Ocean

Engineering Notes.

Compiled
by

Ian S. Coote

Part 3

Handbook
for
Ocean Cable Engineering.

Volume 1

Introduction
and
Glossary of Ocean Cable Engineering Terminology.
 1st. Edition

This compilation

Copyright 2009 by Ian S. Coote.

Neither Ian S. Coote, or any of his associates

makes any warranty, express or implied,
or assumes any legal liability or responsibility
for the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of
any information, apparatus, product or process
disclosed, or represents that its use would not
infringe privately-owned rights.
 Page i

Contents.

Page No.

1. Introduction. 1

2. Glossary of Ocean Cable Engineering Terminology. 2

Page ii

Sources of Material Used.

The following are the identifiable sources from which the material used in this volume has
been derived.

Chapters, Sections.

ITU-T G.972 Definition of terms relevant to optical fiber 2

submarine cable systems.

www.ispc.org/Glossary_Page.htm 2

The Bell System Technical Journal, September 1978. 2

 Page 1

1. Introduction.

The ocean engineering notes for ocean cable engineering is presented in the form of a
handbook. The amount of the material gathered and it nature has lent itself to a handbook
format.

The handbook does not cover the areas of electronic and optical components in ocean cable
systems as there are other reference books and manuals that cover these areas well, and it
outside the scope of the Handbook. However there are broad descriptions of the specialized
electronics and optronics that are used in ocean cable systems to provide some background for
the related ocean engineering.

The term ocean cable is used in this handbook to describe cables that are laid on the
seafloor as this was the term used in the environment where work was carried out, rather than
the term submarine cable, which was considered also to include electromechanical cables
used in the ocean.

Methods, equipment and components that are also used in other parts of ocean engineering,
such as navigation, ropes and chain, are not covered in the Handbook but are covered in Part 2
of the notes. The design of cables is covered in Part 4 of the notes.

The volumes in the handbook are:

1. Introduction and Glossary of Ocean Cable Engineering Terminology.

2. Cable Laying and Recovery Calculations.

3. Cable Working Vessels, Cable Handling Systems, and Working of Cables and Ropes.

4. Grapnels, Grappling, and Cable Buoys.

5. Rigging Procedures and Cable Stoppers for Working Ocean Cables.

6. Project Management, Survey, Cable Routing and Documentation.

7. Types of Systems and Design Considerations.

8. System Installation.

9. System Maintenance.

10. Additional Notes.

The additional notes includes limited information on the characteristics of ocean cables, and
some additional figures and drawings.
Page 2

2. Glossary of Ocean Cable Engineering Terminology.

The following glossary of ocean cable engineering terminology has been derived from a range
of sources to provide a reasonably complete list of terms and meanings found in different
types of ocean cable systems. Most glossaries for ocean cable systems are focussed on
communications systems, particularly optical, while the Handbook is intended to cover a wide
range of systems.

'A' End The end of a system, block , or single repeater, into which the
positive current is usually fed. In a system with branches, the
A end is normally one end of the main trunk cable.

'A' Terminal Usually the Terminal supplying positive current into the cable
system

A and K Abbreviation for 'Anderson and Kennelly', which is a resistance

test on a faulty cable, made to pinpoint the fault.

Acrylic Coating A coating on the optical fibers to protect the glass.

Ascent Laying Laying cable up a slope.

Alter Course (A/C) Point along a cable route where the course bearing changes.

Amplifier Used to boost analogue signals, and inserted at intervals along a

cable system in a watertight housing called a 'repeater'. This
term is applied to the older coaxial and multiconductor systems
and to the more modern optical systems.

Area Slack See Slack.

Analogue Appertaining to Coaxial and Multiconductor cabled systems

rather than Optical (digital) cable systems.

Array A group of sensors.

Armor Wires Normally galvanized steel wires laid around the core of the
cable, to provide both tensile strength and protection. In
modern ocean cables the armor wires are normally of circular
cross section.

Armored Cable Cable covered with protective armor wires. Heavier armor wires
used mainly in shallow water ( up to 2000m depth ) in an
attempt to prevent damage to the cable by fishing gear, anchors
etc. Deep sea armored cable uses smaller armor wires of high
strength steel.
 Page 3

As Laid List See Route Position List, Straight Line Diagram (SLD).

Assembly of The activity of jointing cable sections and repeaters into a

Submarine Plant continuous system length suitable for testing, loading and
laying.

Articulated Piping A system of articulated pipes which are fitted over cable in
very shallow water ( near beaches ) to give further protection to
that afforded by armoring.

Attenuation The loss of electrical or optical signal strength suffered by a

signal passing along a cable or fiber.

'B' End The end of a system, block, or single repeater into which
the negative current is usually fed. In a system with branches,
the B end is normally one end of the main trunk cable.

'B' Terminal Usually the Terminal supplying negative current into the cable
system.

Balloon Buoy See Buoy (Cable).

Balloon Float An inflatable float used in landing cable ends.

Batfish Grapnel A large grapnel for use in shallow water on sand and mud
bottoms.

Beach Anchor Strong point, usually concrete block embedded in the ground to
act as an anchor for the shore end cable.

Beach Clearance Activity of removing debris from beach to provide a clear

corridor for cable and manhole installation. See Ordnance
Clearance

Beach Joint The joint between the land cable and the shore end cable.

Beach Manhole Concrete vault at the top of the beach landing point used to
accommodate the beach joint. Often also used to provide the
beach anchor, and for the storage of extra cable.

Bell Mouth Circular opening above the Cable tank in the shape of a bell,
through which the cable passes from the tank to the deck.
Allows the cable to uncoil freely, in a controlled manner, from
the tank. Bellmouths can also appear at the front of plows, and
on some tracked vehicles, to guide the cable smoothly into the
burial tool.

Bight Any loop of rope or cable. Often used to refer to the single loop
of cable hauled on board the cable ship during a repair, or to
the U-shaped loop of cable exiting the cable tank in which a
Page 4

repeater is positioned.

Blavier Test A resistance test taken on a faulty cable. Used to pinpoint a

fault Used on multiconductor and coaxial cabled systems.

Block See Mini System.

Block Seal Method of sealing the end of the cable to prevent the ingress of
Block End Seal water. Block seals may be simple fittings to prevent water
ingress, or similar to cable joints where fibers can be spliced
and looped back to allow optical tests, or where the metallic
conductor in the cable can be in either open circuit or short
circuit with the sea.

Bow Baulks General arrangement in the fore part of the cable ship
consisting of whiskers and sheaves.

Bow Sheaves Large wheels in fore part of ship over which the cable is run
during cable operations.

Bow Thruster Engine and propeller in fore part of the ship which can be used
to push the bow to port or starboard thus enhancing the ship's
maneuverability during cable operations. There are two types,
Gill, which is capable of 360 degree rotation and tunnel which
is a tube in the hull of the ship.

