircraft carrier 24. Sheaves 32 located on the aircraft carrier at various loca-tions guide the wire ropes 26 within the aircraft carrier 24 between the lift assembly 30 and the platform 22. It should be noted that guide rails 23 for the platform 22 are provided for only the inboard side of the platform 22 having hitch points 28A and 28D adjacent the edge of the aircraft carrier 24, while the outboard edge of the platform 22 having hitch points 28B and 28C is unguided, being only supported by the wire ropes for hitch points 28B and 28C.

The lift assembly 30 includes four trolley drive assemblies

31A, 31B, 31C and 31D having trolleys 34A, 34B, 34C and 34D (schematically illustrated). Each trolley 34A-34D is driven by a drive 36A, 36B, 36C and 36D, respectively. The lift assembly 30, trolleys 34A-34D and drives 36A-36D will be discussed below in further detail; however, at this point, one aspect of the present invention includes minimizing and equalizing the load carried by each trolley 34A-34D during operation of the platform 22. In this manner, the load carry-ing capacity of each trolley drive assembly 31A-31D can be minimized and equalized.

In operation, the loads carried by the wire ropes 26 for each of the hitch points 28A-28D are not all the same. In particular, wire rope loads for the outboard hitch points 28B and 28C are typically greater than the loads carried by the wire ropes 26 for inboard hitch points 28A and 28D. In order to balance the loads carried by each of the trolley assemblies 31A-31D, each trolley 34A-34D is connected to one inboard hitch point 28A or 28D as well as to one outboard hitch point 28B or 28C. In the embodiment illustrated, there are four wire ropes connected to each hitch point 28A-28D. For each hitch point 28A-28D, two wire ropes are connected to a first trolley, while the remaining two wire ropes are connected to another trolley.

Although herein illustrated where two wire ropes are con-

Inventor’sCorner

By William Fischer

Figure 1: Schematic illustration of a lift system of the platform.

Figure 2: Side elevational view of a pair of trolley assemblies.

NEW ENGLAND ROPES 848 AIRPORT ROAD • FALL RIVER, MA 02720

508-730-4524 • [email protected]

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nected to each trolley 34A-34D and corresponding hitch point 28A-28D, this construction should not be considered limiting wherein a single wire rope could be used although use of a plurality or ropes is beneficial. In one embodiment as illustrated, trolley 34A is connected to hitch points 28A and 28C; trolley 34B is connected to hitch points 28B and 28D; trolley 34C is connected to hitch points 28C and 28A; and trolley 34D is connected to hitch points 28D and 28B. Hence, in this embodiment, each trolley 34A-34D is connect-ed to two hitch points 28A-28D that are on the same end (i.e., aft end or forward end of ship 24) of the platform 22.

In an alternative embodiment, each trolley 34A-34D can be connected to inboard and outboard hitch points that are diagonally opposed to each other, although the wire roping would be more extensive. In the foregoing configurations when all four trolleys 34A-34D and corresponding drives 36A-36D are operating, each trolley 34A-34D and corre-sponding drive 36A-36D is coupled to an inboard hitch point and an outboard hitch point and lifts one-half of an end (for-ward or aft) of the platform 22. However, it should be noted that the lift assembly 30, which forms other aspects of the present invention, can be connected to the platform 22 in a manner where each trolley 34A-34D is connected to a single hitch point 28A-28D.

In the exemplary embodiment, the sprocket 44 drives or displaces a chain 52, wherein one end of each chain 52 is connected to a trolley 34A-34D. (It should be noted only por-tions of the chains are illustrated in some of the figures to provide clarity for other elements.) Each trolley 34A-34D is guided by a guide rail, herein a pair of guide rails 53, in a support structure 54. As illustrated, the trolleys 34A-34D and the drives 36A-36D are organized in pairs facing each other wherein two trolleys are operable and utilize a com-mon support structure 54 so as to minimize space.

In one embodiment, each trolley 34A-34D traverses the support structure 54 substantially from one end to the other which corresponds to platform 22 moving from its lowermost position to its uppermost position and vice versa. To provide a compact lift assembly 30 and efficiently utilize available

space, the trolleys 34A-34D are stacked upon each other in pairs. In the embodiment illustrated, trolleys 34A and 34C comprise lower trolleys in each respective support structure 54, while trolleys 36B and 36D comprise upper trolleys in each respective support structure 54. Mechanical hard stops 62 are provided to limit extension of each corresponding chain 52, and further, to provide a hard stop for the platform 22 in its lowermost position.

In its uppermost position, platform 22 is held by tension continued on next page

Figure 3: Side elevational view of a portion of the trolley assembly.


in the wire ropes 26 and corresponding chains 52 as each of the trolleys 34A-34D are pulled away from each of the corre-sponding mechanical stops 62 to the other end of the support structure 54. Brakes 46 are operated to hold the platform 22 in its uppermost position. Brakes 46 are configured to oper-ate in a fail safe manner (for example, where the calipers 50 are held back in a non-braking position by a hydraulic, pneumatic or electrical device and are moved to a braking position by a spring) so as to actively hold the platform 22 when the power to the motors 40 is off or lost.

One end of each chain 52 is connected to one of the trolleys 34A-34D. The other end of the chain 52 is connected to a sec-ond flexible member 68 (herein exemplified as a wire rope) that in turn, is connected back to the same trolley 34A-34D. Hence, the chain 52 and wire rope 68 of each trolley are con-nected to the trolley in order to form a single loop. Referring to figures 2 and 3, and to trolley 34C by way of example, the first end of the chain 52 is connected to the trolley 34C. This portion of the chain is held in tension by the gear reducer 42 and corresponding sprocket 44 of drive 36C. It should be noted, the pitch diameter of the sprocket 44 should be as small as possible to reduce the amount of torque needed for operation, and hence, the torque capability of the gear reducer 42. During operation, the trolley 34C traverses the support structure 54 from one end to the other. In figure 3, the trolley 34C is against its stop 62 and the platform 22 is in its lowermost position. Pulling of the chain 52 by the drive 36C to the right in figure 3 raises the platform 22.

To control an end of the chain remote from the trolley 34C, the wire rope 68 is connected to the end of the chain 52, schematically illustrated in figure 1 and then back to the trolley 34C and secured at location 69 in figure 3. The wire rope 68 is guided by two sheaves 70 and 72 (one of which is illustrated in figure 1) into chain supports 74 and 76 which receive that portion of the chain which is not held in tension between the sprocket 44 and the trolley 34C. As indicated above, when the trolley is furthest away from its correspond-ing drive and resting upon mechanical stop 62, the chain 52 extends along the length of the support structure 54 between the sprocket 44 and the trolley 34C. As the trolley 34C is retracted toward its corresponding drive 36C, the wire rope 68, being attached to the trolley 34C, is also pulled in or-der to pull an end of the chain remote from the trolley 34C within guide support structure 54 and along corresponding chain support 74 and 76.

In the embodiment illustrated, movement of the trolley 34C toward drive 36C eventually causes the platform 22 to contact hard stops 63 when it reaches the flight deck. The controller 80 is programmed to move the trolleys 34 an ad-ditional distance to tension the wire ropes 26 so the platform 22 is held tightly against the hard stops 63 and does not move as it is loaded or unloaded. If desired, a mechanical hard stop can be provided on the support structure 54 to cor-respond to the uppermost position of the platform 22.

Rope locking devicePat. 8,321,998 U.S. class 24/134KA Int. class F16G 11/10Inventor: Richard L. Warren, Tampa FL.Assignee: Roto Kinetics LLC., Clarkesville, GA.

A tensioning device that is inexpensive to manufacture and is useful for various rope tensioning applications. The rope locking device can be used anywhere along a length of rope that is being used to hold, tie down, or secure a load

or item. The rope locking device includes: a body having a first end, a second end, and side ends; a first bore extending through the body; a second bore extending through the body, wherein the second bore is horizontally aligned and spaced apart from said first bore by a first space, wherein the first and second bore are located proximate to the first end of the body; a third bore extending through the body, wherein the third bore is located proximate to the second end of the body, and wherein the third bore is spaced from the first and sec-ond bores; a first slot vertically aligned with the first bore; a second slot vertically aligned with the second bore, wherein the second slot is spaced from the first slot by a second space; and a cam element pivotally mounted within the third bore.

Figure 4 of the present invention shows the device 10, which comprises: a body 20 having a first end 30, a sec-ond end 40, and side ends 50, 60; a first bore 70 extending through the body 20; a second bore 80 extending through the body 20, wherein the second bore 80 is horizontally aligned and spaced apart from said first bore 70, wherein the first bore 70 and second bore 80 are located proximate to the first end 30 of the body 20; a third bore 90 extending through the body 20, wherein the third bore 90 is located proximate to the second end 40 of the body 20, and wherein the third bore 90 is spaced from the first bore 70 and second bore 80; a first slot 100 vertically aligned with the first bore 70; a second slot 110 vertically aligned with the second bore 80, wherein the second slot 110 is spaced from the first slot 100; and a cam element 120 pivotally mounted within the third bore 90.

The body 20 may be made of a single piece having any de-sirable shape, preferably a rectangular shape, with a thick-ness sufficient to make the body rigid. The body 20 may be made of molded plastic, or a metal casting of aluminum or other tough, durable material such as a ceramic, hard resin, or a polymeric plastic material. Whenever heavier duty or


Figure 4: Perspective rear view of the device showing the cam in the open position.

