Maintenance of Lifting Equipment

4. Lifting Equipment

4.1 Description of Lifting Equipment

The term ‘lifting equipment’ applies to all equipment used for that purpose, whether cargo derricks or cranes, provisions handling davits and cranes, engine room cranes, lifeboat and liferaft davits and cranes, accommodation ladder davits, pilot hoists, chain blocks, trolley blocks, and lifting beams.

Loose gear refers to any ancillary equipment used for lifting including chains, ropes, slings, pulleys, eyebolts, shackles, swivels, rope blocks, chain blocks, trolley blocks and any other equipment used in the lifting process.

4.2 Marking of Lifting Equipment

Every item of lifting equipment as defined above must have its Safe Working Load marked on it.

In addition, all lifting equipment must be individually marked to ensure that certification can be related to the correct item.

4.2.1 The Marking of Controls and Switches

All crane and derrick controls, particularly those for hoisting and lowering the load, and those for slewing and luffing, must be clearly marked as to their purpose and direction of operation.

All other controls and switches must be clearly marked as to their purpose.

4.3 Maintenance of Lifting Equipment

All lifting equipment must be periodically and regularly checked in accordance with the planned maintenance programme and the manufacturer’s instructions, and records maintained.

4.3.1 Inspection and Maintenance of Lifting Equipment Wires

The wires of all lifting equipment must be periodically checked to ensure that they are in satisfactory condition. Particular attention must be paid to those areas of any wire which are not normally visible. The wire should be run off to the extent necessary to ensure that all such areas, including the connection of the wire ends to the drum or davit head, can be closely inspected. Lubricant must be removed in exposed areas as necessary to ensure that the wire underneath has not suffered any deterioration.

The above instruction applies to the following equipment:

• Cargo handling cranes;

• External provisions or stores handling cranes, gantries and davits;

• Lifeboat davit wires;

• Rescue boat crane;

• Accommodation ladder lifting wires;

• Gangway lifting slings;

• Suez Canal light davit;

• Bunker hose handling cranes or davits;

• Any other external davits or cranes used for any lifting purpose.

During production wires receive lubrication. This treatment provides the rope with ample protection against corrosion and is designed to reduce the friction between the wires which make up the rope, as well as the friction between the rope and sheaves or drums. This lubrication, however, only lasts for a limited time and should be re-applied periodically.

Wire ropes must be re-lubricated at regular intervals, depending on their use, particularly along the zones subjected to bending and to weather. If for operational reasons lubrication cannot be

carried out then a shorter service life may be expected and inspection intervals have to be increased accordingly.

The planned maintenance system already covers the regular inspection and testing of lifting equipment and all wires must be checked and lubricated as required by the system. Maintaining the wire ropes at regular intervals increases rope life significantly. Under identical test conditions, well-greased ropes permit four times as many reverse bending cycles as ungreased ropes. It is important that lubrication is carried out regularly right from the beginning of the service life of the rope.

In lubricating wires penetrative grease specifically designed for the purpose must be used in order that the wires and strands are lubricated both internally as well as externally. If the vessel does not have a supply of such penetrative wire lubricant the company must be informed. If the vessel has been equipped with a mechanical wire lubricator, that should be used. If possible, the lubricant recommended in the equipment manufacturer’s instruction manual, or the equivalent, should be used. The lubricant used should be compatible with the original lubricant.

It is completely unsatisfactory to lubricate merely the parts of the wire which are immediately visible and accessible. The whole wire must be lubricated and in order to achieve that the wire will have to be run off the winch drum. Particular attention must be paid to the ends of wires, and those parts of the wires which are normally around sheaves in the stored position.

Before lubrication is carried out, clean heavily soiled wire ropes by brushing. If the soiling is extremely heavy or the grease is resinous, clean the wire, sheaves and drums with a non-caustic degreaser and dry before applying lubricant.

Make sure that when reeling a wire off a crane that at least three turns remain on the drum, unless the end of the wire is adequately secured at the drum to allow the whole wire to be run off.

There are several techniques of lubricant application:

• The most common ones at present are painting or swabbing (Figure1/a);

• The lubricant can be applied at a sheave (Figure 1/b) using a continuous drip method. If only a little lubricant is required, pressure spray nozzles can be applied.

• Various other systems involve continuous application using a bath (Figure 1/c);

• Maximum penetration of the lubricant can only be guaranteed if a high pressure lubricator is used (Figure 1/d).