Bow to Stern Transfer Operation in which the cable is transferred from the bow
sheaves to the after cable machinery around the outside of the
ship. Usually performed at the start of a lay when a previously
laid end is picked up forward and then passed aft.

Branching Unit (BU) A branching unit is associated with Optical Cable systems, and
is the subsea unit used at the point where a cable system splits
into two legs. i.e. the fibers are split up and may go to two
terminals or to other branching units. Some branching units
have the capability for switching the fibers from one leg to
another.

Braze Method of joining two coaxial cable conductors, in the manner of

a 'weld'.

Break Test An electrical test taken on a broken, rather than faulty cable, to
pinpoint break position.

Bridging Rope Length of rope which is stoppered to the cable either side of
damage so that if the cable parts at the damage during pick up,
the end will not be lost. May also refer to a similar rope joining
two lengths of scrap enabling them to be paid out as one.

BTL Stopper A cable stopper suitable for armored cables, to allow transfer of
weights from the cables armor wires to an external grip, without
damaging the outer sheath of the cable. Able to be placed at
any point on the cable.
 Page 5

Bumpkins Frames which extend on either side of the cable ship's stern.
Used to keep cable/rope clear of the propellers during transfer
operations.

Buoy (Cable) Nowadays most commonly used to mark and secure cable ends.

Buoy Rope A rope designed to form the scope of the mooring of a cable
buoy. The suspended portions of the scope are now mainly
synthetic rope, while the section which may lay on the bottom is
normally a wire rope similar to grapnel rope.

Burial Burial of the cable under the seabed. Achieved by a number of

means, plow, ROV etc.

Burial Assessment A survey of the seabed to determine the likely success of any
Survey (BAS) type of burial operation and to assist in the appropriate
selection of cable armoring. There are different combinations
of tools, which may be used to constitute a BAS. For instance it
may be invasive and continuous, such as a mini-plow or
grapnel shaped tool. Alternatively sampling can be carried out
at discrete sites, using techniques such as cone penetrometer
tests (CPTs), or by core recovery. Other geophysical methods,
such as resistivity or seismic refraction can be used, or any
combination of the above. See Electronic Burial Assessment
(EBAS) and Plow Assessment Survey (PAS).

Burial Depth The distance between the top of a buried cable and the seafloor.
See Trench Depth

Burial Protection Index A concept relating depth of burial to the level of protection
achieved taking into account the strength of the material into
which the cable is buried. The objective of the concept is to
provide the optimum economic level of burial protection.

C' End The end of a branch into which the current is usually fed to
power the branch. If more branches then they are called D, E,
etc.

'C' Terminal Usually the Terminal supplying current into the cable branch.

Cable Angle The angle the cable makes with the horizontal as it is being laid.

Cable Buoy See Buoy (Cable).

Cable Chart Chart showing positions of all submarine cables in the area.
Cable Awareness Chart Maybe of electronic format. Cable Awareness Chart is infor-
mation is usually targeted towards fishermen to avoid cable
damage and loss of fishing equipment.
Page 6

Cable Catenary Term used to describe the shape of a cable in the water column
from the ship to the seabed, normally during recovery opera-
tions.

Cable Crossing The point at which a cable crosses an existing buried cable.
(Buried Cable) Negotiations with the existing cable owner are required to agree
to a mutually acceptable crossing procedure / methodology for
buried cables. There is typically an agreed exclusion zone on
each side of the existing cable where no towed bodies such as
plows or grapnels can be used. Cable crossing points are
usually post lay buried by jetting to ensure that the cable
remains in a safe, stable position.

Cable Crossing The point at which a new cable crosses an existing surface
(Surface Laid) laid cable. Generally the cable type selected is similar to that
already laid underneath.

Cable Crossing See Pipeline Crossing.

( Pipeline)

Cable Coupling. Unit forming the mechanical and conductor joint between the
cable and a housing.

Cable Data Information giving the electrical, optical, and mechanical

Cable Data Sheet details of cable and in the case of System data, the geographical
details of the system as laid. Usually given in a standard form
such as a Position List, or Splice List etc.

Cable Depots Depots strategically placed around the world which store cable
suitable for the systems in that area.

Cable Drum Large power driven drum used to pick up and pay out cable.
See Drum Cable Engine

Cable Engine The cable drum and associated machinery.

Cable Head Refers to the cable end positioned in the Cable Terminating
Cubicle (CTC), Cable Terminating Equipment (CTE) or Power
Feed Equipment (PFE).

Cable Mile One cable nautical mile = 6087 ft, = 1,855.32 meters. This is
different from an international nautical mile which = 6080 ft =
1,852 meters.

Cable Pan A portable cable storage tank.

Cable Repair Ship A cable ship designed primarily for the repair of cables.

Cable Route Engineering The process of planning the build of an undersea cable system.
Following the receipt of the cable route survey report the final
engineered cable route is optimized and selected. The cable
types are selected and the levels of cable slack are defined
to allow complete in-fill of the undulating seabed. The end
result of the route engineering process is a cable Straight Line
Diagram (SLD) which is used to manufacture the cable system.
 Page 7

Cable Route Survey This is the marine survey operation to obtain all the necessary
information to design and engineer a cost effective and reliable
cable system. Following receipt of the cable route survey
report the installation cable route is optimized based on data
obtained on the seabed bathymetry (depth contours etc.), sub-
bottom profiling together with other useful information such as
side scan sonar, currents, temperatures and prevailing weather
conditions. The survey will determine if cable burial is
required or indeed is possible.

Cable Seal A device that allows a cables conductors to pass from the sea
into a housing.

Cable Ship (C.S.) A vessel usually custom built to install (lay) and repair cables.

Cable Slot A longitudinal opening above a cable tank with a bell mouth
over the center of the cable tank and extending forward or aft to
the outside diameter of the tank and down the wall of the tank
for storing bights to and from the tank to the repeater stowage

Cable Tanks Large tanks in the ship or depot in which the cable is stored.

Cable Terminating Secure box or cabinet where the cable end is secured and
Cubicle (CTC) / electrical power applied to the conductive cable elements.
Cable Terminating
Equipment (CTE)

Cable Tonnage See Lift Capacity

Cable Tracker A device used to locate and track along submarine cables
(surface laid or buried). Usually used in association with an
ROV.

Cable Transporter Small portable machine with one ( or more ) pair(s) of cable
gripping wheels or tracks which is used to move cable short
distances e.g. between tanks.

Cable Types The following internationally recognized cable types are offered
by a variety of system suppliers for optical fiber ocean
cables.

RA - Rock Armor Cable, a specialized double armor cable

with a very short lay outer armor to provide enhanced crush
resistance and improved bending stiffness. Generally used as a
surface laid cable where burial is not possible.

DA - Double Armor Cable, based on LW cable with two layers

of armor protection. Can be based on the SA or SAL/LWA cable
structure leading to the terms DAH (heavy) or DAL (light)
respectively.