Figure 5:. Perspective front view of the device showing the cam in the close position.

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heavier strengths are required, metal is clearly the mate-rial of choice, although certain types of plastic material have been found to be quite durable and acceptable for certain structures for at least moderate duty. The first bore 70 and second bore 80 are parallel to each other. The first bore 70 and second bore 80 may be straight bores.

In another embodiment of the present invention the L-shaped space 150 includes a plurality of teeth disposed in its internal size in order to further help grasp the rope. Cam element 120 is the only moving part of the device according to the present invention. The cam element 120 is pivotally mounted in the third bore 90 as illustrated on figures 4 and 5. For that purpose, an orifice 160 extends through one end of the cam element 120 to receive the dowel 140 for eccentri-cally mounting cam element 120 for pivoting. A recess 124 runs through the cam element 120 which receives a spring 170, as seen in figures 4 and 5.

The cam element 120 may have one of its sides having a convexly curved shape and including teeth 122 in its pe-riphery arranged at an angle to facilitate the grasping of the rope between the cam element 120 and one of the side walls 92 of the third bore 90. The teeth 122 of the cam element 120 and the side wall 92 of the third bore 90 are spaced apart a sufficient distance to allow pivoting of the cam ele-ment 120 into the third bore 90 and the grasping of the rope in its locked position. The utilization of teeth arranged at an angle permits to freely slide the rope in the non-locking posi-tion and securing the rope in the locked position.

In another embodiment of the present invention the clamping element 120 pivots about the dowel 140 and is bi-ased downwardly by a spring 170 to project into the third bore 90. The biasing force of the spring 170 may be manu-ally overcome to pivot the cam element 120 in order to allow insertion of any portion along the length of a rope into the device.

Figure 6 shows the sequence in which the rope is intro-duced into the device according to the present invention. First, a length of rope is drawn through the first bore 70 in either a first or an oppositely directed second direction. Second, the length of rope leaving the first bore 70 is looped back through the first slot 100 and over the space 150 be-tween the first slot 100 and the second slot 110. Third, the end of the rope passes the second slot 110 and loops 90.

The multiple bends in the rope through the bores 70, 80 and slots 100, 110 assist in providing additional locking of the rope in the desired position to prevent the slippage of


Figure 6: Perspective front view of the device showing the sequence in which the rope is introduced into the device.


rope in the load direction. The unique design of the pres-ent invention has the advantage of providing a double lock-ing feature for the rope: 1) the multiples bend on the rope through the bores and slots, and 2) the cam element. Both locking systems work together to prevent the slippage of the rope and allow placing the device at any position along the length of the rope when tensioning is desired back through the second bore 80. Fourth, a loop of a desired length is formed and the remaining rope is routed through the space between the cam element 120 and the side wall 92 of the third bore.

When the cam element 120 is in the closed position it par-tially blocks the space between the clamp element 120 and side wall 92 of the third bore 90 and locks the rope. When the cam element is in the opened position it does not block the space between the clamp element 120 and side wall 92 of the third bore 90 and does not engage or contact the rope; thus, the rope may be freely pulled through the passageway in either the first or the second direction.

Thus, the device according to the present invention is used to shorten the effective length of the rope between the two ends of the rope until it is pulled tight. At this time, the cam element 120 is pressed downwardly by the spring 170 to cause the teeth 122 to firmly bite into the rope firmly hold-ing it in place. Any attempt to move the pre-selected length of rope (loop) located between the second bore 80 and the

cam element 120 further increases the clamping action of the device; so accidental loosening of the desired loop of rope does not occur. Changes in the size desired loop of rope can-not occur unless the cam element 120 is manually raised to disengage it from the rope.

Hoist line protector (updated)Pat. 8,359,714 U.S. class 24/136R Int. class F16B 2/14Inventor: Grover Edward James Harper, Wildwood, CA.Assignee: Grover Edward James Harper, Wildwood, CA.

Disclosed is an apparatus for enclosing the free distal end of a flexible tensile member supporting an object. The flexi-ble tensile member has a first portion in tension for suspend-ing the object, and a free end substantially perpendicular thereto with the object between it. The apparatus comprises a body having a passage sized to slidably receive the first portion of the flexible tensile member therein a bottom edge adapted to engage the object and a void for enclosing the free distal end of the flexible tensile member wherein the bottom edge is engaged with the object.

Referring to figure 7, an apparatus according to a first em-bodiment of the invention for enclosing the distal end of a crane line, or end protector, is shown generally at 30. The end protector 30 comprises a body extending between top and bottom ends, 32 and 34, respectively. The end protector has a passage 36 extending along a passage axis 38 between the top and bottom ends 32 and 34 for receiving the first or load bearing portion 8 of the cable 10 and a void 80 therein for receiving the free distal end 6 of the crane cable 10.

The end protector 30 includes an edge surface 40 extend-ing along one edge thereof between the top and bottom ends 32 and 34 and first and second side surfaces, 42 and 44, respectively. The passage 36 is defined by first and second walls 50 and 60, respectively extending from the edge sur-face 40. As illustrated, the second wall 60 extends from the second side surface 44 and includes a first portion 62 sub-stantially parallel to the second side surface 44 and a second portion 64 substantially perpendicular to the first portion 62 and substantially parallel to the edge surface 40. Similarly, the first wall 50 comprises a first portion 52 extending sub-


Figure 7: Perspective view of a cable end protector.


stantially parallel to the first side surface 42 and a second portion 54 substantially perpendicular thereto.

The first and second walls 50 and 60 cooperate with the edge surface 40 to retain the load carrying portion 8 of the crane cable 10 within the passage 36. As illustrated, the first portions 52 and 62 of the first and second walls 50 and 60 are continuous with the second portions 54 and 64 along a continuous arc about the passage axis 38. However, it will be appreciated that in other embodiments, the first and sec-ond portions may also be distinct from each other and will therefore form a segmented wall. In embodiments where the first and second portions are continuous, a distal edge 66 of the second portions may also extend back towards the edge surface 40. In such embodiments, the curvature of the wall, such as illustrated with reference to the second wall 60 may exceed 90 degrees as measured from parallel to the second side surface 44. In other embodiments having distinct first and second portions, the second portion may include a lip so as to assist in retaining the cable 10 within the passage 36.

The first wall 50 extends between top and bottom edges 56 and 58 and the second wall extends between top and bottom edges 68 and 70. The first and second walls 50 and 60 are spaced apart so as to form a gap 72 between the bottom edge 58 of the first wall and the top edge 68 of the second wall. Accordingly, the first and second walls 50 and 60 are spaced

apart along the axis 38 of the passage. The gap 72 may be transverse or substantially perpendicular to the axis 38 as illustrated although it will be appreciated that other orien-tations relative to the axis 38 may be utilized as well. The gap 72 has a width sufficient for the cable 10 to pass through so as to locate the cable within the passage 36.

The first portions 52 and 62 of the first and second walls 50 and 60 cooperate to enclose the cable 10 within the pas-sage 36. As illustrated the first and second walls 50 and 60 are located on opposed sides of the passage 36 wherein the second portions 54 and 64 are oriented towards each other. The void 80 is sized and shaped to receive the free distal end 6 of the cable 10 as set out above. The void 80 is formed into the end protector 30 extending from the bottom end 34. As illustrated, the bottom end 34 may include a cavity 82 sized and shaped to receive a clip 28 as are known in the art there-in. The void 80 extends from a bottom aperture 84 adjacent to the cavity 82 in a direction towards the top end 32 of the end protector 30. With reference to figure 8, the void 80 may extend through the end protector to the top end 32 so as to have an top aperture 86 therein. It will also be appreciated that in some embodiments, the void 80 may be a blind bore having no top aperture.

The void 80 is formed by a pair of spaced apart side walls 88 and first and second end walls 90 and 92, respectively. The side walls have a constant distance between them and are oriented in a direction corresponding to the first and sec-ond side surfaces 42 and 44 of the end protector although a taper may be useful in some embodiments as well. The spac-ing between the side walls 88 may be selected to correspond to the thickness of the cable 10 with which the end protec-tor 30 is to be used. The first and second end walls 90 and 92 may be substantially planar or may have a curvature or any other shape as will be appreciated. The first and second end walls 90 and 92 may be angularly oriented towards each


Figure 8: Cross sectional view of the end protector applied to the load supporting end of a crane cable adjacent a socket and wedge assembly so as to enclose and protect the free distal end of the cable.

Figure 9: Front elevation view of the end protector being applied to a load bearing portion of a crane cable above a socket and wedge assembly.


other to form a taper angle, generally indicated at 94 in fig-ure 8. The taper angle 94 may be selected so as to cause the free distal end 6 of the cable 10 to bear against the second end wall 92 when the body is placed thereover so as to assist in frictionally retaining the end protector 30 on the socket and wedge assembly 12.

The end protector 30 may optionally include a keeper 100 for retaining the end protector in contact with the socket and wedge assembly 12. As illustrated in the attached Figures, the keeper 100 may comprise a tab 102 having a bore 104 therethrough sized to receive a cotter pin (not shown), or other suitable fastener. The bore 104 may be located such that a cotter pin passes through and engages upon the un-derside of bolts of the clasp as are known in the art. Other keepers 100 may comprise a tab 106 extending from the bot-tom end 34 of the end protector 30 parallel to the second wall 60. The bracing tab 106 is locatable to an opposite side of the socket and wedge assembly so as to prevent the second wall from rotating out of contact with the cable 10. The bracing

tab 106 may be located adjacent to the passage 36 or distally through it.

