M E T A L W O R K I N G
METALWORKING
KEEPS RAIL OPERATORS ON TRACK
Metalworking provides an invaluable role in
the maintenance, repair and manufacture of
numerous railway applications, including track,
wheels and wagon parts.
On the world’s stage, an increasing demand for
passenger and freight rail services is seeing a
rapid growth in infrastructure investment.
Global tooling manufacturer Dormer Pramet has,
for many years, supported the railway segment
with a wide range of cutting tools for both
production and maintenance.
Tomáš Hantek is international application manager
for railway at Dormer Pramet, whose customers
range from state owned companies to private rail
operators. To provide a greater insight, Tomáš
investigates the different applications cutting
tools can support, such as the machining of rail
switches and profiles, wheel sets, base plates and
coupling mechanisms.
Rail switches and profiles
An important element in any rail infrastructure
is the machining of rail switches and crossings
- the moveable sections that guide trains from
one track to another. They have an especially
limited lifespan which can vary depending on
numerous conditions, such as level of usage and
surrounding environment.
A railroad switch, for example, created from new
material has a standard guarantee of five years.
If the switch is made from an applied material
or has gone through a process of regeneration
or necessary treatment (rubbing down, parts
exchange etc.), this lowers its guarantee time to
two years.
To ensure reliability and safety of the switches,
they must be updated regularly to remain fully
operational. However, this alone is a huge
undertaking. In the Czech Republic, for example,
which has one of the most extensive rail networks
in Europe with 9,000km of track and more than
25,000 switches.
Dormer Pramet works with many leading
manufacturers to offer both standard and custom
tools to produce new railway switches, as well as
the renovation of existing ones.
Tools for other switch parts (such as sliding
chairs and switch rods) offer several advantages
including durability, insert edge stability, shape
precision and a rigid solution.
Dormer Pramet’s assortment encompasses train
and tram switches for all major rail profiles. The
60E1 and 60E2 rail profiles, for example, are the
most common, especially in Europe. The type
T section rail (flat bottom rails) is suitable for
medium and heavy load traffic.
Wheel set machining
In new wheel set machining, most parts are
manufactured from forged pieces. A major focus
42 July 2018