• For Underwater Cable, Systems & Hardware
• Confidential
• Evaluation, Qualification & Acceptance
• Experienced

The following test conditions can be generated by over 22 specialized testing machines developed by the PMI staff, these include: various sized Pressure Chambers with overhead loading crane, Flexure/Fatigue Tension Machines, Impact/Snap-Load Machines, Cyclic Tension Test Machines, Vibration Test Spans, Long Span Proof-Load Test Beds, Induced Torque Machine, Cyclic Bend-Over-Sheave Machine, Static Test Stands, and Environmental Chambers.

 

Test Capability		Typical Use
Tension Specimen length up to 100 feet, tension up to 450,000 lbs., piston stroke up to 8 feet.		Break Strength Test Load vs. Elongation Data Proof Load Certification
Cyclic Tension Specimen length up to 100 feet, tension up to 400,000 lbs.		Dynamic Load Simulation Fatigue Studies
Servo-Controlled Tension Programmable rate of load or displacement using ramp, swine, saw tooth, or recorded waveforms.  Specimen up to 65 feet in length, 5 foot stroke, & tension up to 100,000 lbs. at a rate of 120 inches/minute (max).		Break Strength Tests to Federal, MIL, ASTM, & Cordage Institute Methods Dynamic Load Simulation Fatigue & Retirement Criteria Tests Design Verification/Qualification Quality Assurance
Elongation Multiple displacement transducers for gage length or overall length data.		Tension vs. Elongation Failure Mode Analysis
Torque In-line torque cells for Torque vs. Tension data.  Ranges from 100 inch-lbs to 750 foot-lbs.		Tension vs. Torque tests Torque Balance Verification Cable Qualification
Induced Torque/Rotation Controlled rotation of tensioned specimen while measuring in-line torque & twist.  Torque up to 750 foot-lbs, twist to ± 1080°, tension up to 100,000 lbs.		Tension vs. Rotation Tests Verify “Non-Rotating” Cable Qualification Test for Twist Resistance Torque Restraint Testing
Bend Over Sheave Multi-sheave test frame, tension up to 60,000 lbs, stroke to 30 feet, & line speed from 30 to 160 feet/minute.  Sheaves available up to 96 inch diameter.  Curved abrasion plates available.		Static & Dynamic Cable Qualification Simulate H&ling System Problems Qualify Cable Fairing & Hardware Verify Wet/Dry Fatigue Performance Cable Jacket Abrasion Tests
Cyclic Flexure Repeated bends to ± 27°, tension up to 20,000 lbs, test specimens up to 22 feet in length.		Simulate Tow Point Dynamics Bend Stiffener Fatigue Testing Ball Joint & Flex Joint Testing
Strumming Laterally induced vibrations of tensioned cables via mechanical shakers.  Length up to 180 feet, tension up to 60,000 lbs.		Simulate Tow & Current Induced Vibration Qualification of Cable & Termination
Long Span Proof Load Up to 2,000 feet of cable over multiple sheaves. Tension up to 10,000 lbs.		Certification of Cable Assemblies requiring full- length tensioning upon completion Repair Evaluation of Damaged Cables
Sustained Tension Test st&s of 12 feet, 25 feet, & 50 foot lengths.  Tension up to 25,000 lbs.		Long-term Creep Tests of Synthetics Long-term Evaluation of Cable Hardware
Free Fall Impact Specimen length up to 10 feet.  Peak tension up to 50,000 lbs.  Impact up to 10,000 feet/lbs		Simulate Single Pulse Shock Load Qualification of Cable & Hardware

 

Test Capability		Typical Use
Repeated Snap Load Specimen length up to 12 feet. Peak tension up to 50,000 lbs. Rate to 15 cycles/minute.		Simulate Pulsating Shock Loads Simulate Ship Heave/Tow Body Dynamics Measure Longitudinal Cable Damping
Hydrostatic Pressure 1,000-p.s.i. (15 inches ID x 240 inches long); 1,500-p.s.i. (60 inches ID x 120 inches long); 2,500-p.s.i. (2.5 inches ID x 230 inches long); 10,000-p.s.i. (9.4 inches ID x 21 inches long);		Simulate At-Depth Pressure Loading Feed-thru’s allow real time monitoring of cable or equipment performance At-Depth Qualification of Cable and Assemblies Verify Seal and Electro/Optical Performance Certification for Third-Party-Underwriters
Flexure Sample length up to 5 meters. Tension up to 150,000 lbs.  Flexure up to  ± 25°.  Moments to 300,000 ft-lbs.  Hydraulic Operating System with variable rate.		Deflection and Fatigue Testing of Cable & Riser Systems Acceptance Testing of Bend Stiffeners (BSR’s) Qualification of Flexible Pipe & Umbilicals
Temperature -40° F to +140° F, (7 feet x 8 feet x 7 feet with walk-in capability). -100° F to +400° F, (4 feet x 3 feet x 3 feet, bench top, some humidity control).		Qualification of Cable & Equipment Thermal Shock Testing Life Testing
Salt Fog Size: 30 inches x 36 inches x 48 inches Per ASTM B-117		Corrosion & Coatings Testing
Ultraviolet/Moisture Simulated sun/rain/temperature cycles.  Specimens to 9 inches x 28 inches x ¾ inches.		Environmental Testing of Non-metallic Cable & Hardware Materials
Radiographic X-ray inspection on 6 inch x 16 inch film.		Failure Analysis & NDT
Acoustic Emission Single-channel crack detector with specimen-mounted transducer, 300-700kHz.  Preset trigger, event counter, & alarms.		Failure Mode Analysis Fatigue Tests of Synthetic or Center-Strength Member Cable & Assemblies
Electrical High-voltage breakdown, Corona, insulation resistance, impedance, DC resistance, capacitance, attenuation, cross-talk, TDR, current capacity, etc.		Verification of Specified Performance of Cable Assemblies Monitoring & Measurement of Conductor Performance during Mechanical Tests
Optical Loss measurements of fiber-optic cable elements using power-meters, laser, OTDR, splicers & field-installable connectors.		Monitoring & Measurement of Attenuation during Mechanical Tests Verification of Cable & Assemblies
Data Acquisition PC-based high-speed DAS providing real time graphics displays, hard disk storage of data, & quality hardcopy.  Data loggers, strip charts, X-Y recorders are also available.		Supports accurate collection & reporting of critical test data Standard data format allows detailed analysis/reduction later by customer Flexible graphical presentation of results