Lubricators involve a two-part sleeve, with rubber seals, which are clamped around the rope and screwed together. While the rope runs through the lubricator the lubricant is pressed into the sleeve at a pressure of up to about 30 bars. This process ensures deep penetration and the removal of old lubricant. The other methods detailed above only lubricate the surface of the wire.

Upon completion of lubrication, the equipment should be operated if possible in order to better distribute the lubricant within the strands.

4.3.2 Replacement of Lifting Equipment Wires

The lifting wires on the equipment listed below, are to be replaced on all vessels in the fleet at intervals not exceeding 30 months, regardless of condition. This includes lifeboat davit wires regardless of the SOLAS requirement that they be replaced every 5 years.

• Cargo and hose handling cranes;

• External provisions or stores handling cranes, gantries and davits;

• Lifeboat davit wires;

• Rescue boat crane;

• Accommodation ladder lifting wires;

• Gangway lifting slings;

• Suez Canal light davit;

• Bunker hose handling cranes or davits;

• Any other external davits or cranes used for any lifting purpose of which the wire diameter does not exceed 24 mm.

This 30 month replacement schedule applies to lifting equipment wires which are external and are therefore exposed to the weather. Other wires on lifting equipment fitted internally and not exposed to the weather, such as the internal engine room overhead crane wires, should continue to be replaced as required and at intervals not exceeding 5 years.

The replacement of wires must be conducted by a senior responsible person designated by the Master. A risk assessment should be carried out, if necessary, prior to each wire replacement, and accurate and complete records must be maintained of when each wire is renewed.

4.3.3 Installation of Wire Ropes

When crane wires require replacement it is important to consult the manufacturer’s manual and to follow the instructions contained therein. The following general guidance is given to assist where such manufacturer’s guidance is not available.

When installing steel wire ropes care must be taken that the rope is unreeled from the storage drum or coil without allowing turns to develop. The storage drum or coil should be suspended using a turntable or similar device allowing the wire to pulled off without turns developing.

Figure 1 Figure 2

Under no circumstances must rope be pulled off a coil while it is lying on the deck, nor should it be looped over the head of the reel (Figure 2), because this will induce one turn per wrap into the wire rope. The wire will try to resist the enforced turns, form loops, and may well result in irreparable kinks which will result in the rope being unsafe to use.

When fitting new wires to cranes, there are two basic methods:

• Discard the old rope first and then install the new afterwards;

• Attach the new wire to the end of the old and pull it through. This should be the preferred method for larger cranes, but the connection between the two must be very secure, particularly if hauling through several sheaves is required.

Consideration should be given as to whether the rope should be pulled through the whole sheave system or whether it should first be wound from the coil or reel onto the drum and afterwards be reeved through the system. However, if one end of the rope has a fitting attached, there will usually be no other possibility than pulling the loose rope end through the whole sheave system.

When replacing wires it is important that the new has the same direction of lay as the wire being replaced. If the new wire to be fitted is of a different lay and is fitted by being pulled in using the old with the two rope ends buttwelded together, the lay of the wire being fitted can be severely damaged

The use of buttwelding to join the two ends of rope is not recommended. Even though special electrodes are used the connection may break due to the bending stresses when running over sheaves.

If that type of connection is used, the safety should be increased by using a Chinese Finger.

Fewer problems are caused by connecting wire ropes with welded eyes or chain links (Figure 3), which are joined by either strands or thin wire ropes. This connection provides satisfactory load capacity, it is flexible and prevents the transfer of twist from one wire to the other.

The two wires may be connected using solely Chinese Fingers. These are tubes made out of braided strands, which are pulled over the wire rope ends and then secured at their ends with tape (Figure 4). Under load Chinese Fingers will contract and hold the wire rope ends by friction.

However, when installing a long lay wire rope care must be taken that the Chinese Finger does not unwind. It is good practice to wrap tape around the whole length of the Chinese Finger to increase the friction.

Figure 3 Figure 4

4.3.4 Storing Spare Crane Wires

Steel wire ropes should be stored in an internal clean dry place. The ropes must be kept off the deck, and must be stored either on the reels they were supplied with or placed on pallets.

Each wire must be clearly marked as to its intended purpose and the equipment it is designed to be fitted to.

4.3.5 Limit Switches

If a hoist limit switch fails to operate then an additional load will be placed on the equipment which may result in failure. The company requires all limit switches in the planned maintenance system to be checked for correct operation on a monthly basis.

These monthly inspections should check that the limit switches are free of paint, operate correctly, and should prove that the limit switches cut off the respective driving motor.