Bsi bs en 01492 4 2004 + a1 2008

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BRITISH STANDARD

Textile slings —
Safety —
Part 4: Lifting slings for general service
made from natural and man-made fibre
ropes

ICS 53.020.30

12&23<,1*:,7+287%6,3(50,66,21(;&(37$63(50,77('%<&23<5,*+7/$:

BS EN
1492-4:2004
+A1:2008


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008

National foreword
This British Standard is the UK implementation of EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008.
It supersedes BS EN 1492-4:2004 which is withdrawn.
The start and finish of text introduced or altered by amendment is indicated
in the text by tags. Tags indicating changes to CEN text carry the number of
the CEN amendment. For example, text altered by CEN amendment A1 is
indicated by !" .
The UK participation in its preparation was entrusted to Technical Committee

MHE/15, Textile slings.
A list of organizations represented on this committee can be obtained on
request to its secretary.
This publication does not purport to include all the necessary provisions of a
contract. Users are responsible for its correct application.
Compliance with a British Standard cannot confer immunity from
legal obligations.

This British Standard was
published under the authority
of the Standards Policy and
Strategy Committee on
14 June 2004

Amendments/corrigenda issued since publication

© BSI 2009

ISBN 978 0 580 60266 5

Date

Comments

30 June 2009

Implementation of CEN amendment A1:2008


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EUROPEAN STANDARD

EN 1492-4:2004+A1

NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM

November 2008

ICS 53.020.30

Supersedes EN 1492-4:2004

English Version

Textile slings - Safety - Part 4: Lifting slings for general service
made from natural and man-made fibre ropes
Elingues textiles - Sécurité - Partie 4: Elingues de levage
en cordage en fibres naturelles et chimiques pour service
général

Textile Anschlagmittel - Sicherheit - Teil 4: AnschlagFaserseile für allgemeine Verwendung aus Natur- und
Chemiefaserseilen

This European Standard was approved by CEN on 12 February 2004 and includes Amendment 1 approved by CEN on 11 September
2008.
CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European
Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national
standards may be obtained on application to the CEN Management Centre or to any CEN member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation
under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN Management Centre has the same status as the
official versions.
CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland,
France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal,
Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION
EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

Management Centre: rue de Stassart, 36

© 2008 CEN

All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved
worldwide for CEN national Members.

B-1050 Brussels

Ref. No. EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008: E


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

Contents

Page

Foreword..............................................................................................................................................................3
Introduction .........................................................................................................................................................4
1

Scope ......................................................................................................................................................5

2

Normative references ............................................................................................................................5

3

Terms and definitions ...........................................................................................................................6

4

Hazards ...................................................................................................................................................8

5

Safety requirements ..............................................................................................................................9

6

Verification ...........................................................................................................................................18

7

Marking .................................................................................................................................................20

8

Manufacturer’s certificate ...................................................................................................................21

9

Instructions for use .............................................................................................................................21

Annex A (normative) Information for use and maintenance to be provided by the manufacturer..........22
Annex B (informative) Working load limits for various modes of use........................................................24
Annex C (informative) Suggested content of information to be provided by the manufacturer with
fibre rope slings ...................................................................................................................................36
Annex ZA (informative) !Relationship between this European Standard and the Essential
Requirements of EU Directive 98/37/EC"
" .......................................................................................40
Annex ZB (informative) !Relationship between this European Standard and the Essential
Requirements of EU Directive 2006/42/EC"
" ...................................................................................41
Bibliography ......................................................................................................................................................42

2


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

Foreword
This document (EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 168 “Chains,
ropes, webbing, slings and accessories - Safety”, the secretariat of which is held by BSI.
This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an identical
text or by endorsement, at the latest by May 2009 and conflicting national standards shall be withdrawn at the
latest by December 2009.
This document supersedes EN 1492-4:2004.
This document includes Amendment 1, approved by CEN on 2008-09-11.
The start and finish of text introduced or altered by amendment is indicated in the text by tags !".
This document has been prepared under a mandate given to CEN by the European Commission and the
European Free Trade Association, and supports essential requirements of EU Directive(s).
!For relationship with EU Directive(s), see informative Annexes ZA and ZB, which are integral parts of this
document."
This European Standard is one of a series of standards related to safety for textile slings as listed below:
Part 1: Specification for flat woven webbing slings, made of man-made fibres, for general purpose use
Part 2: Specification for roundslings, made of man-made fibres, for general purpose
Part 4: Specification for lifting slings for general service made from natural and man-made fibre rope

