SUPPLEMENT

Bogie Design &

Developments

42 Axle bearings
and condition
monitoring for
railway vehicles
Volker Brundisch,
Product Manager Mechatronics,
Bombardier Transportation

46 The Spanish bogies

and wheelsets
market: constant
innovation for
a new era
Pedro Fortea, Director, MAFEX

SPONSORED BY:
© Zorabc / Shutterstock.com

S U B S C R I B E O N L I N E A T: European Railway Review

www.europeanrailwayreview.com VOLUME 22, ISSUE 2, 2016
41
BOGIE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENTS
SUPPLEMENT

The Spanish bogies

and wheelsets market:
constant innovation
for a new era
The rolling stock components market within the Spanish railway industry has grown significantly over recent
years. Featuring at the forefront of the most demanded product and service ranking lists on a national scale,
Pedro Fortea, Director at MAFEX – the Spanish Railway Association – says that its evolution is due to the ability
to develop solutions adapted to the new needs facing the sector.
Technological advances in all aspects have been gradually introduced, R+D, we have the accomplishments of companies such as AL-KO, which
ranging from the standardisation of bogies to as far as tools and has positioned itself at the fore of the manufacture of dampers and
technological applications that increase lifecycles, along with the suspension equipment. With more than 80 years’ history, AL-KO has
efficiency and maintenance of wheels. Progress has also been made in established a stronghold in more than 70 countries. Furthermore,
the manufacturing of the latest generation of pioneering dampers and AL-KO has developed a pioneering design and established a
suspension elements, plus new variable width gauge axes for manufacturing centre located in the Basque Country in which more
interoperability on freight networks. than 250 professionals are employed, devoting their time to
The strident efforts undertaken in recent decades on the part of research and engineering tasks that provide customised railway
multiple agents that carry out their professional activity in the field solutions. From there, all of the production plants are controlled
of components, such as bogies and wheels, has led to the acquisition of (Spain, Germany and China).
valuable know-how and the development of an industry with a high The railway activities’ portfolio includes a wide range of
level of specialisation and major exporter potential. applications for rolling stock suspension, doors and pantograph
systems. These components have already been incorporated into the
Innovative components and trains operated by the main rolling stock companies for all types of
technological solutions for a new era service: locomtive, regional, metropolitan and tramways.
The fruits of this hard work on the part of its companies, notably in the Another of the major contributions of the Spanish railway industry
field of research and development (R+D), the products offered and in this field is focused around the development of new technological
solutions that embrace the latest technology, are now implemented in and specialised consultancy services. In this field, NEM Solutions has
more than 95 countries, in which their efficiency and reliability have established one of the most advanced tools for railway rolling stock
been duly proven, thus positioning the Spanish railway industry at the management: the A.U.R.A Wheel. This involves a complete solution
forefront of these markets. that allows for the optimisation of the lifecycles for wheels and their
Amongst the numerous examples of tasks undertaken in terms of maintenance. To achieve this, all of the data gathered pertaining to
different devices, advanced analysis of the wheel tread and dynamic
Credit: CAF

scheduling based on condition has been pooled. This application has

been exceptionally well received and, presently, handles more than
40,000 coaches and 35 million wheel measurements. Amongst the
multiple reference points using A.U.R.A., worthy of special mention
include: Metro Madrid, HTM, BRU, CAF, ACTREN, Renfe, Stadler,
Alstom, Hitachi, Euromaint, Keolis, Washington Metro, Euskotren,
TTC, CPTM, TCDD, SRO, CTA, and LA Metro.
Spanish progress in terms of standardisation relating to rolling stock
components has also helped to position this industry at the forefront of
the sector. Operators and manufacturers from around the world
trust the highly-skilled abilities and competences of the independent
and internationally-renowned testing laboratories for new bogies.
CAF designs and manufactures the bogies for all of its rolling stock projects
A thorough undertaking requires demanding monitoring and a detailed

European Railway Review S U B S C R I B E O N L I N E A T:

