MacGregor claims major advance in handling loads at depth

MacGregor fiber-rope crane: smaller crane to lift heavier loads, deeper. It has less rope wear and greater power efficiency. The MacGregor fiber-rope technology is also suitable for retrofit on existing subsea cranes. The fiber-rope winch system can be delivered as digitally controlled electrically-drive or hydraulic driven.

FEBRUARY 3, 2016 —In what its Vice President, R&D and Technology, Baard Trondahl Alsaker calls “an important advance for handling loads at depth,” Cargotec Corporation’s MacGregor subsidiary and Parkburn Precision Handling Systems have entered into a cooperation agreement to combine MacGregor’s offshore crane expertise with Parkburn’s fiber-rope tensioning technology.

The result is a new MacGregor fiber rope offshore crane that uses the Parkburn technology to eliminate the heating and degradation problems associated with on-load fiber ropes stored on winch drums. Importantly, it can accommodate non-uniformities resulting from splices in the rope.

“The great advantage of fiber rope in this context is that it weighs virtually nothing in water, so regardless of the length of rope paid out, it does not add anything to the load experienced by the crane,” says Mr. Alsaker. “This is in complete contrast to the situation with wire rope, where the ever increasing weight of wire paid out limits the load permissible in relation to depth.”

The new crane will be introduced to the market as a 150T fully heave-compensated knuckle boom crane with the capability of reaching 4,000 m of water depth, but the offering will be extended to the complete range of MacGregor subsea cranes.

The MacGregor fiber rope technology is also suitable for retrofit on existing subsea cranes. This enables upgrading the capabilities of existing construction vessel fleet without having to build new vessels, an important feature to meet the requirement for reducing the cost level of the industry.

Parkburn is a U.K.-based marine handling systems provider that has spent over 40 years perfecting the deep-water handing systems required in fire-rope cranes. Its fiber-rope winch system can be delivered as digitally controlled electrically-driven, or hydraulic-driven. Features include integral active-heave compensation and power regeneration capabilities.