In this standard:
Annex A is normative, and gives the requirements for information on use and maintenance to be provided by
the manufacturer with fibre rope slings conforming to this standard.
Annex B is informative, and gives the working load limits for different configurations and types of material for
fibre rope slings to this standard.
Annex C is informative, and provides some detailed information for use and maintenance which may be
appropriate in compiling the information in accordance with annex A.
According to the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organizations of the following
countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom.

3


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

Introduction
This European Standard has been prepared to be a harmonized standard providing one means of complying
with the essential safety requirements of the Machinery Directive and associated EFTA regulations.
This European Standard is a type C standard as specified in EN ISO 12100-2. The lifting accessories
concerned and the extent to which hazards are covered is indicated in the scope of this standard.
NOTE

For hazards that are not covered by this standard, lifting accessories should be in accordance with
EN ISO 12100-2.

4


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

1

Scope

This European Standard specifies the requirements related to safety, including methods of rating and testing
single-, two-, three-, four-leg and endless slings, with or without fittings, made of sisal, hemp and manila 3and 4-strand laid construction natural fibre ropes and polyamide, polyester and polypropylene 3- and 4-strand
laid construction and 8-strand plaited construction man-made fibre ropes having a reference number in the
range of 16 to 48 inclusive.
The fibre rope slings covered by this part of EN 1492 are intended for general purpose lifting operations, i.e.
when used for lifting objects, materials or goods which require no deviations from the requirements, safety
factors or working load limits specified. Lifting operations not covered by this standard would include the lifting
of persons, potentially dangerous materials such as molten metal and acids, glass sheets, fissile materials,
nuclear reactors and where special conditions apply.
Fibre rope slings conforming to this European Standard are suitable for use and storage in the following
temperature ranges:
a) polyester and polyamide -40°C to 100°C,
b) manila, sisal, hemp and polypropylene -40°C to 80°C.
This European Standard does not apply to fibre rope sling assemblies rated by the trigonometric method.
This European Standard deals with the technical requirements to minimize the hazards listed in clause 4
which can arise during the use of fibre rope slings when carried out in accordance with the instructions and
specification given by the manufacturer or authorized representative.

2

Normative references

This European Standard incorporates, by dated or undated reference, provisions from other publications.
These normative references are cited at the appropriate places in the text and the publications are listed
hereafter. For dated references, subsequent amendments to or revisions of any of these publications apply to
this European Standard only when incorporated in it by amendment or revision. For undated references the
latest edition of the publication referred to applies (including amendments).
EN 696, Fibre ropes for general service – Polyamide
EN 697, Fibre ropes for general service – Polyester

EN 698, Fibre ropes for general service – Manila and sisal
EN 699, Fibre ropes for general service - Polypropylene
EN 1050:1996, Safety of machinery – Principles of risk assessment
EN 1261, Fibre ropes for general service - Hemp
EN 1677-1, Components for slings – Safety – Part 1: Forged steel components, Grade 8
EN 1677-2, Components for slings – Safety – Part 2: Forged steel lifting hooks with latch, Grade 8
EN 1677-3, Components for slings – Safety – Part 3: Forged steel self-locking hooks, Grade 8
EN 1677-4, Components for slings – Safety – Part 4: Links, Grade 8
EN 1677-5, Components for slings – Safety – Part 5: Forged steel lifting hooks with latch, Grade 4

5


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

EN 1677-6, Components for slings – Safety – Part 6: Links, Grade 4
EN 13411-1, Terminations for steel wire ropes – Safety – Part 1: Thimbles for steel wire rope slings
EN ISO 1968:2004, Fibre ropes and cordage - Terms and definitions (ISO 1968:2004
EN ISO 7500-1:1999, Metallic materials - Verification of static uniaxial testing machines - Part 1:
Tension/compression testing machines (ISO 7500-1:1999)
EN ISO 12100-2, Safety of machinery - Basic concepts, general principles for design - Part 2: Technical
principles (ISO 12100-2:2003)