SA - Single Armor Cable, based on LW cable with a single layer

of armor wires. Dependent on the number and size of armor
wires this type of cable is sometimes referred to as SAH (heavy)
or SAM (medium).
Page 8

LWA / SAL -Light Wire Armor / Single Armor Light Cable,

based on LW cable with a single layer of small diameter armor
wires for protection. Generally used in areas where good burial
is expected.

DWP -Deep Water Protected Cable, a special semi - armored

cable design offered as a spare cable for use in deep water
where cable abrasion has caused system failures.

LWP / LWS / SPA - Lightweight Protected / Lightweight

Screened / Special Application Cable, based on LW cable with a
metallic screen and outer polymeric sheath. Sometimes referred
to as Fish-Bite Protection.

LW - Lightweight Cable, used in benign deep water areas.

Other ocean cables: Other types of ocean cables are usually

describer by their conductor type and number, where they are
intended to be deployed, such as deep sea cable, and by armor
wire type. Alternative they can be described by a code, such as
SB, SD, etc. which defines a family of cables.

Cable Vault Termination room in a shore station for the cable(s) and ocean
ground.

Capacity A cable ship's capacity for carrying cable.

The number of channels that a particular cable system can

provide.

Chain Moorings Buoy moorings consisting of chain rather than rope used on
shallow water buoys.

Chain Stopper Tapered or untapered chain of high strength steel applied in

half hitches to cable. Mainly used on armored cable during
recovery, or when attaching buoy moorings to the cable.
Will damage cable.

Coaxial Cable Type of cable used for Submarine systems from the 1960s
through the 1980s. Now superseded by fiber optics in commun-
ications systems. Still used in ranges and some surveillance
systems

Coiling Coiling cable in a tank is usually done in a clockwise direction,

with conventional left hand lay armor cable. Conventional
coiling starts at the outer edge of the tank and works inwards
When the inner cone has been reached, the cable is taken out to
the outer edge of the tank and the process starts again. In some
cases, depending on the cable type, in-out coiling can be used.

Commercial Acceptance See Ready for Provisional Service (RFPS).

Customer Acceptance

Common Grapnel A general purpose five prong grapnel, with three prong lengths
with three point types, standard, chisel and spear point.
 Page 9

Cone Structure in the center of the cable tank in the form of a

truncated cone. It prevents the cable being stowed at less than
the minimum bending radius and also holds the cable in
position.

Cone Penetrometer A test carried out on the seabed where a cone is forced into
Test (CPT) the seabed material. Data obtained from the force required to
penetrate the seabed allows the shear strength or relative
density of the material to be determined. CPTs are usually
carried out at discrete locations along the cable route in areas
where burial may be considered, and are used to validate the
electronic survey data.

Control Joint A joint made as a check on the jointers standard of workman-

ship, as well as the performance of the jointing equipment. It
would be closely inspected/tested.

Core Sample A cylindrically shaped soil sample taken from the seabed using
a corer or vibro-core sampling machine.

Corridor Refers to the width of the sea bed corridor investigated during
the survey operation. The survey corridor may vary in width
dependent on the water depth. See Survey Swathe.

COTDR Coherent Optical Time Domain Reflectometer. An instrument

that is used to perform out of service backscattered light
measurements on optically amplified line systems. The
functionality is similar to a conventional OTDR instrument; the
actual implementation optimized for long systems. A fiber pair
is tested by launching a test signal into the out going fiber and
receiving the scattered light on the in-coming fiber. Light
scattered in the transmission fiber is coupled to the incoming
fiber in the loop-back couplers in each amplifier pair in a
repeater. In this way a conventional loss versus distance
display is obtained for each outgoing fiber span on the fiber
pair being measured. Coherent optical detection is performed
to greatly improve the sensitivity of the instrument.

CR. Abbreviation for 'conductor resistance' i.e. the resistance of a

system or part of a system, or resistance of a length of cable or a
repeater, usually measured at low currents ( 10 mA).

Crinoline A movable framework around the cone which can be moved up

and down to restrict the cables tendency to whip if the distance
from the top of the stow to the bell mouth is too great.

Crosstalk An interference where a signal transmitted on one circuit or

channel creates an undesired effect on another circuit or
channel.

Cutting Grapnels A range of grapnels, both passive and powered for cutting
cables. Used where it is not possible to lift a bight of cable to
the surface.
Page 10

Cut & Hold Grapnel Grapnel capable of cutting the cable and then gripping the cable
on one side of the cut.

Cutting Drive / A grappling drive to cut cable as opposed to a holding drive.

Cutting Run

Cutting Flatfish Grapnel Type of grapnel consisting of a diamond shaped plate with a
prong on each side. A blade is fitted at the junction between the
plate and the prong, which cuts the cable when it lodges there.
Used principally in deep water where the conditions lend
themselves to this type of grapnel.

Dan Buoy Small buoy used as a 'mark' buoy in shallow water.

Daily Report An operational report summarizing work completed in the last

24 hours and indicating what work is planed for the next 24
hours.

DC Test Set Equipment used for resistance & capacitance testing of cable &
plant. For routine testing, fault location, and integrity testing
of cables.

Deep Water Protected A special design of semi-armored optical fiber cable offered as
Cable (DWP) a spare cable for deep water repairs in local areas where non-
armored cable abrasion as proven to be a persistent problem
due to a rough seabed and high bottom currents. See Cable Types

Depressor Device fitted to plow or other burial tool which pushes the
cable down into the trench.

Descent Laying Laying cable down a slope.

Desk Top Study This is the first stage of any cable route survey operation. The
desk top study draws on published information of interest to
the cable engineers planning the route and selecting suitable
cable types. The desk top study will therefore provide infor-
mation on climate, weather patterns, bathymetry, temperatures,
shipping, fishing, other cables (both in use and out of use) etc.
along the proposed route.

Detrenching Grapnel Large grapnel used to 'grapple' for buried cable.

Direct Shore End Landing Where the main lay vessel can safely approach a landing point
to within a distance where cable can be floated directly ashore.

Directional Drilling A specialized technique to drill under features without dist-

urbing the landscape. This technique is used in environment-
ally sensitive areas where local wildlife or plant life is
protected and may be endangered by normal cable installation
(excavation) techniques. Also can be used where a suitable
 Page 11

landing beach is not available.

Dissipation Factor The tangent of the dielectric loss angle. Fir high quality
dielectrics tan! = ! , and the dissipation factor is given in
microradians at a particular frequency.

Dispersion The spread of the pulse width during transmission due to the
differing velocities of the frequencies forming the pulse in the
transmitting medium.

Diver Swim Survey Usually carried out as part of the inshore survey operation. A
diver will swim the cable route to locate and identify any
seabed features or obstacles likely to cause problems when the
shore end cable is landed. Can be used post laying to check for
exposed or suspended cable.

Doserate Meter Equipment used in jointing to check for radiation leakage from
x-ray cameras.

Double Armor Type of cable armoring used on cable system shore ends,
consisting of 2 layers of armor wires.

