World record rope from Bridon factory

Bridon International has invested £30m in a factory to produce multi-strand ropes in gross package weights of up to 650 tonnes, making them the largest and most complex in the world, claims the company.

The Bridon Neptune Quay site, which is located in Newcastle, UK will be fully operational by the end of 2012. The company has already received production inquiries from a number of major multinational operators, it said.

"Key to the site's unrivalled capacity is its unique closer machine, which is used to draw together thousands of wire strands into a single rope," explained a company spokesman.

"Bridon's closer is the first of its kind capable of making a 600 tonne 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."

The closer incorporates 24 bobbins, with 15 and 38 tonne capacities, giving it the ability to make more complex ropes than had previously been possible with such weights, added the company. Up until now, closers capable of producing very large ropes have typically had no more than eight bobbins.

"The ropes produced at this state-of-the art facility will expand the boundaries of the possible for customers across the sector. Bridon Neptune Quay has been built to help us solve our customers' most significant technological challenges - whether it is reaching new depths off the coast of Brazil, or operating in some of the most challenging environmental conditions on earth," said Jon Templeman, Bridon Group CEO.