RUSSIA: United Wagon Co subsidiary TikhvinSpetsMash is supplying sodium sulphate producer Kuchuksulphat’s transport business Kuchukterminal with 20 covered vans designed to carry packaged and bulk loads for the chemical, glass, pulp and paper sectors.
The Type 11-6874 van has 25 tonne axleload bogies and offers a maximum capacity of 73 tonnes or 175 m3, a 7% increase on older designs. The large doors are designed to facilitate loading and unloading by all types of forklift truck, and there are four roof hatches for the rapid loading of bulk cargos.
The wagons have a design life of 32 years, with eight years or 800 000 km between overhauls, which UWC expects will cut lifecycle costs to a third of those for an older design. In addition, the government provides a subsidy of 350 000 roubles per wagon to encourage orders for high axleload designs.
‘The use of advanced technologies is fundamental to our development strategy’, said Kuchukterminal board member Ilya Lang. ‘That is why we have given preference to the new generation wagons which will help us to deliver more cargo more reliably and safely. This is the first time we have worked with UWC and we hope to expand our co-operation in the future.’
UWC estimates that between 2 500 and 3 500 vans will reach the end of their service life each year for the next decade, and it expects modern designs to form more than 20% of the overall Russian fleet by 2025.