In operation, a user may locate the gap 70 of the end protector about a load bearing portion 8 of a cable above a socket and wedge assembly as illustrated in figure 9. There-after, the end protector 30 may be rotated in a direction in-dicated generally at 110 to bring the first and second walls 50 and 60 into contact with the load bearing portion 8 and thereby to locate the passage 36 around the load bearing portion. The end protector 30 may then be moved in a gener-ally downward direction indicated generally at 112 so as to locate the free distal end 6 of the cable within the void 80 as illustrated in figure 10.

Wire rope flaw detector for increasing accuracy inde-pendent of speed while conserving detector size (up-dated)Pat. 8,390,281 U.S. class 324/240 Int. class G01N 27/82Inventor: Takashi Yoshioka, Tokyo, JP., Hiroshi Sasai, To-kyo, JP., Koichiro Nishiyori, Tokyo, JP.Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Chiyoda-Ku, To-kyo, JP.

A magnetic flux generated by current excitation is allowed to pass through a part of or an entire magnetic path of a leakage magnetic flux. A magnetic flux content due to the current excitation is temporally changed to change a leak-age magnetic flux content interlinked with a detection coil so that an induced voltage is generated in the detection coil. Consequently, damage can be detected even in a case where there is no relative speed between a wire rope and a wire rope flaw detector. Further, a configuration of the magnetic path and the number of ampere turns of an exciting coil are set to be appropriate to prevent the magnetic flux generated by the current excitation from passing through the detec-tion coil or to allow the magnetic fluxes to offset each other. Thus, noise superimposition on the detection coil due to the current excitation can be prevented.

In figure 11, a wire rope 1 and a wire rope flaw detec-tor 2 are illustrated. Further, a back yoke 3, an excitation permanent magnet 4b, and a protecting plate 6 are illus-trated. Figure 12 is a perspective view illustrating the ex-terior when the protecting plate is detached from the wire rope flaw detector of figure 11. Figure 12 illustrates the back yoke 3, the excitation permanent magnets 4a and 4b, a support 5, the protecting plate 6 detached from the wire rope flaw detector, a magnetic path member 7, a detection coil 8, and an exciting coil 9. A magnetization unit of the


Figure 11: Perspective view illustrating an exterior of a wire rope flaw detector.

Figure 10: Side elevation view of the end protector applied to the load bearing portion of a crane cable above a wedge assembly.

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wire rope flaw detector 2 is configured to form a main mag-netic path in a given section in an axial direction of the wire rope 1. The magnetization unit includes a back yoke 3 made of a ferromagnetic material such as iron, and a pair of excitation permanent magnets 4a and 4b which are dis-

posed on both ends of the back yoke 3 with opposite polari-ties to each other.

Figures 13 and 14 are cross-sectional diagrams illustrat-ing the wire rope flaw detector taken along the line A-A’ of figure 11. Figures 13 and 14 are cross-sectional diagrams

taken along a plane including the central axis of the wire rope 1, illustrating a flow of magnetic flux in the vicinity of a damaged portion of the wire rope. Further, figure 13 illustrates a case in which no current flows in the exciting coil, and figure 14 illustrates a case in which a current flows in the exciting coil. Figures 13 and 14 illustrate the wire rope 1, the back yoke 3, the excitation permanent magnets 4a and 4b, the support 5, the magnetic path member 7, the detection coil 8, the exciting coil 9, a damaged portion 10, an

continued on next pageFigure 12: Perspective view illustrating the exterior when a protecting plate is detached from the wire rope flaw detector.

Figure 13: First diagram illustrating cross section of the wire rope flaw detector taken along the line A-A’ of figure 11.


exciting power source 11, a main magnetic flux 12, a leakage magnetic flux 13, and an excitation current magnetic flux 14. A damage detection unit of the wire rope flaw detector 2 includes the magnetic path member 7, the detection coil 8, the exciting coil 9, and the exciting power source 11.

Figure 15 is an enlarged diagram illustrating a cross sec-tion of the magnetic path member of figures 13 and 14. Fig-ure 15 illustrates the magnetic path member 7 including a bypass magnetic path member 7x and a loop magnetic path member 7y, the detection coil 8, the exciting coil 9, the excit-ing power source 11, a bypass magnetic path 15 formed in the bypass magnetic path member 7x, a loop magnetic path 16 formed in the loop magnetic path member 7y, and a com-mon portion 22 of the bypass magnetic path member 7x and the loop magnetic path member 7y.

The wire rope flaw detector 2 according to this embodi-ment forms the main magnetic path in a given section in the axial direction of the wire rope 1 by means of the magnetiza-tion unit. Further, the wire rope flaw detector 2 allows the leakage magnetic flux 13 generated by the damaged portion 10 of the wire rope 1 to go around the outside of the wire rope 1 through the magnetic path member 7, and detects the leakage magnetic flux 13 by means of the detection coil 8 wound around the bypass magnetic path member 7x of the magnetic path member 7.

Figure 15 is the enlarged diagram illustrating the cross section of the magnetic path member 7 of figures 13 and 14, as described above. The magnetic path member 7 forms the

bypass magnetic path 15 that allows the leakage magnetic flux to go around as well as the loop magnetic path 16. The exciting coil 9 is wound around the loop magnetic path mem-ber 7y that forms the loop magnetic path 16, and when the exciting coil 9 is energized, the loop magnetic path member 7y is magnetically saturated to deteriorate the permeability. Therefore, a part of the bypass magnetic path 15 is mag-

netically blocked. For that reason, the leakage magnetic flux content interlinked with the detection coil 8 is reduced to de-velop an induced voltage in the detection coil 8. In this way, a change in the leakage magnetic flux content interlinked with the detection coil 8 can be caused by a temporal change in the exciting coil current. Therefore, a relative speed be-tween the wire rope 1 and the wire rope flaw detector 2 is not required, and even when the relative speed is low, the dam-aged portion 10 generated in the wire rope 1 can be detected with high precision.

As illustrated in figure 12, surfaces of the excitation per-manent magnets 4a and 4b, which face the wire rope 1, each have a substantially U-shaped surface with R in which a slight margin is added to the outer diameter of the wire rope 1 and the thickness of the protecting plate 6. The reason is that an air gap (including the protecting plate 6) between

each of the excitation permanent magnets 4a and 4b and the wire rope 1 is minimized to thereby effectively magnetically saturate the given section of the wire rope 1.

Figure 16 is a perspective view illustrating the exterior when the protecting plate is detached from the wire rope flaw detector of figure 11. The excitation permanent magnet 4a may include, as illustrated in figure 16, a cuboid wire rope excitation main magnet 17a, cuboid wire rope excita-tion sub-magnets 18a and 18b, and a magnetic pole piece 19a made of a ferromagnetic material. Further, the excita-tion permanent magnet 4b may include a cuboid wire rope excitation main magnet 17b, cuboid wire rope excitation sub-magnets 18c and 18d, and a magnetic pole piece 19b made of a ferromagnetic material. As a result, because most of the permanent magnetic configuration is cuboid, the pro-cessing costs can be reduced.

The magnetic path member 7 includes the bypass mag-netic path member 7x that is made of a ferromagnetic ma-terial and allows the leakage magnetic flux 13 generated by the damaged portion 10 of the wire rope 1 to go around the outside of the wire rope 1, and the loop magnetic path member 7y that contains a part of the bypass magnetic path member 7x and forms a closed loop magnetic path by itself. The magnetic path member 7 is disposed between the pair of excitation permanent magnets 4a and 4b and immediately below the protecting plate 6. Because the bypass magnetic path member 7x is made of a ferromagnetic material, the permeance of the magnetic path of the leakage magnetic flux 13 can be improved to bring out a large amount of the leak-age magnetic flux 13.


Figure 14: . Second diagram illustrating cross section of the wire rope flaw detector taken along the line A-A’ of figure 11.

Figure 15: Enlarged diagram illustrating a cross section of a magnetic path member.

Figure 16: Perspective view illustrating the exterior when the protecting plate is detached from the wire rope flaw detector.

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Elevator ropePat. 8,402,731 U.S. class 57/210 Int. class D02G 3/22Inventor: Shinya Naito, Tokyo, JP., Mamoru Terai, Tokyo, JP., Michio Murai, Tokyo, JP., Hiroshi Kigawa, Tokyo, JP., Hiroyuki Nakagawa, Tokyo, JP., Muneaki Mukuda, Tokyo, JP., Atsushi Mitsui, Tokyo, JP., Rikio Kondo, Tokyo, JP.Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Tokyo, JP.

An elevator rope including a rope main body; and a cover-ing resin layer that covers the periphery of the rope main body and comprises a molded product of a composition, which composition is produced by mixing a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, a thermoplastic resin other than the thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer and an isocya-

nate compound having two or more isocyanate groups per molecule; a rope main body impregnated with an impregnat-ing solution comprising a hydroxy compound having two or more hydroxy groups per molecule and an isocyanate com-pound having two or more isocyanate groups per molecule and having a lower viscosity than a melt viscosity of the composition for forming the covering resin layer is used as the rope main body; the elevator rope has a stable friction coefficient that does not depend on temperature or sliding velocity.

