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History of MTS
Ropes and Tension
Members Committee

A History of the MTS

Ropes and Tension Members Committee

The Ropes and Tension Members Committee of the Marine Technology Society was formed to serve as a focal point for presentation and publication of technical papers on all types of flexible tension members.

At that time, there was no standing technical committee, organization, or conference which was devoted to publishing technical papers in this broad field. A few such papers were occasionally presented at various conferences sponsored by several technical societies. However, there was seldom that `critical mass' of enough speakers and a large enough audience interested in this field to make such presentations meaningful.

Presentation without publication was the rule. Talks related to fiber ropes were given at the MTS Cables and Connectors Workshop. Also, workshops sponsored by MTS's Moorings Committee and Buoys Committee sometimes included talks on tension member topics. However, these talks were not then published, and thus there was almost no `permanent literature' which others could refer to and build on. This long-standing interest in subjects relating to flexible tension members did indicate that the Marine Technology Society was a natural venue for establishing a technical committee devoted exclusively to tension members.

Efforts to form the Ropes and Tension Members Committee began at the MTS '90 Conference in Washington, DC. Seventeen technical papers on synthetic fiber ropes were presented at that conference. This large number of papers reflected the pent-up backlog of unpublished past work in this field, especially the research conducted at MIT under Navy sponsorship. This was probably more than the total number of technical papers on fiber ropes published during the preceding decade.

The MTS Council formally recognized formation of the Ropes and Tension Members Committee at MTS '91 in New Orleans. At that Conference seven papers on ropes and other tension members were presented and published. Four more papers were published at MTS '92 in Washington. The Ropes and Tension Members Committee also continued (and will continue) to participate in the annual Cables and Connectors Workshops.

At the MTS '93 Conference, the Ropes and Tension Members Committee focused on rope test methods and facilities. The eight papers presented at MTS '93 were intended to serve as permanent references to the state of the art of testing fiber rope and similar tension members.

The MTS '94 Conference featured a special Accelerated Life Testing Workshop, organized by the Ropes and Tension Members Committee and the Cables and Connectors Committee. In addition, the Ropes Technical Session consisted of four papers on rope topics.

In 1995, the Ropes and Tension Members Committee organized and hosted the 3rd International Rope Technology Workshop (IRTW) at Cornell University. (Earlier workshops were organized by a group involved in mountain and fire rescue, but were also attended by representatives from other rope activities).

In 1995, the Marine Technology Society joined with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers to hold the Oceans '95 Conference in San Diego. The Ropes and Tension Members Committee organized two sessions at Oceans '95, comprised of seven technical papers.

The MTS / IEEE Oceans '96 Conference was held in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Eight papers on ropes and tension members were presented in two technical sessions organized by the Ropes and Tension Members Committee. The Oceans '97 Conference, held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, featured four papers on ropes and tension members.

The 4th International Rope Technology Workshop was held in Long Beach California in November of 1997.

(June, 1998)