ropecordNEWSTHE CORDAGE INSTITUTE

Working on behalf of the Cordage, Rope and Twine Industry since 1920

Vol. VX, No. 3 SUMMER 2006

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 86th ANNUAL CONFERENCE

OF THE CORDAGE INSTITUTEThe 86th Annual Conference of the Cordage Institute

was held May 10-13, 2006 at the beautiful and tranquil Amelia

Island Plantation, located just north of Jacksonville, Florida.

The busy and productive conference included a Board of

Directors Meeting, Technical Committee Meetings, the

Annual Technical Seminar, and the Annual Business and

Industry Meeting.

At the Annual Business and Industry Meeting, Steve

Hudson with Pigeon Mountain Industries, President of the

Cordage Institute, announced that the Board had approved

eight new Institute members since the last meeting:

Consolidated Fibers (Associate), Davis Aircraft Products

Company, Inc. (Manufacturer), Fi-Tech (Specialty Supplier),

Lake Tech Fire Academy (Academic), Pacific Gulf Wire

Rope (Reseller), Sindifibras (Affiliate), USCGC Bristol Bay

– US Coast Guard (Academic), and W.L. Gore &

Associates (Associate).

In addition, the following technical documents were

approved: CI 1401 – Safer Use of Fiber Rope, CI 1320 –

Multifilament (MFP) Polypropylene Fiber Cord/Rope Solid

Braid, CI 1321 – Nylon (Polyamide) Fiber Cord/Rope Solid

Braid, CI 1322 – Polyester (PET) Fiber Cord/Rope Solid

Braid, CI 1500 – Test Methods for Fiber Rope, CI 1502

Test Method for Reduced Recoil Risk Rope, CI 1601 Nylon

(Polyamide) Braided or Twisted Twine, and CI 1620

Synthetic (Polyolefin) Agriculture Twine.

The Membership voted unanimously to approve

changes to the bylaws which would give voting rights to

Affiliate, Reseller, Specialty Supplier, and Technical

Members. Affiliate Members would now also be able to

serve as Directors on the Board.

Steve Swiackey with Samson Rope Technologies

and Rich Miller with DSM Dyneema were elected to the

Board of Directors. An introduction to each of the new

Board members will be included in the next issue of Ropecord

News.

The busy program for the Technical Seminar included

nine interesting and informative presentations including new

member presentations from: Randy Wise with Fi-Tech,

Wilson Andrade with Sindifibras, and Jeff Leiser with W.L.

Gore and Associates. The other presenters were:

· “Techniques for Examination of Evidence in Crime

Investigations” by the FL Dept of Law Enforcement

· “New Development in Braiding Machinery” by Guido

Grave with August Herzog USA

· “Non-Destructive Testing of Sling Legs” by Scott Ullery

with the US Army Natick Soldier Center

· “Conversion of a Nylon Double Braided Rope into an

Electro-Mechanical Cable to Moor an Oceanographic Data

Buoy in 3,000 Meter Water” by Walter Paul with the Woods

Hole Oceanographic Institution

· “Serviceability Problems Related to a Change from Buoyant

to Non-Buoyant Rope for Offshore Lobster Trap

Groundlines” by Dick Allen with R.B. Allen Associates

· “Coatings and Their Applications” by Koen Van Goethem

with I-Coats N.V.

The Technical Committee meetings were very

productive, with work being done on a 12-strand HMPE rope

standard, a technical report on the use and selection of life

safety ropes, a Roundslings standard, and an update of the

Cordage Institute’s Technical Manual. Work also began on a

coatings guideline and a reduced recoil risk rope standard.

The keynote speaker at the conference was

Christopher Whitcomb, an active fifteen-year veteran of the

FBI. Mr. Whitcomb’s presentation was based on his novel,

Cold Zero – Inside the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, and it

included very interesting insight into his experiences and the

current terrorism crisis. His presentation was sponsored by

DuPont Advanced Fiber Systems, Honeywell, INVISTA,

Kuraray America, Inc., Performance Fibers, and Teijin Twaron.

