Technika a trh

rail transport l transmission

Special rail vehicles

With the arrival of Gmeinder in the Wikov

Group, the position in the field of drives

for special rail vehicles is also fundamentally changing. It was this extensive experience with special gearboxes for rail vehicles that contributed to the decision for

the takeover of the German competitor.

So far, this segment has been missing

in Wikov's portfolio, or it has not been focussed on. The mosaic of products has

therefore received gearboxes and drives

for railway motor cars, railway cranes, maintenance of traction lines, tamping machines, and machines for the laying,

installation, maintenance, and renewal

of tracks.

DMU

Wikov is also opening its door to the

market of the diesel train unit (DMU),

where Gmeinder is an established supplier of complete drive solutions up to a speed of 200 km/h. In the past, for example,

they have supplied bevel gearboxes for

the IC3 unit of Danish railways.

Locomotives

Locomotive gearboxes are also the domain of mainly Gmeinder. These generally

include shunting and freight locomotives

in the whole range of designs from diesel,

through diesel-electric, to solutions with

paw motors used in electric locomotives.

Wikov complements its portfolio with powerful gearboxes for sprung drives for

passenger locomotives up to a speed of

200 km/h and a power output of 1.4 MW.

Absolute independence

in gearbox testing

Wikov, as one of the few companies producing gearboxes, has a testing facility for

gearboxes, which allows for the simulation of the torque characteristics of a rail

vehicle running cycle. With new testing

equipment, the behaviour of the gearboxes can be tested as closely as possible to

the real conditions of rolling stock operation. The whole system is equipped with

stepless regulation of torque and engine

speed. This makes it possible to simulate

the driving characteristics of the vehicle,

such as: accelerating, climbing, descending, and braking. Using the recorded

speed, torque, or temperature, the gearbox can be tuned to be as ready as possible for actual operation. Gearboxes can

be cooled by blowing air through special

fans simulating the flow of air around the

gearbox in the real environment of the vehicle. The entire system is protected against overload by software. Test results are

immediately applied to the design of the

gearboxes – for example: to modify gear

design, gearbox cooling, or to further reduce noise. The system of hydraulic cylinders can simulate a dynamic load of

up to 300 m.s-2 and is equipped with two

1.4 MW engines – one for driving and the

other for braking.

In addition, Wikov has gained valuable

experience in testing drives for extreme

cold conditions. Customers from Russia in

particular require this type of test. Wikov

uses a cooling box of modular sandwich

design, so the box is easy to assemble

and disassemble. It is equipped with two

2×26 kW compressors with additional

fans, so it is possible to gradually cool the

gearbox, or the entire drive, to –45 °C.

For rolling stock gearboxes, the so-called

hard start is used, when the gearbox is

started without oil preheating. Obviously,

during such tests temperatures inside the

gearbox, pressures, torque, speed, and vibration are measured.

has increased to more than 3,000 gearboxes per year, and further significant

growth is expected for all types of rolling

stock. Wikov is going to expand its sales

network in key global territories using

Gmeinder's extensive network. The company is now directing its development activities to further increase the useful properties of the product portfolio and to

develop remote diagnostics.

Wikov MGI a.s. – production facility

Zbečník 356, 549 31 Hronov

phone.: +420 491 488 111

e-mail: mgi@wikov.com

www.wikov.com

In conclusion

The current production and assembly capacity of gearboxes at the Wikov Group

Wikov Industry

Is a traditional (production in Hronov began in 1884 and in Pilsen in 1918) and the largest manufacturer

of industrial gearboxes and transmission equipment in the Czech Republic, and is also one of the world's

leading manufacturers of industrial gearboxes. In its current form, the Wikov Industry engineering group

began to establish itself on the market in 2002. In the Czech Republic, its companies include

Wikov Gear s.r.o. based in Pilsen (manufacture of industrial gearboxes, high-speed gearboxes and gears),

Wikov MGI a.s. based in Hronov (industrial gearboxes, gearboxes for renewable energy sources – wind

and tidal power plants, as well as drives and gearboxes for rail vehicles), Wikov Sázavan s.r.o. (manufacture of machine parts and engineering components), and Detail CZ (manufacture of precision parts for

trucks, construction and agricultural machinery). The group uses its Orbital2 company for the design and

construction of planetary gearboxes. Gmeinder Getriebe Gruppe, a German company manufacturing and

servicing gearboxes for rail vehicles, became part of the Wikov Group in 2019. In the same year,

the Wikov-RS facility for the assembly of rail vehicle gearboxes was established in the Russian city of Tver,

as a joint venture between Wikov Industry and PKTS, a Russian manufacturer of rail vehicles. The entire

Wikov Industry group currently employs more than 1,000 people, with annual sales of USD 120 million.

The whole group is profitable in the long run.