3

Terms and definitions

For the purposes of this European Standard, the terms and definitions given in EN ISO 1968:2004 and the
following apply.
3.1
fibre rope sling
flexible sling comprising one or more parts of identical fibre rope, terminating in spliced eyes with or without
thimbles and fittings, or in the case of an endless sling, joined to itself with a splice
3.2
multi-leg sling
fibre rope sling assembly, consisting of two, three or four identical legs attached to a master link
3.3
splice
specified method of laying the tail end strands of the rope into the strands of the standing part of the rope to
form an eye or join the ends of the rope together
3.4
soft eye
eye made by forming the end of the rope into a loop and by splicing the free end to the standing part
3.5
thimbled or hard eye
spliced eye containing a rigid thimble

6


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

3.6
thimble

rigid, shaped component for insertion into an eye for the purpose of protecting the eye from contact damage,
abrasion and deformation, see Figure 1

a) Heart shaped

b) Reeving
Figure 1 — Thimble

3.7
fitting
loadbearing metal component, designed to be fitted and supplied as part of the sling, so as to permit the sling
to be attached to other lifting accessories or connected to the load
Thimbles are not included within the term ‘fitting’.
NOTE
3.8
master link
link, or link assembly, forming the upper terminal fitting of a multi-leg sling assembly by means of which the
sling assembly is attached to the hook of a crane, other lifting machine or accessory
3.9
reference number
number quoted in documentation which specifies the mass/metre, breaking force and other parameters of the
fibre rope. The reference number corresponds to the approximate diameter in millimetres; minimum breaking
force in daN.
See EN 696, 697, 698, 699 and 1261.
NOTE
3.10
nominal diameter
specified diameter of the rope, which is usually used as the reference value for a given product
3.11
nominal length

specified length of the sling, inclusive of fittings, from bearing point to bearing point
NOTE

See figures 2 to 5.

3.12
effective working length (EWL)
actual finished length of the fibre rope sling, inclusive of fittings, from bearing point to bearing point

7


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

3.13
coefficient of utilization
ratio of the specified tensile strength of the rope to the WLL of the single part of spliced rope, taking into
2
account the acceleration due to gravity (9,80665 m/s ) and is equal to 7
NOTE 1 Fittings may have a different coefficient of utilization from that of the rope to which they are connected.
NOTE 2

This term has the same meaning as the term ‘working coefficient’ used in the Machinery Directive.

3.14
Assembly Factor (A)
factor used in the calculation of the WLL of the sling assembly that takes into account the assembly of the

sling, the number of legs and the inclination angles (β), see Figure 10
3.15
Mode Factor (M)
factor to be applied by the user to the WLL of a fibre rope sling in order to arrive at the maximum load that
maybe lifted for a given mode of use
3.16
Working load limit (WLL)
maximum mass which a fibre rope sling is designed to sustain in straight pull or at the rated angle, in general
service
3.17
competent person
designated person, suitably trained and qualified by knowledge and practical experience, and with the
necessary instructions to enable the required tests and examination to be carried out

4

Hazards

The accidental release of a load, or release of a load due to failure of a component puts at risk, either directly
or indirectly, the safety or health of those persons within the danger zone. In order to provide the necessary
strength and durability of lifting accessories this part of EN 1492 specifies requirements for the design,
manufacture and testing to ensure the specified levels of performance are met.
Endurance has not been identified as a hazard when fibre rope slings having the specified levels of
performance given in this part of EN 1492 are used in general lifting service.
Since failure can be caused by the incorrect choice of WLL and specification of lifting accessory. This Part of
EN 1492 also gives the requirements for marking and the manufacturer’s certificate.
Aspects of safe use associated with good practice are given in annex A (normative) and annex C (informative).
Table 1 lists those hazards in so far as they are dealt with in this standard that require action to reduce those
risks identified by risk assessment as being specific and significant for fibre rope slings made of sisal, hemp,
manila, polyamide, polyester and polypropylene.