Figure 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an exam-ple of an elevator rope obtained by covering the periphery of strands 6 impregnated with no impregnating solution with a covering resin layer 7, including a molded product of a composition for forming a covering resin layer, which is pro-duced by mixing a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, a thermoplastic resin other than the thermoplastic polyure-thane elastomer, and an isocyanate compound having two or more isocyanate groups per molecule.

As illustrated in figure 17, in the elevator rope using the strands 6 impregnated with no impregnating solution, an air layer 8 may appear between the strands 6 and the cover-ing resin layer 7 due to variations in production steps (such as a variation in the composition of materials for forming the covering resin layer, molding temperature, heat-hardening temperature, and heat-hardening time). If the air layer 8 appears, it becomes difficult to release heat generated by friction, e.g., heat generated on a friction interface at the time of an emergency stop of the elevator, from the friction interface, and hence the temperature on the friction inter-

continued on next pageFigure 17: Schematic cross-sectional view of an example of an elevator rope using strands not impregnated with impregnating solution.


face varies drastically, resulting in a large variation in the friction coefficient. In many cases, the air layer 8 appears in gaps in the strands 6 or in valley parts between wires in the strands 6.

Figure 18 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an exam-ple of an elevator rope obtained by: impregnating strands 6 with an impregnating solution which contains a hydroxy compound having two or more hydroxy groups per molecule and an isocyanate compound having two or more isocyanate groups per molecule and has a lower viscosity than the melt viscosity of a composition for forming a covering resin layer; heating the resultant product at 40°C or more and 180°C or less to mold the product into a impregnating solution-hard-ened product 9; and covering the periphery of the resultant strands 6 with a covering resin layer 7 including a molded product of the composition for forming a covering resin layer, which is produced by mixing a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, a thermoplastic resin other than the thermoplas-tic polyurethane elastomer and an isocyanate compound having two or more isocyanate groups per molecule.

As illustrated in figure 18, in this embodiment, the rope main body impregnated with the impregnating solution is heated at 40°C or more and 180°C or less to thermally expand the strands 6, and the impregnating solution pen-etrates gaps between wires in the strands 6, the gaps being generated by the thermal expansion. Further heating is car-ried out to react and harden the hydroxy compound having two or more hydroxy groups per molecule and the isocyanate compound having two or more isocyanate groups per mol-ecule in the impregnating solution, to thereby fill the gaps in the strands 6 or the valley parts between wires in the strands 6 where the air layer 8 is liable to appear with the impregnating solution-hardened product 9. Subsequently, the rope main body is covered with the covering resin layer 7 including the molded product of the composition for form-ing a covering resin layer, which is produced by mixing the thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, the thermoplastic resin other than the thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer and the isocyanate compound having two or more isocya-nate groups per molecule, to thereby obtain an elevator rope without generating the air layer 8. In the thus-obtained ele-vator rope, even in the case where frictional heat is suddenly generated, such as at the time of an emergency stop of the elevator, heat is easily released, and temperature change on the friction interface becomes small, resulting in a small variation in the friction coefficient.

The viscosity of the impregnating solution before complete hardening is adjusted so as to be lower than the melt vis-cosity of the composition for forming a covering resin layer. In the case where the viscosity of the impregnating solution before complete hardening is higher than the melt viscosity of the composition for forming a covering resin layer, it is impossible to fill gaps in the strands 6 or valley parts be-tween wires in the strands 6 where the air layer 8 is liable to appear. The viscosity of the impregnating solution is appro-priately adjusted depending on the composition of the com-position for forming a covering resin layer and the like, but is usually 500 mPas or more and 20,000 mPas or less, prefer-ably 2,000 mPas or more and 5,000 mPas or less. The above-mentioned viscosity ranges are lower than the melt viscos-ity of a general thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, and hence the impregnating solution can fill small gaps which are not filled by covering with the covering resin layer 7.

Meanwhile, in order to improve the thermal conductiv-ity of the impregnating solution-hardened product 9, a thermally conductive inorganic filler may be added to the impregnating solution. The thermally conductive inorgan-ic filler is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include boron nitride, aluminum nitride, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, alumina, and silica. Of those, boron nitride and aluminum nitride are more preferred because of high thermal conductivity. In addition, the blending amount of the thermally conductive inorganic filler is not particu-larly limited.

When a rope including steel wires having a multilayer structure is impregnated with the impregnating solution before covering the outermost periphery with the covering resin layer and heated at from 40°C or more to 180°C or less, the impregnating solution-hardened product can be filled even if there are gaps between the steel wires in the rope outermost layer and the resin cladding where the steel wires in the outermost layer are twisted. Figure 19 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the vicinity of an outer layer of an elevator rope which is obtained by forming an impregnating solution-hardened product by the above-mentioned method before covering with an outer layer cladding. In figure 19, the numeral 9 denotes the impreg-nating solution-hardened product, the numeral 10 denotes the outer layer cladding, the numeral 11 denotes an outer layer strand, and the numeral 12 denotes an inner layer cladding. The outer layer strands 11 are each structured by a center wire disposed in the center and six peripheral wires disposed on the periphery of the center wire. Gaps be-tween wires in the outer layer strands 11 and gaps between


Figure 18: Schematic cross-sectional view of an example of an elevator rope.

Figure 19: Schematic cross-sectional view of the vicinity of an outer layer of an elevator rope.

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the outer layer strands 11 are filled with the impregnating solution-hardened product 9, and hence even in the case where frictional heat is suddenly generated, such as at the time of an emergency stop of the elevator, heat is easily released, and temperature change on the friction interface becomes small, resulting in a small variation in the friction coefficient. Further, even when the rope is bent and used, damage due to contact between wires can be reduced, and longer life of the elevator rope can be achieved.

Overload warning system for a winch hoistPat. 8,424,846 U.S. class 254/243 Int. class B21F 9/00Inventor: Richard A. Perduta, Grafton, MA., David B. Hal-len, Rutland, MA.Assignee: Lincoln Precision Machining Company, North Grafton, MA.

Looking at figures 20 to 24, winch hoist 50 decreases the conductive metal length 27 that must move between conduc-tors 28, 29 when a lineman 30 actuates the winch hoist 50. Ratchet winch hoist 50 has a main housing 2 supported by a hook 1 to support a load through an appropriate lifting medium 3 of an appropriate material, e.g., nylon strap, wire rope or synthetic rope, that is guided by guide 17. A sheave block 4 doubles the line back to the housing, and attaches through an appropriate anchor system such as a slip hook 19 and an eye bolt 18, for example. There is a handle 6 at-tached by some means to a movable frame 8 as a means to provide leverage. Ratchet teeth on the drum 11 allow a mov-able pawl 9 (carried by shaft 21) and a holding pawl 12 (car-ried by shaft 20) to interact through a spring to allow raising and lowering the load, as is known in the art. A wind-up

wheel 13 may be used for rapid winding when the line 3 is not under load.

The overload warning system preferably uses the contours of the movable frame 8 and a socket 5 to house and protect a shear pin device 7. The socket and frame can be cast. Socket 5 uses the drum shaft 14 as the pivot for the handle 6. The socket is attached to the drum shaft at one end by an appro-priate means 15 such as with washer(s) or a bearing and a retaining ring 16. The socket is attached to the pawl shaft 21 at the other end with an appropriate means such as a wash-er 25 and a retaining ring 26. See figure 22. The insulating fiberglass handle 6 is held in position within the socket by means of a thumb screw 10 or a knurled screw.

Rotational loads that are applied to the handle 6 are trans-mitted from flange 42 of socket casting 5 to closely-spaced thickened leg 40 of frame 8 through the shear pin 7, to cause frame 8 to pivot about the drum shaft axis (axis “A”). A pair of hardened steel bushings 22, one located in each of leg 40 and flange 42, surround the shear pin 7 to distribute loads from socket flange 42 through pin 7 to leg 40 and thus frame 8. Bushings 22 also define a distinct shear zone located in the space between the socket flange and leg. The shear pin 7 has a reduced section 31 in the shear zone that falls between the bushings 22. This reduced section can be varied in cross-sectional area based on the hoist model and capacity. In an embodiment the shear pin 7 cross section is round. A groov-ing operation produces the reduced area. Other shapes and manufacturing methods may be used.

Figure 25 shows detail that is hidden from view in normal use by handle 6 and pawl shaft retaining washer 25 and



retaining ring 26. An elongated hole 24 in the flange 42 of socket 5 (visible in figure 25 through oval access opening 44 in the opposite sidewall of socket 5) defines spaces 46a and 46b between shaft 21 and flange 42. Shear pin 7 normally carries the force from socket 5 to frame 8. When shear pin 7 fails, socket 5 will pivot relative to frame 8 about drum shaft 14; this provides tactile feedback to the user that the shear pin has failed, which indicates that the safe load has been

exceeded. Hole 24 provides a containment mechanism when the shear pin fails, as pawl shaft 21 will move through space 46a or space 46b and then contact the edge of hole 24 to prevent further rotation of the socket relative to the frame. This allows full control of the hoist and the load after shear pin failure. Elongated hole 24 allows limited, defined handle movement relative to pawl shaft 21. Upon failure of shear pin 7, the elongation of hole 24 provides enough movement to clearly indicate through tactile feedback that an overload condition has been reached.


Figure 21: More detailed perspective view of the hoist with the strap removed so that certain aspects can be seen more clearly.

Figure 23: Partial cross-sectional view of portions of the hoist showing the shear pin and its engagement with the socket and frame.

Figure 22: Side view of the hoist.