Optical fiber cable - (DA) : Type of cable armoring often used

at shore ends consisting of two layers of armor wires. The
double layer of armor wires makes this a heavy cable with
enhanced bottom stability and abrasion protection. See Cable
Types.

Down Time Equipment or vessel downtime (i.e. time not operating correctly)
is recorded on the operational daily report.

Draw Off & Hold Back Term applied to the back tensioning equipment used in conjun-
(DOHB) Gear ction with a cable drum engine. The DOHB gear may be a tracked
caterpillar engine or a tire engine capable of traversing across
the working width of the drum engine.

Drill Pipe Protection Drill pipe used as protection for the shore of the cable, alter-
native to split pipe for some cables.

Drum Cable Engine A capstan device for controlling the cable pay out / recovery.
The drum engine is used in conjunction with a back tensioning
unit known as a Draw Off & Hold Back (DOHB) Gear. Cable Drum
Engines can be top loading or bottom loading and are fitted
with fleeting knives or rings to control the position of cable on
the drum or the drum can be self fleeting. See Linear Cable
Engine (LCE).

Duct A pipe or set of pipes (manufactured from steel, concrete or

polymeric material) through which cable can be drawn (pulled).
Directionally drilled ducts are often pre-installed at environ-
mentally sensitive shore end locations where local wildlife or
rare plant life could be endangered by normal cable installation
techniques.
Page 12

Dynamic Positioning (DP) Term applied to an integrated computer system used to control
the propulsion of a vessel. Suitable DP systems allow vessels to
automatically maintain station (position) or to move along a
selected route at a given speed.

Dynamometer Old term describing strain measuring equipment on cable gear.

Now generally superseded by the term, 'Load cell system'.

Egglink Egg shaped steel link in cable working rope & chain fittings

Elastomer Stripper Equipment used during cable jointing operations, to remove

elastomer compound from the fibers in the fiber package.

Electrodes (Conventional) 2 trailed devices used to detect a tone applied to a submarine

cable from a terminal

Electrodes (Reversed) 2 trailed devices used to inject a tone into a submarine cable
system, which is detected by the terminal.

Electronic Burial A burial assessment survey (BAS) which does not depend on a
Assessment Survey (EBAS) continuous seabed invasive tool like a plow or grapnel (See
Plow Assessment Survey). Instead EBAS uses sensors towed
along the ground surface, such as resistivity or shear wave
sensors, generally coupled with CPT and video/sonar surveill-
ance equipment. C-BASS is an example of an EBAS tool. See
BAS, PAS.

Electromechanical Cable A type of cable used in the sea which is intended to under
tensile load when in use. Used for umbilicals for ROVs, for
deploying equipment from ships, for scope in moorings that
have sensors mounted along the scope, etc. Can have electrical
and/or optical conductors as required. Normally made in
relatively short lengths. Strength member can be steel wires or
synthetic fibers.

Electronic Route Survey That part of the marine survey in which all data is acquired
electronically, refers to 3D bathymetry, side scan sonar
imagery (a measure of bottom reflectivity, used to identity
surface seabed materials) and sub bottom profiling (used to
obtain information on the composition of the top 2 to 3 meters of
seabed material).

Emergency Shutdown Associated with Power Feed equipment. Operated in event of

danger to personnel or cable plant.

Equalization The process of adjusting system elements ( typically ocean

block equalizers ) so that transmission is kept within pre-
scribed limits at all frequencies or wavelength within the
 Page 13

system.

Equalizing Strop Length of wire rope used to 'equalize' weight between 2

stoppers.

Fiber Optic Technology employed in cable systems, being a digital medium

of telecommunications and data transmission using pulsed
lasers to transmit & receive signals through glass fibers.

Fid A device used in the splicing of ropes.

Final Splice Final joint in a cable system repair operation, making system
viable for traffic again.

First Splice Initial joint in a cable system repair operation, to facilitate

jointing of good spare cable to original 'line' cable, once the
'fault' has been cleared.

Fitting Term used to describe connecting device between 2 lengths

of rope.

Flatfish Grapnel Type of grapnel usually used on a sandy seabed, can be cutting
or holding type.

Fleeting Knives Machinery operated to keep cable turns in correct position on

cable drum.

Fleeting Rings Perform same function as 'Fleeting Knives'.

Freighter Transfer A means of shipping cable from the cable factory to the cable
installation vessel by means of a freighter fitted out with cable
tanks. This concept maximizes the main lay cable ships time in
cable laying and avoids potentially long transits for the cable
ship.

Fusion Splicer Equipment used to join 2 fibers together by process of HV arc

fusion.

Final Splice Final joint in a cable installation, making the system complete
and able to commence commissioning tests. Also refers to the
final joint in a repair operation.

Gantry Support structure used to transport equipment around deck and

overboard/onboard or a roller trackway used to deliver cable
from a factory or depot to the ships side.
Page 14

Gifford Grapnel A type of grapnel comprising four wide seated hooks at right
angles to each other. Used on hard or rough bottoms.

Grapnel Rope Wire core rope used for grappling. Most common size used is
6x3.

Grapnel Sheet Large scale chart used to plot ships positions when grappling
for cable.

Grapnel A hook like device used on the end of a length of rope to raise
the cable to the surface.

Ground Area in which cable operations are taking place i.e. cable-
ground.

Ground Chain Length of heavy chain between grapnel rope and grapnels to
keep the front end of grapnel low as grapnels dragged over
bottom.

Ground Rope Rope attached to cable which lies on sea bed to which buoy
moorings are attached. Where a surface buoy is undesirable can
be used as a grappling tail into which the ship can grapple to
recover the cable without damage.

Group Velocity The velocity of an envelope of a group of interfering waves

having slightly different frequency and phase velocities.

Holding Drive A grappling drive to recover cable as opposed to a cutting drive.

Housing Term sometimes used for cable joints and repeaters. The housing
offers pressure resistance by means of a tubular casing and end
closures, provides an electrical path for powered systems and
provides the mechanical strength to protect the cable fibers and
other components within the housing.

Hydrodynamic Constant A convenient measure of the sinking rate of a cable. Hydro-

dynamic Constant is a function of the cable diameter, drag
coefficient and submerged cable weight.

In Line Transition A change in cable types manufactured on the armoring line in

the cable factory.

Injection Molding A method for remaking the insulation over joints, etc., by
injecting the insulation material under heat and pressure into a
mold.
 Page 15

Injector Shoe A jet burial tool fixed to the side of a shore end installation
barge, enabling deep burial ( up to 33ft - 10m ) in soft mater-
ials in water depths up to 130ft - 40m.

Instantaneous Ship Slack See Slack

Jamming Grapnel A grapnel designed to recover plastic covered cables, shaped

so that the cable will jam in the prongs.

Jet Burial Cable burial in suitable seabed materials (sands and soft silts/
clays only) by a ROV or sledge equipped with a jetting tool.
Water jets remove seabed material to form a trench into which
the cable is lowered, See Trench Burial, Plow Burial.