8


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

Table 1 — Hazards and associated requirements

Hazards identified in annex A of
EN 1050: 1996

Relevant clause of annex A of
EN ISO 12100-2:2003

1.e)

Mechanical hazard
due to inadequacy
of strength

1.3.2
4.1.2.3
4.1.2.5
4.2.4
1.7.3
4.3.2
4.2.4

5
5
5
6
7
7
8

15

Error of fitting
hazard

1.5.4

5

17

Falling or ejected
objects hazard

1.3.3

annex A

26

Insufficient

instruction for the
driver/operator

1.7.4
4.4.1

9, annex A
9, annex A

27.1.5

Inadequate holding
devices/accessories
hazard

4.4.1

5.7

27.6

Inadequate
selection of lifting
accessories hazard

4.1.2.5
4.3.2

5

Relevant clause/sub-clause of
this part of EN 1492

5.7 and 6
7

Safety requirements

5.1 Materials
The fibre rope from which the sling is manufactured shall be from one of the materials and to the specification
given in Table 2.
Table 2 — Types of fibre rope for sling manufacture
Type of fibre rope

Specification

Manila (Ma)

EN 698

Hemp (Ha)

EN 1261

Sisal (Si)

EN 698

Polyamide (PA)

EN 696

Polyester (PES)

EN 697

Polypropylene (PP)

EN 699

NOTE 1

The definitions of these fibres are given in ISO 2076 and ISO 6938. The constituent materials may be
determined in accordance with ISO 1833.

NOTE 2

Attention is drawn to the differing resistance of fibres to chemicals, which is summarized in annex C.

9


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.2
5.2.1

General requirements for types of fibre rope sling
Single leg sling

A single leg sling shall be formed from a single piece of rope and shall have eyes, with or without thimbles and
fittings, spliced at each end. Figure 2 shows three typical examples of single leg slings.

Figure 2 — Typical single leg slings
5.2.2

Endless sling

An endless sling shall be formed from a single piece of rope and shall have the ends joined together by a
single splice. Figure 3 shows an endless sling.
l1

Figure 3 — Endless sling
Alternatively, an endless sling shall be laid as a grommet from a single strand of rope (see 5.5.5).

10


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.2.3

Two leg sling

A two leg sling shall comprise two identical sling legs, with or without thimbles and terminal fittings; the eye of
one end of each leg shall be made around a master link. Figure 4 shows a typical two leg sling.

Figure 4 — Typical two leg sling
5.2.4

Three and four leg slings

A four leg sling shall comprise four identical sling legs, with or without thimbles and terminal fittings, the eye of
one end of each leg shall be made around an intermediate link so that two legs are attached to each
intermediate link. The intermediate links shall be attached to a master link. Three leg slings shall be produced
in the same way, but two legs shall be attached to one intermediate link and one leg to the other. Figure 5
shows a typical four leg sling.

11


l1

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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

β

Figure 5 — Typical four leg sling

5.3 Sling construction
5.3.1 Splicing shall be the only method used for joining or producing eyes. Endless slings shall have only a

single splice. Other sling legs shall be spliced at each end to produce an eye and no other splices shall be
permitted.
5.3.2 Multi-leg slings shall be constructed so that all corresponding items are identical in respect of rope
construction, size, material and fittings.

5.4 Eyes
5.4.1

Soft eyes

The minimum internal length, l2, of a soft eye (see Figure 6) measured with a steel tape or rule graduated in
increments of 1 mm when closed by hand shall not be less than the appropriate value given in Table 3.

12


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

h

Figure 6 — Soft eye
Table 3 — Minimum internal length of soft eyes

5.4.2

Reference number of
rope

16

Min. internal length of soft
eye (mm)
150

18
20

155
160

24
28

170
185

32
36

195
210

40
44

220
232

48

245

Thimbled or hard eyes

The thimbles used to form thimbled, or hard, eyes (see Figure 7) shall comply with EN 13411-1 and have a
corrosion resistant finish.
NOTE 1 Steel thimbles should not be black finish but should be suitably plated or galvanised to resist corrosion.

Figure 7 — Thimbled or hard eye
NOTE 2

The use of thimbled (hard) eyes is recommended when fittings form part of the fibre rope sling.

