Waltair Division gets wheel maintenance system in Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam: Computerised Numerically Controlled (CNC) Under-floor Wheel Lathe system will now ease the wheel maintenance process in Visakhapatnam. Profiling and maintenance of the worn-out wheels can be done in a few hours with minimal manpower.

The new system, installed in Waltair Division at a cost of Rs 7 crore, has been in operation for a couple of weeks. Earlier, the same process would take a couple of days as the damaged wheels were sent to East Coast Railway headquarters at Mancheswar, Bhubaneshwar. "It's a time-consuming exercise.

However, with the installation of the CNC Under-floor Wheel Lathe system, the trolley need not be removed for the replacement of the wheels," Senior Coaching Depot Officer S Mohapatra told The Hans India.

A few weeks ago, an army of 10 to 15 workers were engaged manually in replacing the wheels. In addition, cranes and fork-lift were used to carry out the exercise.

Defected wheels are spotted during the primary maintenance examination (PME) wherein the coaches undergo frequently. Some of the recurring defects include flat places, shelled tread, deep and hallow and sharp flange.

Earlier, once the faulty wheels were identified, the coach was detached and shifted to sick-line for further maintenance. Wheels were removed with the assistance of cranes and fork-lift, dismantling the trolley. After the replacement of wheels, the coach used to be readied. Air-conditioned coaches need a greter number of technicians to detach and fix the wheels.

"With the launch of the CNC technology, time consumed for the entire process has been reduced. A coach with defected wheels will head to CNC Under-Floor Wheel Lathe shed. Through operator's control pendant, the faulty wheel will be rectified sans the involvement of manpower," explains Mohapatra.

Maintenance of the CNC Under-floor Wheel Lathe system is being taken care by manufacturer HYC for a period of seven years. This includes monthly maintenance as well. Senior technician at the shed Kameswara Rao says, "We got trained in operating the new technology for almost a month. The process has now become less cumbersome for us to handle."