Construction and core
6x36WS-IWRC: six strands of 36 wires in a Warrington-Seale pattern round an independent wire rope core.
Reference tool — not a test
Read the rope before it goes in an RFQ.
Steel wire rope
Construction, core, lay.
Type the rope designation. Below the examples, an offered replacement’s designation can be checked against it: diameter, construction, core, grade, lay and finish. The section and the RFQ line update with every change.
Examples:
Replacement check
On the designations alone: the rope certificate, its breaking force and the drum or sheaves decide.
All 130 engineering tools
A steel wire rope designation to ISO 17893 and EN 12385-2 lists what an order needs: the diameter, the number of strands and wires, the strand type, the core, the wire grade, the finish and the lay. Type the designation from the reel tag or the certificate, and the reader explains each part, draws the section and writes the RFQ line with the length and the end terminations.
Breaking forces are not given here: they depend on the maker and the construction. Take the minimum breaking force required from the crane or winch documentation.
How a designation is read
Construction, grade, lay.
Grade and finish
1960 is the wire grade in N/mm²; B is drawn galvanised, A heavy galvanised, U bright.
Lay
sZ is right hand ordinary lay, zZ right hand Lang’s: the capital letter for the strands, the small letter for the wires.
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| FC / SFC / NFC | fibre core: any, synthetic, natural |
| IWRC | independent wire rope core |
| WSC | wire strand core |
| EPIWRC | IWRC covered with a polymer |
| S | Seale strand: the same number of wires in each layer |
| W | Warrington strand: large and small outer wires |
| F | Filler strand: small wires between the layers |
| WS | Warrington-Seale strand |
| K | compacted strand, core or rope |
| 1770 / 1960 / 2160 | wire grade, N/mm² |
| U | uncoated (bright) |
| B | zinc coated class B (drawn galvanised) |
| A | zinc coated class A (heavy galvanised) |
| sZ / zS | right / left hand ordinary lay |
| zZ / sS | right / left hand Lang’s lay |
| RHOL / LHLL | right hand ordinary / left hand Lang’s lay |
The order of a designation: diameter, construction and core, grade, finish, lay — for example 22 6x36WS-IWRC 1960 B sZ.
Sources
Designation order per ISO 17893 and EN 12385-2, the Indian standard example ("20 mm 6x36 WS IWRC 1770 RHOL Galvanized") and makers’ listings (Mennens). Abbreviations — cores, strand types, grades, finishes U, B, A and lays sZ, zS, zZ, sS, RHOL and the like — per Bekaert’s list of standard wire rope terms; cores also per Mazzella; strand constructions per ASTM A1023 as given by Lexco and Mazzella; ordinary and Lang’s lay per Mazzella and Lexco.
Before you send the rope
Questions about wire ropes in an RFQ
What does 6x36WS-IWRC mean?
Six strands of 36 wires each, in a Warrington-Seale strand, laid round an independent wire rope core (IWRC). In general, more and finer wires make a rope more flexible; fewer and thicker wires make it more resistant to wear.
What are sZ and zZ?
The lay. The capital letter is the direction of the strands in the rope (Z right, S left), the small letter the direction of the wires in the strands. sZ is right hand ordinary lay; zZ is right hand Lang’s lay, with wires and strands laid the same way.
What do 1960 and B mean?
1960 is the wire grade, the tensile strength of the wire in N/mm². B is the finish: zinc coated class B, drawn galvanised; U is uncoated (bright) and A heavy galvanised.
What is the difference between FC and IWRC?
FC is a fibre core, natural or synthetic; IWRC is an independent wire rope core, a small rope of its own; WSC is a single wire strand as the core. Keep the core of the old rope unless the crane or winch maker specifies otherwise.
What should the request include?
The full designation from the rope certificate or the reel tag, the diameter measured across the strands, the length, both end terminations, the application and the minimum breaking force required by the crane or winch documentation.
Rope read?
Send the line with the photographs.
A decoded designation is a cross-check, not proof. Attach photographs of the tag and the certificate, give the breaking force required, and Vessel Core checks them against each other before an offer goes back.
Buyer tools