NOTE 3 The fitting of heart shaped thimbles will prevent the sling being used in choke hitch. In such cases, either a
soft eye or thimbles of a shape and size suitable for reeving may be used.

13


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.5
5.5.1

Splicing

General

All splicing shall be carried out by a trained and competent splicer, samples of whose splices have been
successfully verified by type testing in accordance with 6.3.
5.5.2

Splices

Where 3 and 4 strand laid ropes are spliced by short splices, the splice shall comply with the following
requirements:
a)

All the tucks of the splice shall be against the lay of the rope.

b)

For polyamide, polyester multifilament ropes and polypropylene monofilament ropes, either
five full tucks shall be made; alternatively four full tucks with all of the yarns in the strands
shall be made, followed by a further tuck with not more than half of the material cut out of
each strand and a final tuck with not less than a quarter of the original strand material.

c)

For polypropylene fibrillated film and staple ropes and for natural fibre ropes, not less than
four full tucks shall be made, each with all of the yarns in the strands.

d)

After completion of splicing, the protruding strands, or parts of strands, shall be cut at a
distance of not less than one nominal rope diameter from the standing part of rope. As an

alternative to c), for polypropylene fibrillated film and staple fibre ropes and for natural fibre
ropes, one fewer full tuck is permissible, in which case the length of the protruding strands
after completion of the splicing shall not be less than three times the nominal diameter of the
rope.

e)

In the case of endless slings, the splicing requirements given in a) to d) shall apply to each
side of the marrying point of the rope (see Figure 8)

Figure 8 — Marrying point of splice for endless slings

f)

14

Where the protruding parts of the strands are contained, e.g. by binding, gluing, tapering etc,
to improve the appearance of the finished splice, such finishing shall not affect the
performance of the splice. In the case of full strands an alternative method of finishing the
splice, known as dogging, where the emergent strands are separated into identical
proportions and then bound (seized) one half of the emergent strand to the adjacent half of
the next emergent strand and so on around the rope (see Figure 9) is permissible. Tapered
splices shall not be subject to dogging.


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

Figure 9 — Dogging (three strand rope)
g)

5.5.3

Long splicing of endless rope slings is permissible but, where used, the circumference of the
sling shall not be less than 400 times the reference number of the rope and the length of the
splice shall not be less than 100 times the reference number of the rope. The working load
limit of the sling shall not be greater than 60% of the value as calculated in accordance with
5.8 and for modes of use as given in Tables B2, B4, B6, B10 and B12.

Alternative splicing methods

The method of splicing known as the ‘Liverpool splice’ where the tucks are made with the lay of the rope shall
not be used.
In the case of 8 strand plaited ropes, the rope manufacturer’s written splicing procedures shall be obtained
and strictly followed.
5.5.4

Length between splices

For single leg slings and the individual legs of multi-leg slings, there shall be a minimum length of rope
between the emergence of the final tucks of the splice of 20 times the nominal diameter of the rope.
5.5.5

Endless Grommet

Where an endless sling of 3 or 4 strand laid rope is made as a grommet, it shall meet the following
requirements:

5.6

a)

The parent strand of which the grommet is laid shall not contain any joints or splices.

b)

The ends of the parent strand shall be spliced by turning them at least 4 times around each
other in the case of polypropylene fibrillated film, staple ropes or natural fibre ropes and at
least 5 times in the case of polyamide, polyester multifilament or polypropylene monofilament
ropes.

c)

The protruding parent strand ends shall be laid through one or two neighboring strands of the
grommet to prevent the splice unravelling. Thereafter the strand ends shall be cut not shorter
than 1,5 times the parent strand diameter.

d)

The working load limit for endless grommet slings produced in accordance with these
requirements shall be identical to that of endless slings made by short splicing.

e)

Endless grommet slings produced in accordance with these requirements shall be type tested
in accordance with 6.3.

Effective working length (EWL)

The effective working length (l1) of a fibre rope sling (see Figures 2 to 5 inclusive) shall not differ from the
nominal length by more than 3%, when laid flat under hand tension and measured with a steel tape or rule
graduated in increments of 1 mm. The length of each leg of a multi-leg sling shall not differ from the lengths of
the other legs by more than 2,5%.

