Bridon Invests in Factory to Produce Multi-Strand Crane Ropes

Bridon International has invested £30m (US$46,600) in a factory that will produce multi-strand ropes in gross package weights of up to 650 tonnes (716.5 tons), making them by far the largest and most complex in the world.

The Bridon Neptune Quay site will be fully operational by the end of 2012. Bridon has already received production inquiries from a number of major multinational operators, and is planning a production schedule that will cater to the demand.

Key to the site’s capacity is its closer machine, which is used to draw together thousands of wire strands into a single rope. Bridon’s closer is the first of its kind capable of making a 600-tonne (661.3-ton) rope in a single pass, enabling the production of longer and higher capacity ropes in a single piece and avoiding the need for multiple passes. Bridon Neptune Quay’s closer also features 24 bobbins, enabling it to make more complex ropes than traditional closers with no more than eight bobbins.  

The site’s deep-water portside location will allow Bridon to use innovative loading solutions to reduce delivery timescales and order lead times for customers.