Recommended practice on wire rope integrity management for vessels in the offshore industry

 

Version history

October 2023 Rev. 4 – General revision – sections re-ordered for clarity and flow. Section 13 on Diving Bell ropes has not changed.

May 2020 Rev. 2 – Minor amendment to section 13.4

August 2016 Rev. 3 – General revision and update to include wire rope training

December 2015 Rev. 2 – Updated to include updated regulation references

January 2014 Rev. 1 – Revised to reflect current state-of-the-art wire ropes and to include updated regulation references

October 2008 – Initial publication

 

Summary

This document provides recommended practice on the necessary elements of an integrity management system required to achieve an acceptable level of ongoing safety for the use of wire ropes in a marine environment. This recommended practice takes account of the range of environments, including the sometimes harsh conditions experienced in the global marine environment, and, for this reason, provides a recommended practice which represents universal good practice.

The development of this recommended practice has drawn on elements of what is considered good practice from informed sources such as ISO 4309:2017, various company procedures, regulatory bodies, and manufacturers’ guidance. It has been developed to form a basis for industry good practice and to provide an auditable integrity management system. A list of relevant current standards at the time of publication can be found in Section 14 of this guidance.

None of the recommendations in this recommended practice is intended to conflict with or set aside any other recommendations, statutory or otherwise, which may relate to the inspection, maintenance, and integrity management of wire ropes.

IMCA documentation is constantly subject to review, and the secretariat would be interested in feedback regarding any improvements to the document, which can be e-mailed to [email protected].

 

Content

• Definitions
• Introduction
• Scope
• Wire Rope Integrity Management
• Selection of Wire Rope
• Storage and Preservation
• Handling and Installation
• Maintenance
• Inspection
• Causes of Wire Rope Deterioration and Guidance on Discard
• Post-Retirement Examination of Wire Rope Sections
• Wire Rope Records
• Diving Bell Hoist Wire Ropes
• References
• Appendix 1 – Example Wire Rope Purchase Specification