New Track Machines for the Latvian Railway Track Maintenance Works
On 22nd May 2007 from 11a.m. in the Latvian Railway History Museum (Uzvaras bulv. 2/4, Riga) will take place a presentation of the track machines of the newest generation anticipated for the maintenance works of the existing track and for the construction of new railway track sections.
The new machines are manufactured according to the order placed by the SJSC Latvijas Dzelzcels at the company Plasser&Theurer. With this Austrian company, the railway has established a long-term fruitful cooperation. Plasser&Theurer has supplied various track machines, training the staff for these machines as well as provided technical assistance of various kinds.
During this presentation the “Latvijas Dzelzcels” familiarizes with:
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A self-propelled ballast distributing and profiling machine USP 2000 SW that performs the ballast surplus removal from the track section under maintenance and the piling up them into the pillbox of the machine. The pilled up ballast may be strewed by a dosimeter at any other site of the track where it is needed.
The new machine may perform 8 various work operations and for its service there are 2 workers needed. Moreover, the choice of a specific operation and its control may be performed without leaving the driver’s cab. In comparison with the track maintenance technology used so far, the new ballast distributing machines will allow to save up the ballast needed for profiling.
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A self-propelling track levelling and tamping machines 08-32 Duomatic and 09-3X Dynamic that perform track lining, levelling, sleeper tamping and embankment profiling. A qualitative performance of these works ensures a faster stabilizing of the repaired track as well as a more even run of trains at sites where a subsidence of the embankment has occurred.
Thanks to the computerized controlling system, the new machines ensure a more qualitative performance of the tamping process and are approximately two times more cost-effective in comparison with the machines used before.
There are 7 new track machines altogether supplied by the company Plasser&Theurer to the SJSC Latvijas Dzelzcels for a total price of 5.9 million lats. The acquired new track machines will replace various 14 morally and physically depreciated track machines that were manufactured between 1949 and 1987 and were used for track maintenance works so far.
Calculi are indicative of the time of 3 to 6 years for the cover of expenditure, depending on the model purchased. The new machines have been acquired for the funds of the SJSC Latvijas Dzelzcels.
The SJSC Latvijas Dzelzcels makes use of 82 various track machines for the track maintenance. The Austrian company Plasser&Theurer has manufactured nine of them.