15


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.7
5.7.1

Fittings
Fittings shall conform to the appropriate part or parts of EN 1677.

5.7.2 The seating of a fitting in contact with the rope shall be so finished that, when tested in accordance
with clause 6:
a) there shall be no damage to the area of the rope in contact with the fitting;
b) the sling shall sustain the load.
5.7.3 If the part of the fitting with which the rope is in contact has a profile of engagement less than the
nominal diameter of the rope, a thimble shall be placed in the eye. Fittings made into soft eyes shall be of
such dimensions that the included angle between the two parts of rope at the splice shall not exceed 30°.
NOTE
The use of thimbles is recommended for all applications when fittings form part of the fibre rope sling as they
offer protection from contact damage, friction, abrasion and assist to maintain the shape of the eye.

5.7.4

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Welded fittings shall be placed so that the welds remain visible when the sling is in use.


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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.8 Calculation of working load limit (WLL)
The working load limit of a fibre rope sling shall be calculated as follows:
90% of specified breaking force of fibre rope
WLL of spliced rope = ----------------------------------------------------------- x assembly factor A
Coefficient of utilization
Where:

NOTE

the breaking force is expressed in kN
the coefficient of utilization is 7
the assembly factor is as given in Figure 10

For mode factors and use see annex B

a) Single strop

1) straight pull

A = 1,0
b) Multiple fibre rope leg sling

2a) 2-leg fibre rope sling

2b) 3-leg fibre rope sling

3) 4-leg fibre rope sling

A = 1,4 β = 0° - 45°

A = 2,1 β = 0° - 45°

A = 2,1 β = 0° - 45°

c) Endless sling

1) straight pull
A = 2,0
NOTE

A = assembly factor

Figure 10 — Assembly factors for single, multi-leg and endless fibre rope slings

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BS EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008
EN 1492-4:2004+A1:2008 (E)

5.9

Traceability code

The traceability code, which is to be included in the marking (see 7.1.1), shall enable at least the following
basic elements of the manufacturing record to be traced:
a) identification of rope, including nominal size;
b) identification of manufacturer’s control/identification of splicer;
c) identification and grade of fittings.

6

Verification

6.1

General

6.1.1 All testing and examination shall be carried out using a tensile test machine conforming to the
requirements of class 1 of EN ISO 7500-1:1999 and, where applicable, a steel tape or rule graduated in
increments of 1 mm.
6.1.2 During load tests, the force shall be applied to the test pieces so that the elongation of the specimen
takes place at a maximum rate of 110 mm/min per 1000 mm length of the specimen.
6.1.3 The test piece shall not be pre-loaded prior to testing, unless all of the slings of that type are subject
to identical pre-loading, in which case they shall not be pre-loaded to more than two times the WLL.
NOTE

During load testing procedures, considerable energy is stored in the rope under tension. If the sample breaks,
this energy will be suddenly released. Suitable precautions should therefore be taken to protect the safety of persons in
the danger zone.

6.2

Qualification of personnel

All testing and examination shall be carried out by a competent person.

6.3
6.3.1

Type test to verify sling legs
For the purposes of type test verification, ropes are grouped in the following range of rope sizes:
a) 16 mm to 24 mm;
b) greater than 24 mm to 32 mm;
c) greater than 32 mm.

For each type of rope (including change of source of material), size range and splicing method to be
6.3.2
used in the manufacture of slings, two test pieces shall be produced by each splicer. The rope size selected
shall be representative of the middle of the relevant group, or in the case of ropes larger than 32 mm, in the
middle of the range of ropes for which the splicer will be splicing eyes.
Each of the two test pieces shall be made with a soft eye at each end and the distance between the tails of
the splices shall be at least 15 times the nominal rope diameter, so that four splices are presented for testing.
6.3.3 The test piece shall be mounted, straight and without twist, between the pins or bollards of the test
machine. The diameter of the pins or bollards shall be such that an included angle between 20° and 30° is
subtended by the loop of the splice. The specimen shall be subjected to a force equivalent to not less than 7
times the WLL of the specimen.

6.3.4 The test pieces shall have passed the test if the breaking force of both samples (i.e. 4 splices)
submitted by the splicer is equal to, or greater than, the equivalent of 7 times WLL.

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