Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala to reduce weight of LHB coaches

Kapurthala: To increase production volumes of rail coaches, RCF is working on many  areas which can enhance production and meet ever growing demand of rail coaches. Also, many steps are being taken for design improvement to improve passenger satisfaction quotient ,besides new developments in coaches, which make them more compact, safer and faster contemporary to modern rail coaches running in world rail system. Apropos, Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala is working on several design improvements for reduction in weight of coaches which will make them more efficient and help in save energy. 

Different variants of LHB coaches weigh 46 tonnes apx. Several design improvements have been made to the coach shell, furnishing and electrical fittings to reduce the weight. These design improvements make AC First Class, AC 2 tier, AC 3 tier, Sleeper  and General coaches lighter by 7 quintals to 1.5 tonnes  approximately .

By bringing in changes in seats and berths, reduction in weight of 3 quintal, 6 quintal and 6.7 quintal will be achieved in AC First, AC 2 Tier and AC 3 Tier coaches respectively.  Three quintal weight will be reduced by changing the material of the AC package unit. Replacing the partition frame of Sleeper and General coaches with light honey comb partition frame will result in substantial reduction of weight in these coaches. Apart from this, provision has been made for weight reduction through design and structural changes in bio tanks, transformers, switchboard cabinets etc.

RCF has started production of high capacity parcel vans on large scale, this year. These coaches are running on all long distance trains so that the supply of goods can be expedited. RCF has also worked on its weight reduction by changing the material of luggage racks, panels and flooring etc thereby reducing the weight by 1.5 tons. This reduction will help in  increase of carrying capacity of these parcel vans.

It is worth noting that LHB type coaches are one of the lightest coaches running in trains across the world. By adequate weight reduction, the haulage cost will be reduced due to energy saving, also the number of coaches in trains can also be increased. Apart from this, the efficiency of coaches will also be improved besides increasing the aesthetics of coach interiors. With  Indian Railways aiming to increase the speed of its trains, these light weight LHB coaches will soon contribute to faster train travel in near future.   

It is also worth mentioning, that month July was noteworthy for achievements which Rail Coach Factory Kapurthala earned when it produced record 151 LHB coaches- the highest ever monthly production , besides making in-house extremely low cost Jig for coach shell making for increasing production of coaches that  will ensure the production of 7 to 8 coaches per day. /(Rajat Kumar, Jalandhar)