Figure 20: Perspective view of an embodiment of the winch hoist with overload warning system.

Committed to Quality.Committed to You.

The original lever ratchet hoist company.

Visit us on the web at: www.lug-all.com or contact us, toll free: 1 (888) 790-8254

When construction workers carry one of our come-alongs onto a job site, they do it with confidence. Why? Because LUG-ALL has manufactured the highest quality come-alongs available in the marketplace for six decades. Our manufacturing precision–’to thousandths of an inch’– ensures that you receive a reliable hoist that is built for life, not a once and done throw away job. LUG-ALL come-alongs are ideal for hundreds of tasks including lifting, tightening, and bending. LUG-ALL users want a level of functionality unknown in other hoists. As fellow craftsmen, we’re honored to serve this elite group.

■ Cast, not stamped! USA-made cast aluminum frames for superior durability

■ Safety load-holding: One of two interlocking pawls is always positively engaged

■ Handle bends when overloaded, alerting you and protecting your hoist


Shear pin 7 must be capable of resisting loads within the desired range, while providing an appropriate shear load and shear characteristics. 5/16’’ round cold drawn steel of low to medium carbon content is an appropriate material. Pressed and sintered powdered ferrous materials also may be used. A groove 31 of approximately 0.080’’ width and 0.083’’ depth accomplishes a reduced diameter of 0.146’’ in

the pin shear region. The shear pin is held in place in the frame and socket by use of retaining rings 23. Alternate designs of the shear pin can use a head on one end of the pin and other means of retention of the pin in the frame and socket (e.g., a receiving cavity for the head and screw threads on the other end of the pin) to allow for easier changing of the pin after failure. WRN

Figure 25: similar view as figure 24 but with certain parts removed to illustrate detail that is hidden when the winch hoist is in use.Figure 24: Winch hoist in use by a lineman.


Loos & Co. updates reel design for a new look

Loos & Company customers can ex-pect to see cable products arriving on reels with a new design. After a long and storied history shipping aircraft cable and wire rope on solid red flanged reels, the company has decided to make an update.

According to a company release, starting in mid-June, Loos & Compa-ny reels will have a brand new look to them, moving from the familiar fully painted red flange to one comprised of two horizontal red stripes.

“We’re excited about this change,” says Sales & Marketing Manager Rob-ert Davis. “Our old reels were always very recognizable, and our new design should be no different. These reels have a fresh new look that will be instantly

visible in our customers’ warehouses.” Join us in celebrating our fresh new look. Visit www.loosco.com/newlook or contact a Product Manager for a com-plete overview of the design changes.

Loos & Co., Inc. is the world’s lead-ing manufacturer of Military Specifica-tion 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, includ-ing: Stainless Steel and Specialty Alloy Wire and Wire Products, Aircraft Ca-ble, Wire Rope, and Military and Com-mercial Cable Assemblies.

New swivel from Van BeestVan Beest introduces a new swivel

type: UELR, which replaces the UELD type swivel.

The eyes of the new UELR type are slightly bigger than those of the UELD type, which improves the performance of this product, according to a company release. We have made the same modi-

fication to the grade 8 ELD type swivel, which is replaced by the new ELR type. All sizes, in grade 8 and 10, are now available from stock.

For more information on the latest Van Beest products including details of these swivels, please contact us: [email protected].

Crosby® product specified in Panama Canal enlargementMcKissick® Roll-Forged™ Sheaves for the New Pacific and Atlantic Lock Complexes

Through an Authorized Crosby Dis-tributor in Europe, Crosby® is pleased to supply several, 64.37in./1635mm diameter, roll-forged sheaves for a project concerning the Panama Canal Enlargement, known as ‘The Third Set of Locks Project’, commissioned by the Panama Canal Authority.

Six (6) chambers will each be equipped with 2 horizontal sliding gates. Each gate is powered by electric

winches capable of opening the lock in 3 to 4 minutes. It is within these slid-ing gates that, 226 Crosby® sheaves, 64.37in./1635mm in diameter with a 1.81in./46mm wireline, will be used.

McKissick® Roll-Forged™ sheaves were chosen for this contract for a num-ber of reasons. They are lighter, stron-ger and more wear-resistant due to our roll-forged process. Sheaves produced under this roll-forged method are more economical because less welding and machining are involved compared to conventional methods. These sheaves can be made lighter because the roll-ing process incorporates upsetting the sheave. The upsetting operation allows material to be gathered where needed, in order to support the rope, as opposed to starting with a thicker blank. Our sheaves are manufactured out of dif-ferent materials in order to meet de-manding requirements such as Charpy Impact Testing and rigorous hardness requirements in the groove. Crosby® is the only company who can manufac-ture a superior roll-forged sheave by the use of our proprietary upset roll-forged process.

Crosby McKissick® Products began manufacturing sheaves and blocks for the oilfield industry in the 1920’s and is now the largest supplier of aftermar-ket replacement sheaves for both land-based and offshore drilling companies. The McKissick® brand is recognized worldwide as a quality product that is designed specifically to withstand harsh applications.

To find out more about our McKis-sick Roll-Forged Sheaves contact The Crosby Group at (800) 797-4611 or visit www.thecrosbygroup.com.

877-LIFT AMHallmaterialhandling.com

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DSM Dyneema congratulates Banom on winning Frost & Sullivan AwardBanom’s cut-resistant gloves feature Dyneema® Fiber for superior safet y and comfort

DSM Dyneema LLC (DSM Dynee-ma), the manufacturer of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHM-wPE) fiber, branded as Dyneema®, and a world leader in life protection materials and high performance fibers, commends their partner Banom for winning the prestigious Frost & Sul-livan 2013 North American Product Leadership Award in Cut Resistant Gloves. Banom’s gloves for workers in the sheet metal and glass industries surpass the competition through the use of proprietary high tenacity fila-ment (HTF) yarns incorporating high-performance materials such as Max-Ply® with Dyneema® and TriMax® with Dyneema®.

According to the Frost & Sullivan re-port, Banom not only uses innovative yarns that protect against cutting haz-ards from knives, razor blades, sheet metal and glass, they also demonstrate superiority over competing products in the market in terms of dexterity, comfort, and tactility. Special coatings provide enhanced grip and reduce hand fatigue. Banom also received praise for designing gloves for specific end uses and for employing application testing for its gloves rather than a simple stan-dard cut test.

“We are proud of Banom’s achieve-ment and pleased to have played a contributing role in the success of our partner, now acknowledged as the product leader in the North American cut-resistant glove market sector,” said Matthew Reid, High Performance Textiles Americas Manager, DSM Dyneema. “Advanced fiber technolo-gies, together with innovations in de-sign, manufacture and testing, enable Banom’s products to reduce injury rates and improve worker effective-ness. We are confident that Banom will continue to lead the industry and look forward to a productive ongoing relationship.”

In addition to the unsurpassed abrasion resistance and high ten-sile strength of the Dyneema® fiber, Banom leverages special properties of MaxPly® with Dyneema® and TriMax® with Dyneema® to ensure stretch and sensitivity while protect-ing against both rough- and clean-edge hazards. The company’s continu-ous innovation in its products, paired with efficient supporting systems for

cleaning, dispensing and collection, have led to steady growth and geo-graphic expansion in Europe, Brazil and Mexico.

Hand pallet truck accessible palletizer makes loading easier than ever

The PalletPal Roll-In™ Level Loader from Southworth is a manual palletizer that makes loading and unloading full pallets easier than ever, according to a company release. Thanks to its unique low-profile, open-ended platform, the Roll-In allows the forks of an ordinary hand pallet truck to literally roll into it, in between the platform’s outer beams and a center support beam, while the pallet ends up on top of the scissor-lift platform. This innovative design, which accom-modates loads on any open-bottom pallet or skid, ensures that the load is evenly placed when the hand truck is lowered and rolled away.

The Roll-In Level Loader reduces costs and raises productivity. Be-cause workers can feed and offload it with a hand pallet truck, they don’t

waste time waiting for a forklift and trained operator to assist them. A powered foot switch allows smooth, hands-free adjustment of the plat-form to the most comfortable height as boxes are added or removed, re-ducing worker fatigue and injuries. The platform can be accessed from all four sides with no bending and minimal reach-over. A full-perime-ter, auto-stop toe guard provides an added measure of safety.

The Roll-In Level Loader has a 2,200 lb. capacity, lowered height of 3¼ inch-es, 31½ inch raised height, 48 x 53 inch platform.

For more information, contact Brian E. McNamara, President, Southworth Products Corp, P.O. Box 1380, Port-land, ME 04104-1380, TEL: (207) 878-0700, FAX: (207) 797-4734, e-mail: [email protected], www.SouthworthProducts.com.


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Miller Lifting Products announces the introduction of DIN Hook Latches

Miller Lifting Products, a manufac-turer of heavy duty lifting products, announces the introduction of DIN Standard hook latch kits.

Hook Latches for DIN (European) Lifting Hooks

Cranes of all types manufactured in Europe and exported to the USA

and Canada incorporate forged lift-ing hooks made to European stan-dards DIN15401 (for single hooks) and DIN15402 (for double hooks), and require unique hook latches de-signed specifically for DIN standard hooks. DIN standard hooks are found on mobile cranes, overhead cranes, port cranes, offshore cranes, on hook blocks manufactured by European producers, as well as on hook blocks manufactured by Miller Lifting Prod-ucts. Miller Lifting Products is the

primary provider of DIN standard hooks in North America. DIN stan-dard hooks are available in capacities from 3 (metric) tons to 1200 (metric) tons. Specifying and locating replace-ment hook latches for DIN standard hooks is made faster and easier by Miller Lifting.

