Mennens Supplies Its First-Ever Warp Line to a Ferry

Mennens has supplied a Dynice Warp line for the Steeds Voorwaarts ferry in Dieren. This is the first ferry in the Netherlands to be equipped with a Warp line!

The Olburgen–Dieren ferry, or the Dieren–Olburgen ferry, as some like to call it, connects two beautiful regions of the Netherlands: the Veluwe and the Achterhoek.

How the Ferry Operates

The ferry uses two chains connected to winches to position itself correctly for docking, loading and unloading.

Wire rope 2 serves as a safety cable in case one of the chains breaks.

Wire rope 1 is replaced annually. During periods of low water, this cable is pulled towards the riverbanks.

In Need of Replacement

The ferry owners wanted to replace the underwater rope used for mooring and positioning the vessel. They had been using a steel wire rope and an aramid rope but were dissatisfied with the steel wire rope, which needed to be replaced every year.

The aramid rope had lasted 10 years before requiring replacement. However, its polyester cover caused the rope to float, creating problems for passing vessels.

The owners therefore began looking for a rope that would sink. The ideal solution proved to be a Warp line with a lead core, an aramid load-bearing component and an HMPE cover.

Rope Construction

When evaluating this application, one thing became clear: the strong river current subjects the rope to a constant static load. As a result, a standard Dyneema rope was not a suitable option.

Two rope constructions were considered for this application: Dyneema DM20 and Technora. Ultimately, Technora was selected.

Future Project

Following discussions with the ferry owners, it was decided to explore replacing the existing chains with Dynice Dyneema ropes in the future. These ropes work well with the winches and would help reduce noise levels during operation.

In the winter of 2021, we planned to assess whether the chains could be replaced with Dyneema ropes.