Davit Winch

What Sets This Type Apart

The davit winch is the one piece of lifesaving equipment that has to work perfectly on a day when everything else may have already gone wrong: no power, a listing ship, a crew under pressure. Its defining requirement is the fail-safe brake: the winch must lower the boat under gravity at a controlled speed using only the brake, with no reliance on engine power, and that brake must hold the boat stationary at any point in the descent, including fully loaded, without any tendency to creep. This distinguishes it from an ordinary cargo or mooring winch, where the brake is a convenience rather than the entire basis of safe operation.

Main Components

Drum and wire falls

Wire rope falls spooled on the drum, one per fall wire on twin-fall davits, sized and lay-constructed for marine lifesaving service and subject to periodic non-destructive testing or renewal on a fixed schedule.

Centrifugal brake

Governs lowering speed under gravity so the boat descends within the speed range required for the fall length, regardless of load; too fast risks a hard landing or wire runaway, too slow delays launch in an emergency.

Power drive

Electric or hydraulic motor used for hoisting the boat back aboard and for recovery after drills; not required for lowering, which must work on brake alone.

Manual/emergency release

A hand brake lever or equivalent that lets one crew member control or stop the descent manually if the automatic brake or power system fails, and a means to release the falls at the boat once waterborne.

Selection / Sizing

The winch must be matched to the specific davit and boat it serves rather than selected as a generic component.

• Safe working load matched to the fully loaded lifeboat or rescue boat weight with the required margin, not the boat's empty weight.
• Lowering speed within the regulatory range for the specific fall length fitted on that davit.
• Compatibility with the specific davit's fall arrangement, single or twin fall, and its on-load release gear type.
• Brake holding capacity tested and certified for the maximum load, including a margin above the rated safe working load for the required overload test.

Regulations and Class

SOLAS Chapter III and the LSA Code set the performance requirements for davit winches, including lowering speed limits, brake holding requirements, and the load test regime: a static and dynamic load test on installation, and periodic operational tests and load tests thereafter, typically five-yearly for the full load test under class and flag requirements. Annual thorough examination and periodic winch brake testing are mandatory survey items, and davit-launched lifeboat drills are required at intervals set by SOLAS training and drill requirements.

Typical Faults

What to Look for in a Supplier

• LSA Code type approval certificate specific to the winch model and rated load, matched to the davit it will serve.
• Documented brake test and load test certification from installation, not only a manufacturer's data sheet.
• Spare parts availability for brake linings and wire falls specific to that model, since these are the highest-wear items.
• Clear servicing and periodic test procedures aligned with the vessel's class and flag survey schedule.

Treat any change in brake feel, a slightly longer stopping distance, a faint smell, unusual noise, as a reason to stop and inspect immediately, not to note for the next scheduled service, because the failure mode for a davit winch brake is rarely gradual until it is sudden.