KONECRANES ROPEQ INSPECTION HELPS PLAN DAM MAINTENANCE A hydroelectric project on Virginia’s New River was built in 1939. It produces 75MW of electricity that provides power to aproximately 60,000 homes. The power plant has nine spillway gates that control the 4,500-acre reservoir. When water flow in the river is beyond the hydraulic capacity of the power generating units, the gates are opened to allow the water to flow downstream. Each 35-foot high by 50-foot wide spillway gate is raised by 24 falls of wire rope cable that have been in place for at least 25 years–longer than any of the current personnel have been at the facility. There was ongoing discussion about how to determine condition of the equipment. If a cable failed with the gate in the up position, the gate could be d

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