Bill Hagenbuch was honored at the conference and

shared his vast knowledge and experience of the rope making

industry with an excellent presentation on the history of rope.

His family has been in the rope making business since 1863

and Mr. Hagenbuch was active in the Cordage Institute as

CEO of Hooven and Allison in Xenia, Ohio.

Pictures from the conference are included on pages

four and five. The 2007 Annual Conference of the Cordage

Institute will be held May 16-19, 2007 at the Hyatt Grand

Champions in Indian Wells, California, near Palm Springs.

Page Two ropecordNEWS

WALTER PAUL, PH.D

CONSULTING IN DESIGN AND USE OF

FIBER ROPE WIRE ROPE

E-M AND E-O-M CABLE REINFORCED RUBBER HOSE

ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION

EXPERT WITNESS

170 Siders Pond Road Phone/Fax: 508-540-4697

Falmouth MA 02540 E-Mail: wpaul@cape.com

IMPORTANT

EVENTS

Cordage Institute 2007 Annual Conference

May 16-19, 2007

Hyatt Grand Champions

Indian, Wells, CA

(Near Palm Springs)

20 YEARS OF TENSION

TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL HAS

DRIVEN FLEXIBLE STRENGTH

MEMBERS TO HIGH TECH LEVELS

Contributed by Gale Foster, Technical Dir. Emeritus

The development of Tension Technology International was

started by Hank McKenna, who had left Samson Rope in the

USA and Mike Parsey, who had left Marlow Ropes in the

UK, and it was based on the fact that there were very few

consultants and technical sources to support the worldwide

rope industry.

At the same time, the rope industry was developing new

constructions and stronger strength members and the chemical

industry was able to supply stronger fibers. New consultants

were added with John Flory from Exxon and Dr. John Hearle,

Emeritus Professor of Textile Technology at the University

of Manchester in the UK. There are now eight principal

associates in the USA and Europe.

The TTI organization is now divided between two

independent companies with a small rope testing facility, the

use of university research facilities in the UK and the use of

large testing laboratories in the USA. TTI is also involved in

joint technical projects, are active in the Cordage Institute

Technical Committee and contribute to the development of

rope specifications and guidelines.

TTI has now passed the 20-year mark and so the members

decided to have an anniversary in the Boston area. It was a

great opportunity to talk about all the projects that the groups

had become involved in – the range of use and the solution of

ropes and strength members to solve and improve. A typical

list would include new net systems to protest oil production

platforms, software to improve pier side mooring of ships, the

developing of the data needed for fiber ropes that are being

used for deep sea moorings of oil production platforms, input

for the fiber producers in the application of new ropes,

management of rope-related research programs, investigation

of ropes used in accidents and development of a program

for the inspection of ropes. For more information, contact

McKenna@tensiontech.com or visit www.tensiontech.com.

The Cordage Institute Board of Directors recently

approved distribution of CI 1401 – Safer Use of Fiber Rope.

This document replaces the previous Safe Use of Fiber Rope

and has been closely monitored by our legal consultant through

several draft revisions. CI 1401 is available without cost to

member manufacturers, distributors, and rigging shops. It is

a one-page document that alerts the end users to the potential

dangers of the misuse of rope.

FAILURE TO WARN

SUMMER 2006 Page Three

Page Four ropecordNEWS

First Time Attendees: (left to right) Bill Gray and Bob Pollock -

Continental Western Corp., Kelly Fratelli - US Army Natick

Soldier Ctr., Loet Hoppe - I-Coats N.V., Ed Gregor - Whitford

Corp., Robert Thomas and Jeff Leiser - W.L. Gore & Assoc.

