Lifting personnel safely

Harken Industrial is launching its new LokHead winch at Seawork 2015 - a self-tailing, man-riding winch with the security and safety of a captive head, and the company claims, offering complete security against accidental free fall.

The LoKHead winch has many commercial marine, inshore and offshore applications including man over board rescues. Easily attached to davit arms, the LoKHead winch is set to make deployment and recovery of tenders and equipment simpler and safer.

The LokHead winch is designed to significantly change the way that loads are lifted, and rescues are carried out, thanks to its unique lightweight, portable design and use of unlimited length fibre rope, which allows for more flexibility, space saving and ease of use even in difficult and confined spaces.

The LokHead winch is the latest addition to Harken Industrial’s innovative range of proven, highly technical, marinised and rugged products, which are used to provide solutions for high-load, low-friction, weight-critical applications where safety and load management are paramount.

Andy Ash-Vie, Managing Director of Harken Industrial UK said, “Whether working at sea or on land, from a crane, or in a confined space or emergency rescue situation, safety is paramount. Lightweight, easy-to-rig and highly efficient, the LokHead winch is ergonomically designed to reduce strain and to optimise the operator’s strength. It’s a significant addition to our existing product range.”

Compact, portable and weighing just 4.2 kg, the LokHead winch can be used on a vessel’s superstructure, mobile applications or fixed to structures – anywhere a load needs to be lifted and lowered with absolute safety, even in difficult or confined spaces, such as in rescue operations.

The self-tailing LokHead winch features a brake system that offers complete security against free fall or accidental release. The captive head rope feed allows the winch to be used safely, and automatically holds the rope if the captive head is released. By using fibre rope, the operators have the advantage of unlimited line length, and also less weight to carry, especially critical in difficult-to-reach and remote locations or in time-sensitive rescue operations.

Ash-Vie continued, “Our new LokHead winch has the potential to fundamentally change how loads are lifted and moved, and how operators and rescue services use winches. As well as eliminating the risk of accidental release that traditional manual winches have, the Lokhead winch uses fibre rope rather than wire. This makes it significantly lighter for carrying and mounting and offers unlimited line length.”

The LokHead winch can be driven manually with the handle provided, or operators can use a power drill to provide mechanical assistance to haul loads higher and reducing user effort and fatigue - making more efficient use of time on site. The LokHead winch offers a 40:1 power ratio and two gears.