|
Railway
Network
In a series
of 10 projects, largely funded by the Netherlands Government
through their aid and investment organisation, DIAK made extensive
supplies to revive a narrow gauge railway network in a large
African plantation. The work included re-engining old locomotives
and improving drive systems. New coupling and centering assemblies
were designed and manufactured. Obsolete electrical systems
were removed and replaced with modern diesel electric components.
The railcars were refitted with new axles and carriers. The
resulting system is both effective and economic, being faster
and more reliable than tractor based collection systems, working
in all weathers, and requiring fewer operatives to shift thousands
of tons of harvested produce.
The plantation
factory was linked to the national rail network and used a
1943 steam locomotive to haul produce out to the nearest town
marshalling yards. On one occasion the gearbox failed leaving
the locomotive stranded, and with the original manufacture
long since closed, DIAK repatriated the broken parts, created
CNC manufacturing specifications, made new parts to emergency
order, and airfreighted these back to rescue the locomotive
and revive produce shipments.
Railway
Workshop
A railway workshop owned a 1958 rail tyre rolling press supplied
by Crown Agents, which had ceased operations when the hydraulic
systems failed and no spare parts could be obtained. Later,
as their back up unit also faltered, DIAK devised a re-engineering
solution. The oil sump top plate casting was air freighted
to England and machined out with a new suction, strainer and
return fitted. The assembly was returned to the client together
with a subframe on which was mounted a modern electric motor
fitted with a compact high pressure gear pump. A control panel
and instrumentation was mounted onto the subframe. The original
leather belt pulley drive was bypassed, and the new subframe
(which was designed to fit existing apertures on the press)
fitted onto the side of the machine. The redesigned top plate
was dropped onto the old sump and connected with new pipework
to the pump.
The unit
was fitted with 3 sets of filtration for long term security,
and also delivered with 3 years of service spares. The work
was done by a DIAK engineer on site and worked first time
so restoring full operations after a break of several years.
Rail
Crane
In 1968, a railway authority purchased a rail crane which
they used for the rescue of derailed rolling stock. The crane
had been designed with hydraulic outriggers attached to the
main chassis, which extended and jacked down to stabilise
the platform for lifting duty. With the diesel power in the
rotating cab housing, there was no power delivery to the chassis,
so the Japanese design resorted to manual pumping of the outriggers
with the operator carrying around a oil reservoir and manual
pump. The process was very slow and extremely hard work. With
a crane progressing along a track to recover a string of fallen
wagons, the repetitive up and down of 4 outriggers in maybe
two repeat adjustments for every wagon more than doubled the
time taken for each lift.
Diak redesigned
the crane by manufacturing two hydraulic powerpacks, each
with independant pumping and reservoirs, in very low profile
housings slung under the opposing chassis side rails. The
housings were mounted on extending arms, which slid outboard
during use, and took power from an electrical connection to
the cab. The operator could jack down both outriggers on a
side with many fine adjustments using two joysticks in less
than 1 minute. The use of the crane is revolutionised.
The work of DIAK covers both creative engineering solutions
and much routine engineering supply. For example, in the rail
industry in Africa there exists a continuous demand for basic
rolling stock components; DIAK has made arrangements with
specialist factories across the world to achieve the ability
to produce almost all such components. Recent jobs of this
nature cover such supplies as Constant Friction Dampers to
fit Gloucester pattern bogies, Twist Locks for rail wagon
container carriers, Brake Beams with shoe carriers, wagon
air braking spares, and various Springs for bogies and couplers.
|