THE CORDAGE INSTITUTE’S

86th ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Associate Member Welcome

Reception & Dinner Sponsors

Dave Richards,

Technical Director

at Technical Seminar

Christina Sanders,

FL Dept. of Law Enforcement

at Technical Seminar

Scott Ullery,

US Army Natick Soldier Ctr.

at Technical Seminar

Dr. Walter Paul

at Technical Seminar

Dick Allen,

R.B Allen Associates

at Technical Seminar

Koen Van Goethem,

I-Coats N.V.

at Technical Seminar

(left to right) David and Ronnie Kugel - Consolidated Fibers,

Dennis St. Germain, Jr. - Slingmax, Antonio Freitas - Cordoaria

Oliveira, Mary St. Germain - Slingmax, Randy Wise - Fi-Tech,

Wilson Andrade - Sindifibras, and Guido Grave - August Herzog

SUMMER 2006 Page Five

AMELIA ISLAND PLANTATION

AMELIA ISLAND, FLORIDA

Steve Hudson, President of the Cordage

Institute, presents Bill Hagenbuch with a

plaque for his contributions to the rope and

cordage industry

Steve Hudson presents Bob Knudsen

with a plaque for his contributions on

the Board of Directors

Christopher Whitcomb presents

at Business and Industry Meeting

Winning Golf Team: (left to right) Vicki Whitehill, Dick

Truesdail, Sim Whitehill, and Connie Truesdail

Winning Golf Team: (left to right) Mark McDonald,

Christopher Whitcomb, Rich Miller (Golf Chairman),

Sparky Christakos, and Susan Wahlroth

Winning Golf Team: (left to right) Bob Ecker, Bill

Fronzaglia, Edwin Grootendorst, and Justin Gilmore(left to right) Carsten and Toni Dragsbaek, Mark

McDonald, Diane Cousineau Hudson, Rich Miller, and

Beth Repass holding a python at President’s Night Dinner

Page Six ropecordNEWS

Knots & NotesFOSS MARITIME EXPANDS EAST

Foss Maritime Company – a Seattle-based marine

services company with the largest fleets of tug and barges

on the American West Coast – announced that is expanding

into the American East Coast market with the acquisition of

Constellation Tug Company of Charlestown, Massachusetts.

With the planned introduction of new, technologically

advanced tractor tugs to the Constellation fleet, the company

will increase its capacity and capabilities, and improve service

for its Boston Harbor and Massachusetts Bay customers.

WORKBOAT.com, 7/21/06

SEARCH FOR YOUNG MARINERS

The Workboat industry is in trouble. But how can

that be with demand for Offshore Supply Vessels (OSVs),

barges and other vessels at all-time highs? The trouble lies

in the future, with the shortage of qualified mariners and

new blood. WorkBoat’s “On the Water” columnist Joel Milton

discusses some of the difficulties in attracting new talent to

the water in his three-part series “A young mariner seeks

choices” that wraps up in the August Issue.

WorkBoat E-newsletter, 7/5/06

NAVY ANNOUNCES SWIFT BOAT

COMEBACK

The U.S. Navy has announced plans to deploy new

versions of the Swift boats used in the Vietnam War to patrol

Iraq’s Euphrates River. The 39-foot boats, which hold 16

sailors, are expected to be deployed next year for the first

time in more than 30 years to help combat the Iraqi

insurgency, the Los Angeles Times reported. Navy Rear

Admiral Donald Bullard, leader of the Expeditionary Combat

Command, said the boats will help close a gap in the U.S.

military security in the region.

WorkBoat E-newsletter, 7/13/06

TUGBOAT OPERATOR BACK IN MAINE

AFTER SELLING IN ‘88 ARTHUR FOURNIER

Tugboat operator Arthur Fournier is returning to

Belfast, Maine. Fournier owned and operated Pen-Bay

Towing and its fleet of tugboats from Marshall Wharf for a

decade before selling the company to John Worth and Duke

Tomlin in 1988. Now he has bought the company back.

