Rail Production as the Foundation
The production and manufacturing of rails is the foundation of the rail transit industry. No matter how good the design, it is useless if the rail cannot be made. Rail manufacturing combines steelmaking, rolling, heat treatment and finishing, and the quality of each step determines the performance of the rail in service. Modern rail production achieves high dimensional accuracy and consistent metallurgical quality across the full length of the rail, which is the basis of high-speed and heavy-load operation.
Long Rail Transportation by Specialized Vehicles
Long rails, which may be 100 m or 500 m in length, require specialized transportation. Long rail transportation special vehicles are manufactured for long rail railway transportation, and there have been T11, T11A, T11B, T11BK and other products. The T11 series evolved through successive design improvements: T11 was first put into use in 1988, and became T11A after improved design; T11B is formed by partially improving the design of the train set on the basis of T11A and adding one working car; T11BK has made comprehensive improvements in the body structure, on-board facilities and other aspects, adopting technologies such as K2 bogies. These trains carry the long rails in a train formation that can negotiate curves and gradients.
Ordinary Flat Car Coupling Transportation
With the large-scale construction of high-speed railways and passenger dedicated lines, long-rail ordinary flat car coupling transportation technology has also been developed, and a series of long-rail ordinary flat car transportation loading and reinforcement solutions such as 50 m, 100 m and 500 m have been formulated. Ordinary flat car coupling transportation can effectively utilize vehicle resources, and after the construction of the railway passenger dedicated line is completed, ordinary flat cars can still be restored, solving the problem of special vehicles being difficult to reuse. It avoids the waste of transportation capacity and makes important contributions to the construction of high-speed railways and passenger dedicated lines.
Loading and Reinforcement
The loading of long rails requires the proper arrangement of the rail train, the protection of the rail ends and the secure reinforcement of the load. The reinforcement solutions are defined for each rail length and transportation route, and they prevent the rails from shifting during transit. The rails are loaded on specially arranged flat cars with intermediate support cars, and the load is secured with the defined lashing and padding.
From Rail Mill to Site
The transportation route is planned so that the long rails arrive at the welding or laying site with minimum handling. For seamless lines, the 100 m rails are delivered to a welding plant where they are welded into 500 m strings, and the strings are transported to the laying site by the specialized train. The coordination of production, transportation and installation is what makes long-rail construction possible.
FAQ
Q: Why is rail production important?
A: It is the foundation of the rail transit industry, and the quality of each step determines rail performance.
Q: What vehicles transport long rails?
A: Specialized long rail trains such as the T11 series, designed to carry rails in a train formation.
Q: What is ordinary flat car coupling transportation?
A: Carrying long rails on coupled ordinary flat cars, which can be reused after the project.
Q: What lengths are transported by flat car coupling?
A: 50 m, 100 m and 500 m rails, with defined loading and reinforcement solutions.
Q: How are 500 m rails produced?
A: By welding 100 m rails in a welding plant, then transporting the strings to the laying site.
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