46 VOLUME 22, ISSUE 2, 2016 www.europeanrailwayreview.com
 BOGIE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENTS
SUPPLEMENT

analysis on the part of rigorously endorsed

institutions. Take CETEST for example, which is SŽ – Vleka in tehnika
officially accredited (ISO17025) as one of the
At SŽ – Vleka in tehnika (SŽ – VIT), we provide ■ Engineering and technical support,
exclusive laboratories in Europe capable of comprehensive services in the field of rail vehicle ■ Integrated and reliable traction services for
carrying out the complete homologation test maintenance and train traction together with a freight and passenger operators, and
diverse range of technical wagon services. ■ Technical examinations, brake testing, repairs
package with the maximum level of assurances, Boasting a market presence of over 150 years and of coupled wagons, and loading assistance.
in a flexible manner and with cutting-edge with main locations in Ljubljana, Ptuj, Maribor, www.sz-vit.si
Dobova, Divača and Koper, we take pride in the
installations and equipment. For this reason,
know-how and expertise gathered over the years
they have a thorough portfolio that deals with and keep them in touch with the latest advances in
clients and offers a service that reduces rail technology, thus creating added value for our
business partners.
standardisation times, thus ensuring the best Our maintenance, traction, and technical
results whilst minimising the technical risks as wagon services are provided to Slovenian
Railways (Slovenske železnice) as well as to
much as possible.
clients outside Slovenia. Quality servicing and
With a proven track record of more than specialised know-how coupled with flexibility and
40 years’ experience, railway testing under- the skill to tackle any challenge has persuaded
many private keepers and national operators to
taken by CETEST covers a wide range of become our partner.
technical disciplines such as ride dynamics, Our qualifications are attested by various
certificates, authorisations and approvals, such
including instrumented wheelsets, structural
as ECM, ISO 9001:2008, VPI, and TSI for the
resistance and fatigue for validation of bogie assembly of new wheelsets, while the quality of
frames and bolsters, as well as components and our work has been attested by some of the biggest
keepers of rail vehicles.
subsets. This range is completed with the
vibrations testing including modal analysis, One-stop shop
electromagnetic compatibility EMC, traction, All services needed for safe and reliable vehicle
operation from a single source:
braking and pantograph validation testing, ■ Comprehensive preventive and
noise and acoustics and aerodynamics and corrective maintenance,
■ Renewal and modification of all rail
climatic testing. Static tests according to
vehicle types,
EN14363 with portable test benches are ■ Processing and assembly of wheelsets and other

also performed in order to assure the safety component servicing,

■ Mobile servicing,
against derailment of a rail vehicle, along with

Graz

Villach

Zagreb

Trieste
BOGIE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENTS
SUPPLEMENT

‘souplesse’ and bogie rotational stiffness tests; all in accordance with ensuring the effective blocking of the Iberian and standard gauge
the established standards and norms related to bogie and vehicle systems. The axle, directly assembled onto the standard bearings of
homologation (EN13749, EN13261 and EN13262, EN14363, EN50121, coaches and bogies, does not require any type of additional adaptation
etc.). CETEST has been performing these types of tests for clients such or frame. The process is performed automatically using a changer,
as Alstom, Bombardier, CAF, Nippon Sharyo, Amtrak, Matisa and without stopping the vehicle and without unloading each coach, at a
Titagarh Wagons, among many others. passing speed of up to 30km/h.
An additional factor in this industry rests in the major level of Likewise, with regard to interoperability, companies such as CAF have
specialisation and technological resources used by its companies. In this contributed with significant progress in the field of railway transport, such
sense, railway divisions such as the one belonging to DANOBATGROUP, as BRAVA – the self-propelled Universal Variable Gauge System. BRAVA
provides complete machinery all over the world for axle, wheel, allows railway vehicles to be adapted to any track width whilst running in
wheelsets and bogies for maintenance workshops run by railway a time of just three seconds. This new system can be applied to any type
manufacturers. Amongst these we can highlight the portal and pit lathes, of train irrespective of its origin and technology. Also worthy of special
wheel measurement equipment and dynamic testing benches for mention, is the fact that the company has a specialist arm known as CAF
bogies. Along with the supply of this type of machinery, they also act as MiiRA which is considered amongst the most advanced in the world in
technological allies to provide comprehensive engineering solutions; terms of design, manufacture, assembly and maintenance of railway
from project planning to its final construction and subsequent working wheelsets and their components: wheels, axes, gear boxes and axle
life. One of the most sizeable projects undertaken by the company is boxes. This is the sole manufacturer capable of delivering a wheelset with
located in Australia where they have installed one of the world’s most a complete design: including the wheels, axes, gear box and the axle box
advanced automated workshops dealing with the maintenance tasks for itself. CAF MiiRA provides installations fitted with the most cutting-edge
mining trains in which they have fulfilled the need to integrate more than technology available, following a significant investment plan put in place
30 pieces of equipment, robotic handling devices and a computerised in recent years. With its own steelworks, the company has first-rate
system for comprehensive control of the line. responsiveness to the specific requirements of each project.
The challenge lies in enabling a complete set of installations located
close to the mining operations, which are difficult to access and where Research centres: design of new materials and processes
there is a notable shortfall of local workforce. Therein, it is possible to Along with the companies in the sector, we also boast renowned and
perform, in an automated manner, the tasks involving the disassembly, qualified research centres. The aim is to provide responses to the
repair, subsequent assembly and final inspection of all the components. challenges set forth by the market and serve to improve the integration
In the field of freight railways, major milestones have also been of rolling stock components whilst finding a solution to complex multi-
surpassed in recent years. Azvi, in tandem with other companies in the disciplinary issues. In Spain, the research tasks undertaken have their
sector, for example, has managed to develop new axes offering variable main international reference point in the IK4 Research Alliance Centre.
gauge width for this type of transport. In this way, we have been able to Ceit-IK4 focuses its workload on the design of new materials and
overcome one of the main hindrances for rail transport between Spain processes along with railway dynamics. In the first case, the technical
and the rest of Europe, plus the rest of Europe and Asia: interoperability. skills are based on research and advancements in improved qualities of
Based on a prototype from the 1960s, Azvi, Tria and Ogi embarked steel used on tracks, wheels and wheel treads, propagation of cracks as
on the ECASYS project in 2014 to improve the design of variable gauge a result of fatigue, tenacity and resistance to wear and tear. Work is also
axes and gauge width change infrastructure. The new system is undertaken on improvements associated with thermal treatments to
composed of an ‘axle’ that allows for the axial slide of the wheels. enhance quality in terms of brake shoes for high-speed rail vehicles,
The most innovative part is the incorporated locking system, which characterisation of defects, deterioration and service inspections.
forms a solid block without any additional mobile or rolling parts, thus With regard to railway dynamics, Ceit-IK4 is involved in working

