During any mooring operation safety is the most important thing. A rope failure can have severe consequences to people, the vessel and equipment. Therefore, ropes selection, service and management of the mooring line is of utmost importance. Training of crew about the rope handling and the dangers of mooring is even as needful.
If a rope parts, the energy that is absorbed within the rope is released by boundless force and with a high velocity. This is called snap back. This released energy will make the failed rope move around fast and uncontrolled while the mooring rope tries to recoil to its original shape.
Anyone standing in the path of a parted rope in mooring operation doesn’t have time to flee. Only luck can prevent one from injury or even death. The internet is full of footage about snap back and the severe injuries to people. And although the many incidents are known to us all there are still too many accidents happening during mooring. One of the most well-known incidents in the industry is the failure of a rope on board the LNG carrier Zarga in 2015 where a deck officer was severely injured. This event sparked the introduction of OCIMF’s MEG4.
Nowadays, the industry is more MEG4 conscious which results in more emphasis being placed on selecting the best rope that is accompanied with the correct certification in order reduce risks. One should always take low elongation ropes into their consideration set such as HMPE ropes. HMPE ropes have little to no elongation, lightweight and very strong. A HMPE rope would drop down flat in case of failure as it’s snap-back resistant. Despite of the different type of ropes available in the market HMPE mooring ropes are gaining ground in terms of low cost of ownership, worldwide availability and diminishing the negative impacts of snap back.
At TEHO Ropes we are standing side by side with our customers to guide them through the MEG4 process in which we address rope selection, maintenance, training, post supply services and management of your mooring equipment.