COMPACTED WIRE ROPE
Compacted Wire Rope: Enhanced Strength and Flexibility
CRANE ROPES
COMPACTED WIRE ROPE
Compared to conventional wire rope
Conventional Strand VS Conventional Rope
Compacted Strand – Compacted Rope
A compacted rope is a steel wire rope which has been manufactured using individually compacted strands. During the compaction process the outside diameter of the strand is reduced and steel moves into the empty voids between the wires within the strand. The forming process also produces a very smooth exterior strand surface. The resultant rope has a very high steel fill factor and consequently a relatively high minimum breaking force for any given diameter when compared with a conventional rope.
The compacted strand has very favourable internal contact conditions when compared with the point contact of round wires within a normal strand.
Conventional – Compacted
Conventional – Compacted
Exterior contact conditions are equally favourable. The smooth surface of the compacted rope offers a wide bearing surface to the sheave or drum groove. Inter strand contact and contact between adjacent layers of rope on the winch drum is also improved.
Compacted ropes are available in a number of constructions.
OPTIMISED CRANE DESIGN
The high breaking load to size relationship can allow crane manufacturers to optimise the design of crane components such as the winch drum and sheaves whilst still complying with international crane design standards.
LONG LIFE
Laboratory fatigue testing indicates that it is possible to achieve up to two times normal rope life when comparing a compact rope with a conventional rope of equivalent construction.
GREATER RESISTANCE TO CRUSHING IN MULTI LAYER COILING APPLICATIONS
Compact ropes are recommended for all multilayer applications where crushing on lower layers is inevitable. The more solid cross section of the compacted rope offers much greater resistance to this type of damage.
MORE EFFECTIVE RESISTANCE TO CRUSHING AT CROSSOVER POINTS
Because of the higher steel fill factor compact ropes offer much better resistance to crushing damage at crossover points on the winch drum.
GREATER RESISTANCE TO ‘INTERFERENCE’ AT THE DRUM
Abrasive wear between adjacent laps of rope which is normally most severe where the rope moves on and off the drum can be minimised by using a compacted rope.
REDUCED WEAR ON SHEAVES
The smooth exterior of the compacted rope can lead to reduced abrasive wear on both the sheave and rope.