Jitter The short term variation of a significant instant of a digital

signal from its ideal position in time,

Joint Housing or Joint Box The rigid casing which provides protection for the vulnerable
completed joint.

Joint The point at which sections of cable ( perhaps of differing type )

are physically joined to form a section. The operation of an
optical joint can take up to 24 hours on optical cable.

Jointer The person who performs the above operation.

Jointing The process of joining two ends of cable together.

Knocked-up When the weight of a buoy mooring has been transferred from
the buoy to the rope on the cable engines.

Lay Term used for operation of paying out cable to seabed.

Winding direction of armor wires in a cable

Layback Distance from the stern ( or principle point of navigation ) to

the position of a towed vehicle or point at which the cable
touches the seabed.

Lightweight Protected (LWP) LWP cable is the same as a basic lightweight cable except it has
a much thicker polyethylene coating.
Page 16

Lightweight Screened (LWS) LWS cable has a metallic tube running it's core inside of the
polyethylene coating to enhance fiber protection in the event of
an outside coating breach.

Lightweight Generally deep water cable used in benign areas of the seabed.
Where the inner steel wires ( strength members ) are
surrounded by an insulant of natural polyethylene.

Lightweight Sheathed Cable Based on lightweight cable with the addition of an extra poly-
ethylene sheath coating for additional bending stiffness and
abrasion protection.

Lift Capacity The weight of cable (normally in tons or tonnes) that a ship is
(Cable Tonnage) able to carry.

Linear Cable Engine (LCE) Machine at aft end of the vessel used to bear the weight of and
pick up/pay out cable. Consists of a series of wheels and tires
or tracks, which grip the cable top and bottom. The more weight
that is borne , the more ' sets of wheels or tracks' are required
to hold it. See Drum Cable Engine.

Load Cell Tension measuring system whereby compression on a unit

provides a scaled reading of the actual tension on a cable.
Situated on dynamometer assemblies or cable engine frames.

Load / The term used for the operation of physically taking cable on
Load Out board the vessel.

Main Lay Refers to the operation where a significant proportion of the

cable in a system is laid from a cable ship, as distinct from a
separate shore end operation, post lay burial operation or
rock dumping operation which tend to use smaller vessels.

Mark Buoy A cable buoy laid as a navigation reference.

Maul As in trawler maul. The damage sustained by a cable when it has

been hit by trawled fishing gear, commonly the otter boards
used by beam trawlers.

Maximum Sine Wave The maximum power the electrical repeater can handle before
Output Power some specified impairment or distortion occurs.

Megaripples These are sedimentary (transverse) bedforms which form at 90

degrees to the dominant current regime and are usually
associated with lower current velocities and high sediment
supply. Transverse bedforms can be classified as :
 Page 17

Ripples - up to 2in - 5cm height, wavelength up to 24in - 60cm

( usually 5-12 times height ).

Megaripples - 2in to 40in - 5cm to 1m height, wavelengths

generally greater 15 times height.

Sandwaves - greater than 40in - 1m height, wavelengths greater

15 times height sometimes in excess of 100 times height). When
the sandwave is mobile, a condition exists where the seabed
shifts and may potentially expose previously buried cable.

Mini System Repeatered cable systems are designed with an optimum cable
length between repeaters to maximize transmission and
minimize attenuation losses. A degree of tolerance is built into
the system to allow for length increases due to repairs. Deep
water repairs, however, may require the addition of a repeater,
this would be built into a mini system with a section of cable on
either end to allow a speedy repair.

Also can be short for Mini-Repair-System, an assembly of one

or more repeaters and cable joined on the repair ship prior to a
repair operation. Such an assembly can enable a speedy repair
if there is reason to believe prior to the operation that such an
assembly will be needed to replace a faulted portion of the
system.

Minimum Bending Radius Cables should be handled and stored to the manufacturers
specifications. One important parameter which has to be
observed is the cable minimum bending radius which ensures
that the cable elements are not over strained or damaged. It is
important to note that different values of minimum bending
radius can apply dependent on the tension in the cable and the
time duration of the bend.

Multiconductor Cable A cable that has more that one conductor, typical cables are
twin conductor, and quad conductor.

Misalignment The extent to which equalization departs from the ideal, in dB.
Positive misalignment represents gain, while negative misalign-
ment represents loss. Misalignment can be absolute ( departure
from a nominal level ) or relative ( departure of level from a
level from levels at other units along the system ).

Mushroom Anchor A mushroom shaped anchor which comes in various sizes and is
used for anchoring buoy moorings, cable ends, etc.

Nautical Mile When used for cable, refers to a cable nautical mile, 6087 feet
or 1855.3 meters. The international nautical mile is
6076.10333 feet or 1852 meters.
Page 18

Noise Figure The number of decibels by which the output thermal noise
power of an electric repeater, when referred to the input by the
repeaters available power gain, exceeds the ideal value given by
kT B ( Where K = Boltzmans constant =1.3806 "10#23 joules/
degree kelvin, T = temperature in degrees Kelvin, and
B= bandwidth in Hertz ) at room temperature of 17 0 C, or 290 0
Kelvin, this limiting or ideal value of noise is given by
( )
P = #174 + 10log B dBm.

Normans Pad eyes welded to the upper section of cable buoys, through
which the girth wire or necklace passes, or to which the
Senhouse slip to the moorings is attached. The buoy trailer may
also be shackled to a norman, depending on the type of buoy rig.

NOTS Nominal Operating Tensile Strength. The tension that can be

applied for 48 hours to optical fiber cable in suspension with a
greater than 95% fiber survival probability.

North Atlantic Slip A method for handling two cables that are to be spliced and then
slipping the spliced cables.

NPTS Nominal Permanent Tensile Strength. The tension that can be

left in optical fiber cable for it's entire life span with
guaranteed fiber survival.

NTTS Nominal Transient Tensile Strength. A term applicable to

optical fiber cable which gives the tension which can be applied
for one hour which gives 95% fiber survival probability.
Usually expressed in lbf, Kgf or kilo-newtons (kn.).

Ocean Block A number of repeatered sections and their associated ocean

block equalizers.

Ocean Block Equalizer Passive device used to match cable loss and repeater gains
throughout an ocean block within a cable system. Is used on
both coaxial and optically amplified systems. For optical fiber
systems equalization can be typically achieved with a Passive
Equalization Unit (PEU) or Gain Equalization Unit (GEU).

Ocean Cable A cable that is intended to laid along the bottom of the sea for
signal transmission between shores or between sensors and the
shore. Installation is intended to be permanent. Cable may have
electrical and/or optical conductors. Long lengths may require
repeaters which are powered from the cable. Main forms are
armorless ( strength member in center of cable ) and armored.
Normally manufactured in long lengths. In glossary referred to
as cable.
 Page 19

Ocean Ground An in the sea ground for cable systems that use a sea water path
for the ground between the power supplies. May be in the
nearshore area or imbedded in the beach or near beach area.