Fournier has changed the company’s name from Maine Port

Towboats of the Tomlin-Worth era to Penobscot Bay Tractor

Tug Co.

2006 OTCAttendance at the 2006 OTC (Offshore Technology

Conference) reached a 24-year high as 59,236 participants

streamed into Reliant Center, Houston, Texas. The Cordage

Institute members exhibiting were Cortland Cable, Puget Sound

Rope, Whitehill Manufacturing, Tension Member Technology,

Samson Rope, and Southwest Ocean Services. There were

over 2,500 other exhibitors.

One of the most interesting items was the Aruna-Sling

manufactured by a Dutch firm United Offshore Services is a

flexible synthetic fiber sling that is 90% lighter than its steel

counterpart and is self-buoyant. Aruna is made using a cable

laid manufacturing process that allows it to be very tight and

produced in lengths as short a 2m and in small diameters if

required. The design which follows the guidelines for offshore

steel wire ropes, has been classified by Lloyd’s Register.

Current diameters range from 30-240mm with breaking

strengths up to 4000t, although UOS says it can make 520mm

up to 8000t break strength. A range of protective coatings can

be applied.

PERFORMANCE FIBERS ACQUIRES GERMAN

POLYESTER YARN MANUFACTURING

FACILITIES OF INVISTA RESINS & FIBERS

The acquired facilities are located in Bad Hersfeld,

Bobingen and Guben, Germany, with associated commercial

operations in Hattersheim, Germany. Operations will continue

under the new name Performance Fibers GmbH.

Press Release, 8/1/06

SEPARATE WE’RE OUT, TOGETHER WE WIN

When the Coast Guard finally announced the winner

of the RB-M (response boat- medium) contract competition,

there were many smiling faces in Seattle WA and Marinette

WI. The winning team – Seattle’s Kivchak Marine Industries

and Manitowoc’s Marinette Marine – will build up to 250

high-speed 45 footers for the Coast Guard and other agencies.

Potentially worth up to $600 million, the deal will mean steady

work for both yards for many years to come.

The deal also demonstrates the value of partnerships.

Kivchak has a solid reputation for the construction of small,

fast aluminum boats, but it doesn’t have a track record of

handling huge military contracts. Marinette Marine, however

has successfully completed many big government contracts

and is currently building the Navy’s first littoral combat ship

(LCS). But it doesn’t have experience with small aluminum

boats. WorkBoat E-newsletter, 7/13/06

SUMMER 2006 Page Seven

One Stop Fiber Rope Source• Reels • Cut Lengths • Fabrications

•Coatings • Splicing • Terminations

• Encapsulations • Hardware and Fittings

• Rope Inspection • Design and

Engineering

New Advanced Test Facilities

ASTM Certified to 707,000 lbs.

• CI 1500 Testing • Tension-Tension

Cycling

• Computer Data Generation

• Special Testing Protocols

Southwest Ocean Services, Inc.

5718 Armour Dr., Houston, TX 77020

Tel: 713-671-9101 • Fax: 713-671-2515

E-mail: dave@swos.net

ropecordNEWS

Library of Congress: ISSN 1063-746X

Editor: Dave Richards, Technical Director

The ropecordNEWS is published by the

Cordage Institute. The Cordage Institute is a trade

association serving the interests of the rope, cordage,

twine, netting and allied industries. The Cordage Institute

does not endorse or receive remuneration from the

contents.

Contribution and comments are always

welcome. Rates for advertising are available from the

Institute:

Cordage Institute Headquarters:

Robert H. Ecker, Executive Director

994 Old Eagle School Road, Suite 1019

Wayne, PA 19087-1866

Tel: 610-971-4854 - Fax: 610-971-4859

E-mail: info@ropecord.com

Internet: www.ropecord.com

CORDAGE INSTITUTE

994 Old Eagle School Road, Suite 1019

Wayne, PA 19087-1866

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