New state-of-the-art freight wheelset designed for container wagons

In 2015 GHH-BONATRANS Group launched onto the market a new state-of- TSI certificates and strictly follow the EN standards. “We are completing
the-art freight wheelset designed for container wagons. The wheels are made negotiations of several analogical deals and so expect in future such
from BONASTAR™, the new steel grade specifically enhanced for the wheel- technologically advanced freight applications will be seen much more
application in the harshest environmental and operational conditions. frequently on the European network,” said Jakub Weimann, Managing
Unlike its regular freight counterpart, the wheel has a uniquely shaped Director of BONATRANS. www.ghh-bonatrans.com
web and significantly reduced weight (320 kg). The axle is produced from the
material EA4T.
Instead of widespread tread/contact concept the wheelset relies on axle-
mounted brake disk and it can run up to 160 km/h. In such applications,
BONASTAR™ helps to prevent formation and propagation of rolling contact
defects. As a result, the product’s lifetime is greatly extended – approximately
30% longer life in mileage terms compared to wheels made of standard
EN grades and reduction. Operating costs as well as LLC are significantly
reduced too.
Nearly 1,000 of these upgraded wheelsets have been delivered to
Tatravagónka Poprad and subsequently integrated into wagons for AAE fleet.
Both companies are leading players in their field of freight railway industry.
Completely assembled, first-class wheelsets possess all the necessary

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 BOGIE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENTS
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measuring of axle loads, mechatronic systems, as well as the effect of All of these developments are merely some examples of the current
transversal cross winds on the circulation of railway traffic. state of play in the Spanish railway industry that has placed us in the
The works carried out in the aforementioned fields have been position of one of the most advanced on the world stage in terms of
added to by companies which have contributed with significant innovative solutions and with a significant technological input.
improvements in bogie washing processes; a key factor in the whole-
scale maintenance of components. Protocols that involve the handling After spending some years as the Assistant Manager of
Fundigex – the Castings Exporter’s Association of Spain –
of mobile pieces of railway vehicles require special attention and Pedro Fortea became the Director of Mafex in 2004 and
greater care should these be subject to wear and tear. For this purpose, has helped to develop its professional activity. Pedro
studied at ESADE Business School, Escuela Universitaria
companies such as Aquafrisch have developed a series of automated (Cámara de Comercio de Bilbao) and Deusto University.
equipment specifically designed so that the task can be considerably

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