The new winch will initially be installed on board the research vessel RRS Discovery to compliment its main traction winch system but its rugged yet compact design will enable it to be transported worldwide for use on research vessels of opportunity.

The electro-hydraulic drive with 'wandering lead' remote operation gives smooth speed and directional control in handling various instrument packages.

The easily adaptable design of winch drum fitted with 'LeBus' grooving for controlled multi-layer spooling can easily accommodate wire rope or electro-mechanical cable for various instrument and sensor deployment operations. A sheave type mechanical spooling device is incorporated to present the wire or cable correctly to the drum and includes a load cell and encoder providing signals to both a local and remote instrument panel indicating wire or cable tension, speed, and length deployed.

MJ Information No: 18423