This maritime safety alert emphasizes the importance of verifying the condition, manufacturing, and physical specifications of wire ropes purchased directly from Houston Southwest Wire Rope (SWWR) or manufactured by SWWR and sold through other suppliers.

After the catastrophic failure of the new wire rope provided by SWWR within one month after the new installation, the ongoing safety investigation revealed that the company’s product manufacturing procedures and quality management procedures have several differences (see OXY (Western Petroleum) Safety Alert 07) -01-2021).

The wire rope that was the subject of the investigation was found to be inconsistent with the specifications on the purchase order and receipt provided by SWWR to the customer. The subject wire rope is made up of the wrong components and is improperly installed instead of what the customer actually ordered. In addition, the Coast Guard also observed a difference between the use of incorrect swaging fittings and incorrectly sized swaging fittings for the relevant wire ropes, which led to accidental damage to the wire ropes and ultimately to catastrophic failure of the terminal.

The Coast Guard currently does not know how long this quality control measure will affect the company, so it is issuing this security alert. The Coast Guard strongly recommends that owners, manufacturers, operators, and service providers use wire ropes purchased or manufactured from SWWR to do the following:

• Verify the source and manufacturer of all wire ropes. If purchased or manufactured by SWWR, please carefully observe the specifications of the wire rope to ensure that it matches the purchased product (ie structure (number of wires and strands per share) and wire rope laying);

• Visually inspect the wire rope terminal for abnormal conditions that may indicate improper installation. These ridges or abnormalities may indicate excessive crimping, but any abnormalities need to be verified according to the type of crimping;

• Compare the size of the accessory with the manufacturer’s specifications/tolerances for the complete accessory (ie, do the length and diameter meet the accessory manufacturer’s specifications?);

• Verify that the terminal type does not reduce the safe working load of the wire rope below the minimum safety factor of the service type; and

• If any abnormality is found in the wire rope, immediately stop using the wire rope and replace it appropriately.

It should be noted that accessories manufactured by SWWR are usually marked with golden paint, but paperwork related to SWWR products should also be verified. If anyone is unsure whether their wire rope will be affected or has ongoing concerns about wire rope purchased from Southwest Wire Rope, the Coast Guard recommends directly contacting the company, the Coast Guard Maritime Inspector nearest you, or the following Coast Guard countries Center Contact Expertise (NCOE):

• Outer Continental Shelf NCOE: Harley Bates at [email protected] or Gene Sykes at [email protected].

• NCOE investigation: Willie Pittman at [email protected].

This safety alert is for reference only and does not mitigate any domestic or international safety, operational or material requirements. Developed by the Outer Continental Shelf and Survey NCOE and distributed by the Survey and Analysis Office. Questions can be sent to [email protected].

U.S. Coast Guard, Inspection and Compliance Service

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December 1-3, 2021, New Orleans, Los Angeles

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