Replacement safety latches for DIN standard hooks are available from Miller.

Miller stocks the complete range of hook latches for single and duplex DIN standard hooks. Miller’s “Latch Kits for Standardized European Shank Hooks” information sheet is available on Miller Lifting Product’s website, www.miller-products.net. This simple information sheet details ordering information and simple instructions on how to deter-mine which latch is needed for a spe-cific hook by hook frame number.

Miller Lifting Products of Charlton, MA is the inventor of the now common angular contact bearing lifting swivel design that is the industry standard. In addition to swivels, blocks and overhaul

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Now available with USA made chain, assembled

and tested in USA.

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ball assemblies for lifting applications, Miller Lifting Products also manu-factures the Pengo-Miller line pulling swivel used extensively in the power transmission industry and sells its products through a network of dealers thorough out the US, Canada and the rest of the world. Miller maintains stock in Charlton, MA and Houston, TX.

For more information about Miller Lifting Products, or for additional in-formation about this release, please contact Marty Kloss, Director of Sales at [email protected], C: 774-266-4729. www.millerprodcuts.net.

Jungheinrich® Product named “International Forklift Truck Of The Year”Industry Trade Media Honors Superior Warehouse Product Development

Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America Inc. (MCFA), the provider of Jungheinrich lift trucks and narrow aisle products in the United States, Canada and Mexico, announced that the Jungheinrich® ETV/ETM 216 mov-ing mast reach truck was recognized as an “International Forklift Truck of the Year” (IFOY) in the Warehouse Trucks category. The IFOY Award ceremony, sponsored by the German Engineering Federation, recognizes the year’s best materials handling equipment and so-lutions in four categories.

IFOY Award winners, selected by a panel of international trade journalists, are recognized as the year’s best new material handling equipment products.

“We’re proud to see the ETV/ETM 216 moving mast reach truck receive this recognition,” said Kent Eudy, Executive Vice President of sales and marketing at MCFA. “The ETV/ETM 216 reach truck is a global leader in its product category, and we are hon-ored to represent this product line in North America.”

Jungheinrich’s ETV/ETM 216 reach truck was recognized for its superior performance, combining energy effi-ciency with excellent handling, driving performance and a range of ergonomic features. One of the few sit-down mov-ing mast reach trucks offered in North America, a key benefit of the reach truck design is that the operator re-mains seated while driving the truck. This allows for enhanced comfort espe-cially in applications where the opera-tor remains on the truck for extended periods of time.

The IFOY Award’s Warehouse Trucks category focuses on pedestrian-controlled warehouse trucks, tugger trains, tow tractors, seated/standup material handling devices, very narrow aisle (VNA) trucks and reach trucks.

For more information on the Jung-heinrich ETV/ETM 216 reach truck, visit www.jungheinrich-lift.com.

working file 2/2/06 8:59 PM Page 14


ing organization in various roles, and most notable, his 7 years as Market-ing Manager. The last five years he has led Crosby’s efforts as the Product Manager for blocks and sheaves.

Deakins appointed President of Bishop Lifting Products, Inc.

Derrick Deakins has been appointed President of Bishop Lifting Products, Inc., effective August 1, 2013.

“Derrick joined Bishop Lifting Prod-ucts as Chief Financial Officer in 2007 and was appointed Chief Operating Officer earlier this year. He has been instrumental in the development and execution of both our tactical as well as our strategic plans and is a valu-able part of our executive manage-ment team”, said Otis Dufrene, CEO

of SBP Holdings, Bishop’s parent company where Mr. Deakins is also a member of the Board of Directors.

Prior to joining Bishop Lifting Prod-ucts Mr. Deakins held senior finance and engineering positions with Shell Oil Company and Hewlett Packard. He holds a mechanical engineering degree from Texas A&M University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

Founded in 1984, Bishop Lifting Products is one of the nation’s premier industrial distributors specializing in the fabrication and sale of lifting, rig-ging, and load securement products and services. Bishop Lifting Products and Singer Equities, Inc., a group of value added industrial rubber distrib-utors, are wholly owned subsidiaries

Two promotions announced by The Crosby Group

The Tulsa, Oklahoma, based Crosby Group, a global leader in accessories for lifting and material handling ap-plications, has announced the pro-motion of Jeff Ferchen to the role of National Sales Manager-U.S. for The Crosby Group. Jeff will be responsible for coordinating all Crosby Group sales

activity as it relates to the U.S.-based sales team and distribution partners.

For the past three years, Jeff has been serving as Crosby’s Northwest Regional Manager, and was a District Manager for five years as well. Prior

to joining Crosby, Jeff was a territory sales manager for Cooper Tools. His industry experience, leadership style and professionalism will allow him to excel in this role.

The Crosby Group, also announced the promotion of Curt Jabben as the Director of Engineered Product Sales. In his new position, Curt will over-see and administer the sales process for Crosby solutions that require ad-ditional engineering, specialization, or modification in order to meet the widely varying needs of Crosby’s cus-tomers.

The majority of Curt’s 25 years with Crosby were within the market-

Curt Jabben

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Derrick Deakins

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of SBP Holdings and together service a wide range of diversified industries throughout North America. More in-formation can be obtained at www.sbpholdings.com.

The Crosby Group welcomes four additions to their staff

The Tulsa, Oklahoma, based Crosby Group, a global leader in accessories for lifting and material handling ap-plications, has announced additions to the company:

1. Andy Vogl as the Vice President-Sales. As the VP-Sales, Andy has oversight for Crosby Group sales on a global basis.

Andy’s 30+ year career has been spent in sales leadership roles for di-versified industrial companies who mainly have used value-added distri-bution as their chief channel to mar-ket. For the past 12 years, he has been

a Vice President of Sales for Danaher Corporation in their motion and con-trol businesses. Prior to that, he was part of a newly-formed company, Auto-mation Solutions International (ASI), which included a manufacturer as well as several industrial distributors. He served as the Vice President-General Manager for the Western region until Danaher acquired the manufacturing portion of that business. Before that he held key sales roles with Danfoss, Inc. and Parker Hannifin Corp., which again are companies that embrace sales philosophies and channel strate-gies very similar to The Crosby Group.

2. Donna DeWitt as the Director-Op-erational Excellence and Quality for The Crosby Group. As Director-Oper-ational Excellence and Quality, Don-

na will be responsible for the global coordination of quality resources and programs as well as Crosby’s overall operational excellence activities.

Donna comes to Crosby with exten-sive experience in Continuous Im-provement and Quality, and she has worked in that capacity for some very reputable companies such as Owens Corning, CertainTeed, Schlumberger and most recently, Paccar Winch. She is also a six sigma black belt.

3. Bob Myers as the Block and Sheave Product Specialist for The Crosby Group. In his new role, Bob is responsible for sales and market-ing support for Crosby’s distribution partners, OEMs and end users who have chosen or are considering Crosby

blocks and sheaves for their lifting solutions. Bob will be working closely with multiple resources within Crosby to identify new product innovations,


Andy Vogl

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develop new tools, promote Crosby’s design and performance benefits, and assist the extended Crosby sales orga-nization along the successful growth trajectory that the block and sheave product line has enjoyed to date.

Bob brings a tremendous amount of industry knowledge and experience that he earned over a prominent ca-reer in sales with Gunnebo Johnson that spanned 30+ years. Most recent-ly, he lead the sales efforts of Paccar Winch until joining Crosby. Bob’s long term relationships with distribution, OEM’s and end users will serve him well in his new role.

4. Bob Pridgen as the Director-Sup-

ply Chain for The Crosby Group. As Director-Supply Chain, Bob will have global coordination responsibility for all procurement and sourcing activity including suppliers, inter and intra facility logistics, and Crosby’s ware-housing operations.

Bob is a native of New Jersey and earned degrees from Drew University and Rutgers University. After complet-ing his MBA, Bob joined the United

States Army and spent most of his active duty time with the Judge Advocate Gen-eral’s Corps. After leaving the military, Bob worked for Ceva Global Logistics and most recently, Hilti Corporation.

Spider hires Garry Bilodeau as District Sales Representative – Vancouver, BC

Spider, a division of SafeWorks, LLC, announces Garry Bilodeau has joined its Vancouver, BC operation center as District Sales Representa-tive. In this role, Bilodeau is respon-sible for solving the suspended scaf-folding and fall protection challenges of contractors and facility owners throughout Canada.

Bilodeau boasts forty years of ex-perience in the scaffolding industry, holding various sales and manage-ment positions with companies like Sky-Hi Scaffolding, Ltd and Swing Stage, Ltd. Most recently he served as Safety Manager for Suspended Stages, Inc, where his responsibilities included swing stage and fall protec-tion instructing, fabrication estimat-ing, and sales and rentals. He has been actively involved in the Scaffold Industry Association of Canada for the past twenty-six years, serving on vari-ous committees and holding numer-ous roles including Western Canada

National Director, BC Chapter Presi-dent, and Safety Instructor.

“Garry’s extensive industry experi-ence combined with his familiarity of the Canadian market make him a per-fect addition to our Vancouver opera-tion center,” comments John Sotiroff, Vice President Spider Sales and Dis-tribution. “We look forward to utilizing his training skills and acute knowledge of provincial codes and regulations to provide our Canadian customers with the safest, most reliable suspended ac-cess and fall protection solutions.”