OOU Out Of Use. A term used to describe a cable which is still in

situ, but is no longer in service.

Optical Amplifier An optical amplifier uses Erbium doped fiber and a laser pump
to amplify an optical signal. This is done without the optical
signal being regenerated by conversion to an electrical signal
and then converted back into an optical signal, as is the case
with optical regenerators.

Ordnance Clearance Usually undertaken by a specialist team of engineers, qualified

to survey, detect and dispose of munitions and other abandoned
armaments.

OTDR Optical Time Domain Reflectometer. An instrument which is

used to accurately measure the various parameters: attenuation
per kilometer, splice loss etc. of an optical fiber. This will
allow the assessor to gauge the quality, integrity or suitability
of the fiber.

Overlaid Splice A way of splicing armored cable with minimum increase in

diameter at a cable splice. Suitable for smaller armor wires.

Patch Panel A connector interface for cables. ( i.e. electrical connectors or

optical connectors )

Pipeline Crossing The point at which a cable crosses an existing pipeline.

Negotiations with the pipeline owner are required to agree a
mutually acceptable crossing procedure / methodology. It is
normal for cables to cross pipelines at 90 degrees and to
continue at 90 degrees to the pipeline for a distance either side
of the pipeline. There is usually an agreed exclusion zone on
each side of the pipeline where no towed bodies such as plows
or grapnels can be used. Pipeline crossing points are often rock
dumped to ensure that the cable remains in a stable position
and is not disturbed by fishing activities.

Pipe Tracker A device used to locate and track along pipelines and cables
(surface laid or buried). Usually used in association with an
ROV.

Plow A tool for burying cable into suitable seabed materials. A

plow is a passive device that is pulled through the seabed by a
ship (usually the cable laying vessel) simultaneously with the
vessel laying the cable. The plow is equipped with a share
which cuts a narrow trench in the seabed and then guides the
cable into the bottom of the trench. Instrumentation fitted to the
Page 20

plow confirms in real time the burial depth of the cable.

Plows can be fitted with auxiliary shares to bury larger
diameter bodies in the cable such as joints and repeaters. See
ROV.

Plow Assessment A survey carried out to determine the suitability of the seabed
Survey (PAS) to bury cable.

Plow Burial Burial of the cable into the seabed for enhanced cable protection
using a plow (usually towed from the installation vessel as the
cable is deployed from the vessel). The cable is guided into the
bottom of a narrow trench cut into the seabed by the plow
depressor . See Jet Burial, Trench Burial.

Plow Tow Tension Tow force required to pull the plow along the seabed during
plowing operations. The tow force is usually measured at the
plow tow point, but can be calculated from the tow tension
measured on the ship at the tow winch.

Pock Marks Most pock marks are formed by the decay of organic matter
within the sediment matrix which causes gas to seep upwards
and to be released at the seabed as bubbles. The sediment grains
in this area are forced apart by the gas and can be winnowed
away by even very low bottom currents. The typical conical
shape of pock marks is caused by this winnowing, which is
centered around the area of greatest gas release. Pock mark
width and depth can vary greatly, mainly dependent on the level
of gas release and bottom currents. Some of the larger pock
marks can be tens of meters deep and have very steep side-
slopes. The slopes - coupled with the soft sediment - are a
direct threat to plow operations.

Post Lay Burial (PLB) This operation involves the burial of cable into the seabed after
the cable has been deployed. The operation can be carried out
by divers in shallow water (generally less than 30 m) or by an
ROV equipped with jetting or trenching tools.

Post Lay Inspection (PLI) This operation involves the inspection of the installed cable
after it has been deployed and possibly buried.

Post Lay Inspection & This operation is usually carried out in areas of plow burial
Burial (PLIB) after the cable installation by an ROV. The inspection operation
(usually over selected areas of the buried cable route, up to a
maximum percentage of the buried cable length) confirms the
burial depth. If necessary additional burial (usually by jetting)
can be implemented in localized areas, for instance at plow
skips (where the plow has been recovered for repair or
maintenance).

Post Lay Rock Dump Term used to describe the accurate dumping of graded rock over
a defined area of the seabed, after cable deployment. This
operation is often specified by pipeline owners as part of the
cable crossing agreement and is specified to prevent cable
movement over and along the pipeline after installation.
 Page 21

Power Budgets The margin above the minimum receivers requirement to allow
for system degradation of the light source or the addition of
splices to repair the cable. Used in the design of optical
systems to calculate the quantity of repeaters or amplifiers

Power Cable A cable designed to transmit electric power as part of a power

grid or from shore to an offshore platform.

Power Feed Equipment A constant current/ high voltage power supply used to supply
(PFE) DC power to a submarine cable system.

Power Safety Officer (PSO) The person on the vessel, who has responsibility to the Master
(or Offshore SuperIntendent) for the safety of all personnel on
the cable ship in respect of all dangerous voltage and current
used in conjunction with laying and with jointing and testing
the system during repair operations.

Power Safety Message (PSM) A message (usually written and faxed, but can be verbal)
exchanged between the cable ship and the terminal stations to
define who has power safety control and in what condition the
cable head is to be maintained.

Pre Lay Rock Dump Term used to describe the accurate dumping of graded rock over
a defined area of the seabed, prior to the cable deployment. This
operation is often specified by pipeline owners as part of the
cable crossing agreement.

Pre Laid Shore End Where the main lay vessel cannot safely approach the landing
(Separate Shore End) point (due to draft, or prevailing weather conditions) a separate
shore end landing operation is carried out using a smaller
vessel with a shallow draft allowing for a closer approach to the
beach landing. The result is a pre laid shore end, which the
main lay vessel can recover and carry out an initial splice
before laying away.

Pre Lay Grapnel Run (PLGR) This operation is carried out shortly before burial operations
and involves towing a grapnel along the planned burial route to
ensure that any discarded material (such as abandoned ropes,
fishing equipment etc.) which could foul the burial machine and
cause cable damage is removed. This activity is separate from
Route Clearance.

Preformed Stoppers Standard size wires helixes, designed to be wrapped/grip

around cables, to allow transfer of weights from the cables inner
wire rope to an external grip, without damaging the outer sheath
of the cable. May be placed at any point on the cable. Used
primarily on lightweight or lightweight screened cables.

Pressure Coefficient The change in loss of cable with change in pressure. Usually
given in percent per kilo-fathom, nautical mile or kilometer, at
specifies frequency, reference temperature and pressure.

Protection Grounding Provides the earth path, in the event of a cable becoming live,
Unit (PGU) during a repair on a system that has switchable branching
Page 22

units. It will allow the vessel to work on a faulty leg of a system

without loss of traffic on the main branch. Also known as In
Service Repair Equipment (ISR)

Post lay Inspection and Operation to inspect and bury cable upon completion of a lay.
Burial (PLIB) Utilizing an ROV.

