Trelleborg Industrial AVS Primary Suspension for Bucharest Metro
26 September 2006 15:50
Trelleborg Industrial AVS has won a €0.5 million contract from Bombardier Transportation to supply Metalastik® components for the primary suspension of 120 Movia railcars for the Bucharest Metro.
Under the contract, Trelleborg Industrial AVS is supplying seven Metalastik® rubber/metal suspension components for:
- Each bogie
- Swing arm bushes
- ARB bushings
- Traction rod bushes
- Chevron-type sandwich elements
- Lateral buffers
- Half bearings and rubber distance elements
The Bucharest trains will operate in a six-car configuration with four powered cars per set.
The suspension package is designed to offer simplicity, long service life and low maintenance. Its major element is the Metalastik® chevron spring: a robust, low-profile rubber/metal laminated assembly fitted in pairs between the wheel axles and bogie frame to give longitudinal, lateral and vertical flexibility. First pioneered on the London Underground, it can absorb high levels of shock and vibration over an extended service life. There are currently 50 different variants in the chevron range for axlebox loadings from 16kN to 120kN and vertical deflections from 12mm to 100mm.
Trelleborg Industrial AVS will produce the suspension components in its UK and Swedish plants for delivery to Siegen, Germany, where Bombardier is manufacturing the bogies. The IGBT propulsion is being made at the Bombardier factory in Västeras, Sweden and the flatpack stainless steel bodies in Görlitz, Germany. First deliveries are scheduled for 2006 and Bombardier's local partner, Electroputere, will carry out final assembly in Craiova, Romania.
Trelleborg's suspension components are destined for 20 trains that Bombardier is building for Bucharest under a contract worth approximately €110 million, which will bring the total number of MOVIA metro cars ordered for the city's Metro to 228. The new six-car trains each have a total passenger capacity of 1,200 and will run on lines 1 and 3 of the Bucharest Metro. The network dates from 1979 and comprises over 60km of track and 45 stations. Bombardier was the first international company to supply it with vehicles, as all its original equipment was built within the Soviet bloc during the Communist era. The trains are electrically powered, using a 750V DC third rail system.
Bombardier Transportation is the global leader in the rail equipment, manufacturing and servicing industry. Based in Berlin, Germany it is a group of Bombardier Inc. a diversified manufacturing and service group.
Approved to ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001, Trelleborg Industrial AVS is a world leader in the design and manufacture of rubber to metal bonded components for anti-vibration applications and suspension systems. There are three main brands: Metalastik® is used in rail and marine applications, TrellExtreme® in off-highway and Novibra® in industrial and power generation applications. The company's head office, technical centre and research and development units are located in a new, £10 million plant in Leicester, UK while production is divided between plants in Leicester, Sweden, India and China.
For more information on this company:
Trelleborg - Antivibration Mountings and Suspension Systems
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