Garry Bilodeau

Bob Pridgen


Please turn to the pages indicated belowfor a detailed view of

advertisers’ products or services.

Advertisers Index

Accutech .......................................................63

All Material Handling .................................69, 71

Allied Power Products ....................................49

Associated Wire Rope & Rigging, Inc. ... 23, 47, 48

Buffalo Lifting and Testing ..............................58

C. Sherman Johnson Co., Inc. ........................70

Caldwell Company, Inc. ......................34, 43, 80

Chant Engineering Co., Inc. ......................27, 45

Chicago Hardware ..........................................32

Cleveland City Forge .......................................35

The Crosby Group ................................2, 22, 36

Distributor Computer Systems ........................65

Downs Crane & Hoist Co., Inc. .......................63

Elebia .............................................................37

Engineered Lifting Tech ..................................65

Esmet ............................................................30

Gaylin International Co. Pte. Ltd. .....................79

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

Kulkoni ..........................................................39

KWS, Inc. .......................................................61

Landmann ........................................................6

Lift-It Manufacturing Co., Inc. ..........................29

Lincoln Hoist ....................................................3

Lug-All ...........................................................67

Miller Lifting Products ....................................31

Morse-Starrett Products Co. ...........................46

Muncy Industries ...........................................18

New England Ropes .......................................55

Premier Wire Rope ...........................................4

Rud Chain, Inc. ..............................................24

Sea Catch ......................................................74

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

Slinguard Protectors .......................................44

Southern Wire ................................................26

Strider~Resource ..........................................11

Suncor Stainless, Inc. .............................. 40-41

Talurit .............................................................19

Taylor Chain Company ...................................72

Terrier Lifting Clamps .....................................33

Ultra-Safe, Inc. ...............................................73

Van Beest BV ...................................................9

Vanguard Steel, Ltd. .......................................15

Wichard, Inc. .................................................57

Windy Ridge Corporation ................................61

Wirop Industrial Co., Ltd. ................................25

Yoke Industrial Corp. ......................................13


HELP WANTEDLoos & Co., Inc. manufactures stainless

and nickel alloy wire and cable products. We are seeking an Engineer with experience in metallurgy, preferably with a wire draw-ing background. Must have a BS in metal-lurgy, or substantial industry experience in wire or specialty metals industries. Medical grade alloys knowledge is a definite plus. We offer competitive wages with a compre-hensive benefit program. An EEO/AA Com-pany. Visit our website at www.loosco.com. Forward resumes to [email protected].

Fast growing Billings Montana industrial supply and rigging shop seeks experienced rigger and wire rope assembler. Must be fa-miliar with all aspects of rigging shop opera-tions. Email resume to [email protected].

POSITION AVAILABLECaldwell is a rapidly growing, employee-

owned company located in Rockford, Illinois. Founded in 1954, we are the leading manu-facturer of below the hook lifting solutions and as a result of our continued growth, we are seeking qualified, talented candidates to join our team. Caldwell offers a competitive compensation and benefits package. To join our team, qualified candidates can apply by email to: [email protected] or by mail to Human Resources, The Caldwell Group, Inc., 5055 26th Avenue, Rockford, IL 61109.

Key Accounts ManagerThis position is responsible for building

and maintaining key customer relation-ships, providing problem resolution and recommending value added services. Ad-ditional requirements include representing the company at trade shows, forecasting and achieving account targets and deliver-ing customer presentations. Requirements include BS/BA in Business or other related discipline or equivalent experience; a major or minor in Engineering a plus; five years experience in sales positions of increasing responsibility and scope; two years experi-ence managing key or national accounts and knowledge of the rigging and crane in-dustries a plus. Position requires up to 50% travel and a valid driver’s license.

Company: Southern Wire, a leading whole-saler/distributor of wire rope, slings, chain, and fittings is expanding its sales force.

We are seeking Inside Sales Representa-tives for the Memphis, TN area.

We offer a competitive base salary and commission program. Our excellent ben-efits package includes medical, dental, life, disability, paid vacation, and 401K. Please visit company website: www.houwire.com

College degree preferred - Industry knowl-edge a must. Send resume in confidence to: [email protected] or Fax# 662-893-4732. *No calls please*

Muncy Industries, LLC, has been pro-viding quality wire rope fittings, lifting hardware, and machines for over 60 years. Originally based out of Pennsylvania, we have recently opened a second location in Lafayette, Louisiana. Muncy Industries is seeking an individual with experience in the wire rope industry to help lead the sales

team in our Louisiana location.Requirements include:• Knowledge of the wire rope industry or

related industry in the gulf area is a must.• Excellent written and verbal communi-

cation skills.• Team player, good with people.• Must be able to set and attain goals in a

timely manner.• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel,

and Quick-Books.We offer competitive wages alongside an

excellent benefits package including 100% medical, life, disability, and 401K. Contact us via email: [email protected] or fax: 570-649-5850.

Sales representative/district manager needed for growing wholesaler or rigging supplies, including wire rope, chain, webbing and hardware. Experienced candidate will be responsible for all phases of sales and op-erations in our new location in New Orleans. Knowledge in off-shore, marine, and high performance crane ropes are all a plus. Some overnight travel will be required. Ability to communicate with rigging shops is vital. Please e-mail resume, including salary re-quirements to [email protected] EOE.

Outside sales representative needed for a well established distributor of wire rope, rigging hardware, chain and related indus-try products, located in Central Arkansas. The qualified individual will possess indus-try knowledge and the ability to develop new accounts and grow existing accounts. Our company offers a competitive salary, bonus structure and benefits package. If you are qualified please email your resume with salary history to: Reference Box12-01 on subject line, and reply to [email protected].

Web and Round Sling Dept. Manager; Arctic Wire Rope and Supply in Anchor-

age Alaska is looking for an experienced person to run a small but active sewing and round sling department.

Must be accomplished at sewing and teaching others how to fabricate multiple ply and width web slings, working with a round sling machine and adapting to ours. Must be comfortable with non-standard / custom orders.

Pay is $18-22/hr DOE, major medical, 401k with 8% company match. Winters can be cold and long, should enjoy playing in the snow if possible, no city or state tax and you get a yearly permanent dividend from the State after one year of residency. Email re-sume to [email protected].

Wire Rope Industries, one of the leading manufacturers of premium ropes with more than 125 years of experience, is opening a regional sales rep position to support the growing business in South/Central USA. We are looking for a dynamic candidate with ex-perience in the lifting industry and a proven ability to excel in competitive environments. Strong personality, focus, drive, and the abil-ity to develop accounts in a fast and sustain-able way are required. We offer competitive compensation, industry-leading training, and opportunities for growth. If you are in-terested in joining the leading innovators in

the premium market, please email your re-sume to [email protected].

Company: Southern Wire, a leading wholesaler/distributor of wire rope, slings, chain, and fittings is expanding sales force in other parts of the US.

We are seeking Outside Sales Territory Managers for the Northeastern and South Central areas of the US.

We offer a competitive base salary and com-mission program. Our excellent benefits pack-age includes medical, dental, life, disability, paid vacation, vehicle, and 401K. Please visit company website: www.houwire.com.

College degree preferred - Industry knowl-edge a must. Send resume in confidence to: [email protected] or Fax# 662-893-4732. *No calls please*

Inside wire rope sales representative:90+ year family owned business is looking

for an experienced inside Wire Rope repre-sentative, to replace retiring veteran sales-man. Candidates must be reliable, honest, strong work ethic, and demonstrate good communication skills. Our company pro-vides excellent compensation and benefits to our team members, including Paid vacation, holiday, and sick leave, 401K Retirement plan with matching, excellent insurance benefits - Medical, Dental, Vision, RX, Short Term Disability, Life Insurance. M-F. office hours. Drug free workplace.

Please reply to: Attention: Cherise, Rasmus-sen Wire Rope and Rigging Co. Inc. 415 south Cloverdale Street, P.O. Box 81206 Seattle, WA 98108, Phone: 206-762-3700, Fax: 206-762-5003, email: Cherise [email protected].

Certified Slings & Supply, Florida’s largest family owned rigging, contractor and industri-al supply company is seeking experienced sales representatives for our Florida territories.

The suitable candidate will be aggressive and detail-oriented with experience in sell-ing overhead lifting, load securement and fall protection equipment along with other contractor supplies and have a proven suc-cessful sales history.

Our 53-year family-owned company pro-vides excellent benefits to our team members including medical insurance, holiday and va-cation pay and 401(k) with company match.

If you share our core values and the ex-perience we are looking for we look forward to hearing from you. Email your resume and salary requirements to Attention Team Member Relations at [email protected] or fax to 407-260-9196.

Our Purpose: To grow through chal-lenge and opportunity ‘with passion’ while benefiting team members, customers and vendors. Our Core Values: Service, Qual-ity, Team, Commitment, Communication, Integrity, Respect. Our Mission: We will be the most trusted and respected company in rigging, overhead lifting, load securement and contractor supplies in the world. Please visit our website at www.certifiedslings.com. EOE/AA/MFDV. Drug Free Workplace – Drug testing required. Florida Locations include: Orlando, Miami, West Palm Beach, Fort Myers, Tampa and Ocala.