Pulse Echo Fault Locator Sometimes known as a reflectometer. It has been designed to
(PEFL) locate mismatch conditions ( open circuits, short circuits, joints
) in coaxial cable. The nature of the mismatch can be ascer-
tained by comparing the reflected pulse with the original
transmitted pulse

Range An area in which sensors are distributed, to measure vehicles

positions, or signatures. Sensors are often deployed in arrays.

Ready for Provisional Date on which the System Supplier offers the cable system to the
Acceptance (RFPA) customer for acceptance (all main lay marine installation
operations, supplier commissioning and acceptance tests having
been completed).

Ready For Provisional Date on which the cable system has completed all commiss-
Service (RFPS) ioning tests / customer acceptance tests and has been accepted
by the customer of the system, subject to some additional
works being carried out. The cable system is ready for customer
use. (Also known as Commercial or Customer Acceptance)

Ready For Service (RFS) Date on which the cable system has completed all commissioning
tests / customer acceptance tests and has been accepted by the
purchaser of the system. The cable system is ready for customer
use.

Receiver Sensitivity Point The minimum power that an optical repeater can process.

Receiver Overload Point The maximum power that an optical repeater can process.

Round Bottom Grapnel (RB) A grapnel which has 5 or 6 hooks and is used for picking up
cable in mud and sand when the cable is likely to be buried.

Regenerator They are the individual modules that make up a repeater and
restore the optical signal to its full amplitude for onward
transmission down the line. Only used in long-haul systems
that need repeaters.

Re-laid A term used for the relaying or re-routing of a cable system.

Remote Amplifier Box (RAB) Term used to describe an erbium amplifier housing positioned
in an unrepeatered cable system.

Remotely Operated Vehicle
(ROV)
` Various types of ROV exist, primarily, CIRRUS, SCARAB, and
Rennies Grapnel A type of grapnel comprising four wide seated hooks at right
Repair
Repeater
Repeatered Cable System
Repeatered Section
Request for Quotation (RFQ)
Residual Suspensions
Reverse Gifford Grapnels (RG) A type of grapnel for recovering cable on the seabed.
Rider
Ring Splice
Ripples
Rock Armor (RA) Cable
Rotometer (Roto)
Rouillard Grapnel.
Page 23
A submersible unmanned vehicle used to inspect, de-bury, bury
or re-bury cables. They can also be used to carry out surveys
and inspection of the cable on the seabed. ROVs are usually f
fitted with cameras, cable tracking equipment and for burial
operations can be fitted with a jetting or trenching tool package.
MARLIN. See Plow.
angles to each other. Used on rough and rocky bottoms and hard
sand.
Operation whereby, a submersible cable system is made
operational after loss of traffic.
A device ( Amplifier ) for restoring a signal back to its original
transmitted level, due to the losses inherent in the conductor (
i.e. glass or metal )
A powered cable system fitted with repeaters (or optical
amplifiers).
A length of ocean cable with its associated repeater.
Request sent to specialist sub-contractors to supply a
quotation for work specified in an attached scope of work.
Lengths of suspended cable after laying due to insufficient fill
slack.
A chain which is rigged to a slip hook high up on the side of a
cable buoy and the lower end is passed through the mooring ring
at the base of the buoy and is shackled to a large fitting which
in turn is connected to the main buoy moorings.
A way of joining large armor wires at a cable splice.
See Megaripples.
A special type of double armor cable. The outer layer of armor
wires have a very short lay length to provide enhanced crush
resistance and hence provide improved protection against
external damage caused by impacts from rocks, anchors,
dropped objects and towed equipment such as fishing gear. See
Cable Types.
Used as ships for measuring the movement of cable. An
instrument for measuring the length of cable paid out or
recovered from the seabed.
A large two pronged grapnel for sand and mud bottoms.
Page 24

Route Clearance A Pre Lay Grapnel Run, where specific out of service cables are
targeted for removal from the cable route. Identified cables are
recovered or cut back to provide a clear corridor for the
installation for the new cable system.

Route Engineering Study An enhanced Desk Top Study which involves visiting the
landing sites and gathering additional local information.

Route Position List (RPL) A standard format for providing information on the planned and
then as laid positions of the cable system. Details on the cable
type, sectional and cumulative cable length, positions of alter
courses, joint housings, repeaters, and cable slack values are
recorded.

Route Survey See Cable Route Survey

Sand Grapnel A five prong grapnel for sand bottoms, with three prong lengths.

Sand Waves When mobile, a condition exists where the seabed shifts and
may potentially expose previously buried cable. See Mega-
ripples

Scientific Cable Cables used for research purposes and not for commercial
telecommunications or military purposes, this may include out
of service cables which have been donated or sold to an academic
institution.

Seabed Slack See Slack

Siemens Stopper A platted wire rope stopper applied to armored cables.

Functions in a similar manner as pre formed stoppers.

Separate Shore End See Pre Laid Shore End

Share Part of the plow which engages in the seabed to bury the
cable. See Depressor.

Signal Loss The reduction in signal level along the transmission path. May
be expressed in dB/n. mile, dB/kilometer, db/1000 feet,
db/meter, etc.

Ships of Opportunity Vessels that are designed for other purposes, such as offshore
work boats, that can be fitted out with cable machinery and
cable tanks, and used for cable installation ( and in some cases
repair ).

Ships Slack See Slack

 Page 25

Shore Controlled Equalizer An undersea unit placed after a number of ocean blocks. The
purpose of the unit is to compensate for long-term changes in
transmission, occurring after installation, such as those due to
cable aging. Not found in fiber optic systems or small band-
width coaxial systems.

Side Scan Sonar An acoustic technique to map the reflectivity of seabed material
identifying potential obstructions on the seabed . Used prim-
arily during survey operations, particularly prior to plowing
operations. The use of side scan sonar is helpful in cable repair
operations in identifying surface laid cables and in localizing
fault locations.

Sinking Velocity Horizontal sinking velocity is terminal velocity attained by a

straight, horizontal length of cable sinking in water. Vertical
sinking velocity is terminal velocity attained by a straight,
vertical length of cable sinking in water

Skid The parts of the plow which run along the seabed are called
skids. The function of a skid is to support the weight of the
plow, while allowing the plow to ride over rugged terrain.

Slack Expressed as a percentage, being the extra cable length over

horizontal distance required to achieve a cable route over
undulating sea bed so cable will lie on seabed without
suspension or excess cable to achieve the design cable system
length. There are several different precise definitions given
below, all of which are important in cable-work.

In Handbook, classical definitions are used:

Fill slack - The additional amount of cable laid to allow the

cable to lay along the bottom without suspensions. During
laying it the rate of laying is a function of system dynamics.

Excess slack - The additional amount of cable laid over the

track length. It provides a measure of safety and in some
systems allows grappling with the ability to lift a bight to the
surface.

Total slack = Fill slack + Excess slack.

