Introduction

The fuel cam on an injector pump for a marine diesel engine failed after 1392 running hours. Failure occurred at the contact point between the roller and the load bearing surface. 

Introduction

A derrick pole on board a boat hoists a lifeboat on and off the ship in open water. A winch attached to the rigid vertical member carries the cable allowing for hoisting of the lifeboat. The vertical member allows for rotation of the derrick pole i.e. to swivel between the deck and water (Figure 1). The derrick has a safe working load of 1 ton. During a hoisting operation, the derrick pole failed catastrophically, releasing its load.

Introduction

The side members of an aluminium ladder, employed during salvage operations aboard a barge vessel failed catastrophically (Figures 1 and 2). The ladder consisted of two straight aluminium ladders fixed together by means of four pieces of duct tape and two polypropylene lashings; resulting in an extended ladder length.

Introduction

The crankshaft for the compressor that drives the air conditioning unit on board a vessel failed catastrophically. A horizontal crack through the oil hole was observed, and repaired. Following this, the crankshaft (Crankshaft 1) was in service for ~ 174 hrs before experiencing catastrophic failure (Figure 1). A new crankshaft (Crankshaft 2) was inserted, and failure occurred after a further ~ 296 hrs of operation.