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Company: Nelson Wire Rope CorporationDescription: Established in 1979 in Hat-

field, Pa, Nelson Wire Rope Corporation is a leader in wire rope fabrication and product distribution. We offer a wide array of prod-ucts for the lifting, towing, construction, traffic control and other industries.

Location: Hatfield, PAEmployee Type: FulltimeIndustry: Manufacturing, Wire Rope and

Sling IndustryJob Title: Outside-Inside SalesRequired Education: Industry experience,

degree preferred Required Travel: Frequent Day TripsOther: Local Candidates OnlyInterested candidates should Email re-

sume to: [email protected]. Job Duties and Responsibilities:• Aggressively identifies and contacts pro-

spective customers by phone and on-site vis-its. Ability to conduct sales presentations of company products or services while on site. Plans effective strategies to capture new busi-ness. Proven ability to generate new sales.

• Provide inside customer service and sales. Skills and Qualifications:• Excellent customer service skills; strong

written and verbal communication skills, outgoing personality, team player.

• Effective time management, organiza-tion and multi-tasking skills.

• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook.Education and Experience: • Minimum of three (3) years experience in an

Outside sales role, and five (5) years experience in Inside Sales/Customer Service experience.

• Knowledge of wire rope, crane cable, rigging, construction or related industry.

Philadelphia, PA Wire Rope & Fabrica-tion shop has inside customer sales/service position. Experience in rigging or crane in-dustries a plus. Contact us via email: [email protected] or fax: 610-687-0912.

Looking for sales professional. Compre-hensive understanding of wire rope, chain, nylon, and fall protection preferred. Sales experience required. Competitive salary plus commission. Benefit package included. Email resumes to [email protected].

Experienced Regional Sales Manag-er wanted for KWS Inc., member of the THIELE GmbH & Co. KG.-group.

KWS Inc. is expanding in the USA and Can-ada markets. Candidate must have a strong understanding of overhead lifting equipment, chains, slings, hooks and accessories. A strong sales experience is a must. Candidate must also have basic computer skills that include Microsoft word, excel and PowerPoint.

KWS Inc. offers a competitive salary, prof-it sharing and many other benefits. Please email resume to THIELE Germany, Mr. En-rique Bermejo, Sales Director Lifting Depart-ment, Germany; Email: [email protected].

Leading manufacturer of below the hook lifting devices seeks a mechanical engineer who has experience with designing below the hook lifters. Experience with motor-ized control systems is a plus. Excellent working environment, compensation and schedule all in a fantastic, southern coastal area! Please send resume to Tandemloc, 824 Highway 101, Havelock, NC 28532, [email protected] or call 252-463-8113.

Sales manager needed for Chicago mar-ket. Must have strong understanding of wire rope, chain, hardware. Must be able to estab-lish goals and achieve desired results. Com-puter literate, minimal travel. Salesforce knowledge a plus. Competitive salary and benefits. Reply to box 11-4, care of Wire Rope News, 511 Colonia Blvd., Colonia, NJ 07067.

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 comput-er 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, Presi-dent, 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 Sup-ply 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 pos-sess industry knowledge and the ability to develop new accounts and maintain existing. We offer a competitive base salary plus com-mission and an outstanding benefits pack-age. If qualified, please email your resume with salary history to [email protected].


Established wire rope distributor in North America is expanding into crane/con-tainer 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 [email protected].

Texas Wire Rope Company expanding inside sales department. Individuals must have a strong technical, mechanical and ba-sic mathematical aptitude, including basic computer knowledge. Selected candidates must be quality conscious and able to handle multiple tasks. Previous experience in the in-dustrial supply market is necessary. We offer a drug-free, results-oriented work environ-ment with excellent wages and advancement opportunities. Resumes received confiden-tially at [email protected].

POSITION WANTEDLoos & Co., Inc. manufactures stainless

and nickel alloy wire and cable products. We are seeking an Engineer with experience in metallurgy, preferably with a wire drawing background. Must have a BS in metallurgy, or substantial industry experience in wire or specialty metals industries. Medical grade alloys knowledge is a definite plus. We of-fer competitive wages with a comprehensive benefit program. An EEO/AA Company.

Visit our website at www.loosco.com. Forward resumes to [email protected].

West Coast Wire Rope and Rigging is looking to hire experienced riggers. Please send your resume to: 7777 7th Ave. South, Seattle, WA 98108, attention manager.

Experienced Wire Rope Sling (Flemish) fabricator needed. CWR Hawaii is seeking a worker with knowledge and hands-on ability to fabricate wire rope and chain assemblies. Full-time, 401k, vacation, insurance, and other benefits. Relocationg cost can be negotiated.

If you are interested in working for our company, please email me at [email protected] or call me at 808-843-2020.

Former Division-Product Manager, Re-gional Outside Sales Manager desires southeast territory to manage and solicit ac-counts 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. In-terested parties reply to M.E. (Mike) Givens [email protected], ph 256-476-7700.

SEEKING MERGERRigging products company seeks merger:

A nationally-prominent rigging equipment manufacturer seeks to grow through merg-er with similar company. Strong brand rec-ognition and extensive cargo control, wire rope, chain and synthetic sling production capabilities have fueled our growth. We now seek a merger partner so that we may take advantage of economies of scale and get to the “next level”. The business is not for

sale; merger inquiries only. Principals only please, no brokers. Respond in confidence to [email protected].

PROFESSIONAL SERVICESDragline range & depth extended using gravity return. Contact Nielsen by fax for details (fax) 904-342-0547

REPS WANTEDSunwood Inc., manufacturer of nets,

slings, etc. since 1986, (formerly known as Fl. nets & slings supply) is expanding na-tionwide & looking for ambitious indepen-dent reps in US and Canada. Check our webiste: www.netsandslings.com before contacting us. We offer several protected territories without any restriction of house accounts. Generous commission paid when order is shipped (not when $ collected). Call 954-788-7144 or e-mail: [email protected].

Sales rep wanted for an established man-ufacturer 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 regis-tered 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 aware-ness. Please contact us at [email protected] or call 866-ETIFLEX for information.

Manufacturer Represtentatives for Lift-ing Equipment & Accessories wanted by ALL MATERIAL HANDLING, Inc. Terri-tories are now available and supported 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 877 543-8264, or e-mail [email protected].

Well established manufacturer of wire rope assemblies seeks manufacturer repre-sentatives for most major U.S. and Canadian markets. Visit our web site at www.thecable-connection.com. Please contact [email protected] or call Ray at (800) 851-2961

PRODUCT LINES WANTEDMerit Sales, Inc. (Manufacturer Repre-

sentatives) is looking for rigging related lines to compliment the manufacturers we currently represent. If you need sales people in any of our states (AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX, VA) please con-tact. We also have 2 regional warehouses available in the Atlanta area & Houston. e-mail: johng@meritsalesinc. com or call Johnny at 713-664-7723.

EQUIPMENT WANTEDWanted: Used test stand for manual

hoists static testing, up to 10-tons. Contact John Gideon at [email protected] or Phone 770-266-5700.

Wanted 600t wire rope swaging press com-plete with dies in good order, please contact [email protected], 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“Nets & slings” equipment (used) are of-

fered at bargain prices (best offer will take it): Singer- 6 Sewing machines H.D. w/benches. Kiwi- Web printing machine, com-plete set-up. Tinius Olsen- Testing machine 60K. Call us at 954-788-7144 or e-mail: [email protected].

3/16" Campbell Chain L3x51 Links- Zinc; 3200 pieces 48" with 5/16" S Hook; 1100 pieces 15" with 5/16"x2.5" O ring; In NC. Best Offer [email protected], 800-342-9130 x 124, Andy.

New wire rope with galvanized fin-ish, 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.

New wire rope 1-1/8” drill line 5000 ft. 6x195 BR RR IFWV $30,000 Aud & freight. Reply to Brayd Gross, Alpha Rigging SEr-vice, 11-13 Gerberte Court, Wurruk, Victoria, Australia, 3850. Phone 0011+61351461088. Email: [email protected].

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 603-323-2322.

WIRE ROPE FOR SALENew Wireco: 6 X 26 construction, 7/8” X

5,700’ - 1” X 1,000’ ¾” X 3,500 – 5/8” X 3,000’ – 1-3/8” X 1,350’ – 1-3/8” X 1,500” – 7/16” X 5,000’ – 1” X 300. All New.

Also available: new assorted Esco shackles. Call Tom at 541-378-7006 for pricing and details.

HARDWARE FOR SALEOverstocked inventory for sale, 1-3/8”

Shackle, WLL 13½ ton, galvanized, round pin, import. Super savings. Sold in mini-mum lots of 50 at $9 each. Eric Parkerson, Certified Slings, 407-331-6677.

EQUIPMENT FOR SALENational swage 1000 ton press. Excellent

condition, including most dies up to two inch, $110,000. Barry, Bilco Wire Rope & Supply Corp., 908-351-7800 or [email protected].

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 ma-chine 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.

continued from previous pageCLASSIFIED

Caldwell quality. Guaranteed.Our expanded INSTOCK* program has many items available for same dayshipment. Call us at 800-628-4263 to place your order now. Orders placedafter 12:00 PM (CST) ship the next business day. *Not all sizes are available for same day shipment.

The Caldwell Group • 5055 26th Ave. Rockford, IL 61109 • 800.628.4263 • caldwellinc.com

SHIPS THE SAME DAYDesigned and manufactured to ASME B30.20 and BTH-1.

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