TRACK EQUIPMENT & MAINTENANCE
Gavin Livie, UK marketing manager at Pandrol UK, explores how a new concept in pad design can speed-up rail threading. T
he recently launched Pandrol ‘Re’ system has been demonstrated
around the majority of Network Rail main- tenance depots during the autumn of 2011, and has been seen to offer significantly increased productivity by eliminating the need to install insulators. The insulators are permanently attached to a new type of rail pad, which is moulded in a curved shape to widen the target gap for rail threading and assist in the centring of the rail into the rail seat of each sleeper.
The simplicity of this novel rail pad has been commented upon by many track teams because it reduces the need for staff on site to bend down to work. It eliminates the need to distribute and install the insu- lators separately and removes the problem of having to move the rail across the rail seat in order to fit the opposite insulator. This benefit is achieved by attaching the insulators to the pad, ensuring the insula- tors guide the rail using the funnel-shaped jaws of the composite pad, and then hold the rail as the pad flattens under the weight of the rail, drawing the insulators and the rail into the perfect position.
The track team can eliminate the need to install the insulators, and are able to move immediately to the clipping-up op- eration. This eliminates the most arduous and back-bending operation, handling the smallest track component often under the least favourable conditions at night. It also eliminates the need to move the rail using crowbars, in order to fit the opposite in- sulator. The result is that the Pandrol ‘Re’ system significantly increases productiv- ity, providing the opportunity of greater yardage and reduced mobilisation costs for each site. The system has even be proven to work with skewed or ‘out-of-square’ sleep- ers, allowing rail threading to proceed far more quickly than previously experienced.
The ‘Re’ system is designed to fit with older types of sleepers (e.g. F23 to F27), which currently use the orange insulators, and older types of clip. These fastening components have remained unaltered for over 50 years, and modern technology for materials and shape of the components has been utilised to improve the new sys- tem, resulting in the additional benefits of improved scope for automation and im- proved durability of the components. It is
operations. The Bawtry site was 125mph line speed, with 150mm of cant, and proved the easy rail threading technique on the maximum canted and curved high speed track. The teams all wanted to switch as soon as possible to the new system.
targeted to provide a design life closer to the residual life remaining in these older sleepers. Many of the older sleepers have already been in track for over 30 years, with a further 20 years expected in some of the routes where they are utilised. It is this residual life which is the target design life for the new ‘Re’ system, meaning that components should not need to be replaced until the sleepers are life expired.
Two sites have been installed using the ‘Re’ system, both on the East Coast mainline. The first was at Bawtry, south of Doncaster, as part of a major CAPEX re-railing project.
The second was a serviceable sleeper renew- al site at Peterborough. Both sites proved the success of the ‘Re’ system, each having the unique characteristics of the differing
The news of the success has been taken around the whole network, with a road- show calling at the major maintenance depots during the autumn, demonstrating with a small track panel for the key track personnel at each depot. All the major as- pects of the system could be modelled dur- ing the training, and the interface with the Vortok Stressing Roller was also part of the programme. The Pandrol demonstra- tion team covered 4,800km throughout the tour, calling at depots as far apart as Inverkeithing and Eastleigh, and Cardiff and Ipswich.
The ‘Re’ system is available from January 2012, with the major switch timed to take place from April 2012. Both CAPEX re- railing and serviceable sleeper renewals will use the new system as the fastening of preference.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
T: +44 (0)1909 476101 E:
info@pandrol.com W:
www.pandrol.com
rail technology magazine Dec/Jan 12 | 37
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92