Importance of visual inspection for Ropeway ropes, The

Abstract

A dramatic incident athe the Schilthorn, a renowned ski area in Switzerland, almost ended up in a fatal disaster.The sudden loss of more than 50% of the metallic cross-section of a locked coil track rope due to deterioration mechanism unknown within rope and ropeway professional circles (Hydrogen Induced Stress Corrosion Cracking "HISCC"), roused the whole ropeway community. Thorough visual inspections subsequently carried out on aerial trams of similar build, brought to light the existence of surface damage in an unexpected high number of track ropes. The current paper: summarizes briefly the incident, shows the importance of the visual inspection as a part of the maintenance procedures, explains the goals of the visual rope inspection, shows how visual inspection should be carried out and finally points out and explains the fact that the visual rope inspection and the magneto inductive rope testing methods are complementary and therefore cannot substitute each other.