New from Amsted Rail: TrakMaster™
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefHow many times can the three-piece freight car truck—which has been in use since the 19th century—be improved? For Amsted Rail, there appears to be no limit.
At Railway Interchange 2017 in Indianapolis, Amsted Rail introduced the TrakMaster™, its latest iteration of the three-piece truck, which it’s calling “the next bogie revolution.”
“Totally redesigned top to bottom with the latest cutting-edge technology, TrakMaster goes beyond anything before possible in a three-piece bogie,” the company says. “If you’re looking for next-generation performance tailor-made for high-mileage, heavy-axle-load railcars, TrakMaster is the right track to take.”
Amsted Rail says the TrakMaster is “the first bogie to pass the latest AAR specification criteria with updated track profiles [as published in the AAR Manual of Standards and Recommended Practices, Effective 9/15/2017, downloadable at the link below]. It offers better curving performance to reduce wheel flange wear, and provides longer wheel and component life. It has a re-engineered dual-rate suspension, and also offers lower maintenance costs.”
The TrakMaster features Amsted Rail’s IBEX™ TMB (Truck Mounted Brake) system for heavy-haul applications, which the company says “is designed to be extra light, extra balanced and extra durable.” These systems are “engineered for greater safety, efficiency and seamless performance.”
Amsted Rail says the IBEX TMB “provides less weight and therefore more payload; superior alignment for longer wheel life; a better balance for longer brake shoe life; a versatile modular design for a longer life cycle; increased durability for longer brake system life; and a brake-beam-mounted slack adjuster with connecting rods for additional clearance.”
The TrakMaster also offers built-in information technology. It’s equipped with IONX® integrated sensors that deliver “actionable intelligence,” and are part of an onboard network “that turns the freight railcar into a wireless hotspot, letting you track, trace, monitor and manage your assets across even the harshest operating environments in near-real-time. The result is greater efficiency, improved processes, enhanced connectivity, and more intelligent fleet decisions.”
IONX technology, Amsted Rail says, offers “safer operations by using predictive analysis of wheels and bearings; decreased out-of-service time and associated false setouts; reduced maintenance events; and improved scheduling for maintenance.”
The TrakMaster is claimed to weigh about 200 pounds less than a comparable three-piece truck.