In the standards:

Area Slack = (Planned Cable length on seabed between

waypoints - route distance at sea level between waypoints) /
route distance at sea level between waypoints.

Area slack is the figure generally quoted on the route position

list of a planned lay, and is used for defining the cable lengths
to be manufactured.
Page 26

Average Ship Slack = (Cable length overboarded from ship

between two points route distance at sea level between the
points) / route distance at sea level between the points .

Average Ship Slack is typically quoted on an as laid RPL that

forms part of the normal lay report.

Instantaneous Ship Slack = (Cable Payout Speed Ship Speed)

/ Ship Speed.

Seabed Slack = (Incremental Length of Cable on Seabed

Increment of Length measured along the seabed) / Increment
of Length measured along the seabed.
Sliding Prong Grapnel An eight prong grapnel for use on sand and mud bottoms.

Spear Point Grapnel Type of grapnel used in softer seabed's to achieve greater
penetration for cable recovery.

Split Iron Pipe A protective iron piping for additional protection of the cable
in shallow water, made in sections that can be applied to the
cable after it is laid.

Stoppering Off Placing a stopper on a cable to take a load.

Straight Line Diagram (SLD)
The SLD is the result of the cable engineering process
carried out after the cable route survey. The SLD provides
information on the cable types and lengths required to make the
system, together with a manufacturing tolerance and identifying
critical areas of cable which are required to be accurately
positioned (for pipeline crossings etc.) in the system. Repeater
positions (and separations) are usually indicated in the SLD,
together with plow up and down positions, water depths and
slack allocations.

Stinger A rigid share supported from a shore end barge which is fitted
with water jetting nozzles and capable of deep burial of cables
( up to 16ft - 5 m burial ) in suitable seabed materials.

Stow A term for the stowage of the cable in a cable tank.

Stowage Factor A term indicating the volume occupied by a known length of

cable.

Strumming A term used to describe the standing wave vibration set up in

unsupported cable during deployment or when in suspension
between localized high spots on the seabed. Strumming is
induced by the drag forces generated when water currents flow
across the cable in suspension.

Sub Bottom Profiling (SBP)
This is an acoustic method of determining the vertical
lithological distribution of the upper seabed. SBP equipment
releases quite low power, high frequency, short pulses of
acoustic energy into the water column and measures energy
reflected back from the seabed and sub-seabed.
 Page 27

The acoustic energy reflects back not only from the seabed
surface, but also from layers within the seabed, because of
differing physical properties associated with different
geological units.

Submarine Cable See Ocean Cable.

Surface Lay Operation where cable is paid out from the vessel and laid
directly onto the seabed without being buried.

Suspension A term used to describe cable in free span, i.e. an unsupported

length of cable held in a catenary by the residual cable tension
at each side of the suspension. Cable in suspension can suffer
damage at the contact points where abrasion can occur (chafe)
and may be subject to strumming, a cable vibration induced by
the flow of water across the cable suspension.

Swathe Refers to a survey swathe or width of the survey corridor.

System Load and Lay A document prepared by the system manufacturer for the
Instructions (SLLI) / marine installer detailing how the cable system (including
Handling Guidelines joints and repeaters) will be loaded, laid and handled safely.
Instructions on the equipment and services to be provided and
the required safety standards to be maintained during the
operation are defined. A project plan is included.

Taut Wire Wire paid out from vessel during cable laying to give an
accurate distance with which to compare cable distance to
calculate and adjust slack. Now superseded by more accurate
navigation systems like GPS.

Temperature Coefficient The change in loss of the cable with change in temperature.
Usually given in percent per degree Celsius or Fahrenheit at
specified frequency, reference temperature and pressure.

Trailed Electrode See Electrodes

Transition The length of cable (or body) between two different cable types.

Transmission Level The net gain or loss in decibels from a reference point ( zero
level point ) to a point in question. For net gains, the trans-
mission level is positive, for net losses, it is negative. Trans-
mission level may be expressed as X dBr.

Transponder An acoustic beacon which relays positional information

(bearing and distance) to a hydrophone receiver (usually hull
mounted) on the surface vessel. Transponders can be used to
locate subsea equipment such as plows, ROVs etc., to mark a
target area on the seabed or to ensure accurate placement of
equipment on the sea bottom.
Page 28

Trench Burial Cable burial in the seabed achieved by a mechanical cutter such
as a chain cutter or a rock wheel cutter. This technique is
typically used where plow burial cannot achieve adequate
protection. See Jet Burial, Plow Burial.

Trench Depth The distance between the bottom of the cut trench and the
seafloor (See Burial Depth)

Turn Over Process of moving cable section to facilitate jointing inspection/

restowing or assembly of a larger system.

Underunning Underunning is the process of passing a cable over an

underunning sheave at the bow to allow the vessel to move
towards a fault location or cable end. This process becomes
necessary to reduce the amount of cable removed during a repair
when grappling has

Up Grap Abbreviation for Position and time lifting grapnel.

UTS Abbreviation for the Ultimate Tensile Strength which a cable

can support before mechanical failure.

Universal Joint / A type of cable jointing and repeater coupling for optical fiber
Universal Coupling cables that uses an agreed set of equipment and tooling for
(UJ / UC) assembly, and has been approved using an international
standard for qualification testing.

Universal Quick Joint A type of cable jointing for non-repeatered optical fiber
systems, that uses an agreed set of equipment and tooling for
assembly and uses an international standard for qualification
testing.

Unrepeatered Cable System An un-powered cable system, without repeaters. The cable is
capable of carrying a small current and voltage to monitor
Insulation Resistance for a fault condition.

V sheave Type of grooved bow or stern sheave for cable guide, more
appropriate for older, analogue cables.

Volume Indication of the cubic capacity of cable tanks and other spaces
inside the vessel. Normally measured in cubic feet or cubic
meters.
 Page 29

Waypoints Discrete locations along a cable route where special events

occur, i.e. course changes.

WDM Wavelength Division Multiplexing. A method of transmitting

optical signals at several wavelengths over the same fiber at the
same time.

Weight Measurement of tension in cable during laying or repair

operations, normally expressed in tons or tonnes, hundred
weight's or pounds.

Whiskers Steel constructed chute, situated either for'd or aft, having

radius conforming with the cable minimum bending radius, used
for guiding cable into and out of the vessel.

White Stop Plaited length of hemp rope approx. 5ft - 1.5m long used for
lashing.

Whiting Chalk Applied to tarred cable to prevent it sticking to itself.

Wire Pennant Length of wire used to hang off cables and ropes when
transferring them to and from cable drums. Also used in buoy
rigs and for other, similar purposes.

Wrap Term describing coiling of fibers inside a joint box.

X rays Used to detect defects such as voids, inclusions and

concentricity occurring in molded joints during cable repair
operations.

Yale Grips A custom made webbing stopper for use on rope and armored
cable.

Zero Level Point Used ot provide a reference for expressing transmission level
( 0 dBr ).
Page 30