Thales Australia and LB Wire Ropes working together on Mine Countermeasures Systems

LB Wire Ropes is a family run business based in Girraween, in the western suburbs of Sydney. Recently, Thales Australia signed a $1.8m contract with LB Wire Ropes to supply chains and rigging for important export contracts.  

LB Wire Ropes was formed after two WWII servicemen, Frank Hansen and Jack Smith, spotted an opportunity to build their own business when James Le Blanc, who designed and patented the Le Blanc wire rope splice, offered to sell his rigging supply business.  Frank and Jack took over the business in 1962, naming it Le Blanc Wire Ropes, with the main offerings of the business being the wire rope slings with the Le Blanc wire rope splice.  

Although LB Wire Ropes started with hand splicing wire ropes in the 60’s, the last 40 years have seen them diversify into a wide range of products including high performance wire rope, fibre rope, chain and synthetic slings; offering lifting, lashing and safety solutions to the construction, mining and defence industries. 

While their offerings have diversified, their values have remained the same. Current General Manager of LB Wire Ropes Marc Hansen, Grandson of Frank Hansen, credits this and the family run nature of the business, as one of the keys to its success. 

“The values we have now are the same ones my Grandfather and Father were guided by when they were heading up the company. These values have remained through the generations and I feel this has made a real difference to our business.” 

The partnership with Thales is a significant milestone for LB Wire Ropes and enables them to not only provide a critical capability to the Navy, but also to reinvest in its workforce. 

“There are some core rigging skills that we put to use when manufacturing these items, including hand splicing rigging which is an old skill being used less and less. The demand for this kind of work enables us to maintain the skill set in our business and to pass it on to our staff,” Marc said.

Thales has a strong record of supporting high-tech Australian businesses and the contract with LB Wire Ropes is testament to that. Troy Stephen, Director Underwater Systems, said Thales values the innovation that SMEs can bring to our business and the partnership with LB Wire Ropes is no exception. 

“We are delighted to have LB Wire Ropes as a partner on this important project. Their focus on quality products and customer service is perfectly aligned with Thales’s values.”

To read more about LB Wire Ropes, please head to their website here. For more information on the Thales Australia supply chain, please click here.