A firm grasp on fastening systems

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor

Suppliers look to improve the way their respective fastening systems hold track together.

 

Railway fastening systems’ sole role is to hold track infrastructure together in order to preserve proper geometry and, ultimately, support the safe operation of trains. When something goes wrong among these components, the results can be devastating. While inspection technologies work to improve finding flaws among fastening system components, suppliers of those systems are focused on manufacturing resilient fasteners that can sustain their grip in the harsh environment of railroading.

Alcoa Fastening Systems
Alcoa Fastening Systems & Rings manufactures the Huck 360®, a locking fastener that the company says improves on the traditional HuckBolt® system by providing dependable clamping strength and reliability that HuckBolt fasteners are known for – but with the added benefit of offering quick installation and removal with conventional tools (due to the free-spinning nut design). Alcoa Fastening Systems & Rings says the Huck 360 eliminates the “gap” around the crest of the bolt when tightened to a specific clamp force – preventingtransverse vibration by locking the thread flanks in place. With conventional nut-and-bolt systems, clamp load quickly decays under vibration.

The company says its own Finite Element Analysis showed that the Huck 360’s shallow thread form results in 27 percent less axial stress in the root compared to conventional bolt threads. The company also notes that the shallow thread allows the effective area of the fastener to be widened by as much as 20 percent, which increases tensile and fatigue strength. The company says the free-spinning, swage-able nut design installs up to 300 percent faster than other conventional lock nut solutions.

“The Huck 360 system is designed for numerous applications where high-strength, vibration-resistance and low-maintenance is required,” said Alcoa Fastening Systems & Rings.

L.B. Foster
L.B. Foster Company says it utilizes its technical and product development expertise to introduce customized product solutions to meet specific customer needs.

According to Jason Bowlin, general manager, L.B. Foster Transit Products, “35 different fastening designs have been developed to meet the unique requirements of transit agencies across North America. We closely collaborate with engineering design firms and transit authorities to address critical requirements such as stiffness, adjustability, rail seat width and alternative clip designs.”

As examples, he added, “Our design of a resilient tie system, incorporating a concrete tie/boot, elastomeric pad, insulator and clips, has recently been introduced into a West Coast transit system. To grow our position across North America, we continue to focus on evolving customer needs for this type of system. And to enhance the performance of infrastructure components in severe environmental conditions such as tunnels, through the novel use of coatings, solutions involving application to specific elements of the fastener are expected to dramatically reduce corrosion due to stray currents and significantly extend the life of the fastener.”

He concluded, “The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, which is the recently passed five-year U.S. transportation infrastructure legislation, will provide a stable and growing source of funds to be available to U.S. transit agencies. We expect that this will drive growing investment and require continuing collaboration with suppliers like L.B. Foster to provide unique solutions for their growing needs.

Lewis Bolt & Nut
Lewis Bolt & Nut Company introduced its patent pending Quick-Set® Hook Bolt System following successful testing at Transportation Technology Center, Inc., in Pueblo, Colo. The company says the new system is designed to be installed from the surface of a bridge deck and does not require holes to be drilled through the bridge ties.

The single Quick-Set bolt can be installed in under five minutes by sliding the hook bolt through the associated bracket, attach the hex nut and engage the flange. Follow by installing the high strength lag screws through the bracket and into the ties, add the second (lock) nut and installation is complete.

The Quick-Set system offers an option to include a built-in continuous guard rail along with a new bracket which the company says offers a wider surface area that allows lags to be installed closer to the center of the bridge ties.

Additionally, Lewis Bolt & Nut is offering its Lewis LT-1 drive-on style of rail anchor, which is manufactured at the company’s facility in La Junta, Colo. The company says the new anchor meets all AREMA specifications, has been successfully tested and is currently being purchased by numerous Class 1 railroads.

“Lewis continues to produce the most complete line of fasteners for special trackwork. This includes the patented Self Centering Frog Bolt System, regular hex or square head frog bolts, available drilled as needed and switch bolts available drilled as required,” said Dave Barry, vice president – sales.

Lewis Bolt together with Nylok® Corporation recently developed the new Everlok™ Nut.

“This new lock nut incorporates a patented, proprietary patch applied by Nylok Corporation. Once installed to recommended torque values, the nut remains tight. If desired, it can be removed and re-installed without damage to threads as is common on metal-to-metal interference lock nuts. The new lock nut, in 1-3/8-inch hex or square is fully Buy America compliant,” said Barry.

Pandrol North America
Allen Goff, vice president Sales and Marketing for Pandrol North America states 2015 was a record year and anticipates 2016 to be solid, as well.

“Even though capital budgets for most of our customers have been reduced, we feel day-to-day maintenance programs will continue to be strong,” said Goff.

To date, Pandrol has manufactured more than two billion rail fasteners for use on more than 400 railways in 100 countries throughout the world. Goff says Pandrol continues to address existing customer needs while working to develop new and safer ideas for future applications.

Pandrol North America uses a three-dimensional printer that allows the company to design, evaluate and review concepts with customers before a final design is produced.

“This, along with a having a small production line dedicated to R&D prototyping reduces the lead-time of turning an idea into a real product, thus saving both sides time and money.

However, we do understand a product is not complete until it passes the true test of performing in daily service under real operating conditions,” said Goff.

Goff references the FE1505 rail fastening assembly as an example of this type of development. The FE1505 was created in response to customer requests for a fastening assembly to last the life of rail in heavy-haul applications. The FE1505 is equipped with a recessed rail seat utilizing a FASTCLIP fastener and two-piece integral pad, which Goff says significantly extends component life while maintaining a slide-on/slide-off fastening system.

“The FE1505 has been installed in a heavy-haul environment for over two years and continues to perform very well,” said Goff.

Pandrol has also implemented a second production line to meet the growing demand for its customizable Victor tie plates, which utilize standard AREMA rolled steel tie plates in customer-requested sizes that are equipped with the customer’s choice of resilient fastener. Goff notes that the Victor product line includes a “Rollblock” version that provides a solid flat bottom eliminating the protrusion created by a bolt head.

“Pandrol has also taken its well-known ‘e’-clip design to another level. The new ‘e’-clip RE offers all the familiar advantages of the original design but with fewer components that provides faster installation and improved product life,” said Goff.

Progress Rail
Progress Rail, a Caterpillar Company, kicked off 2016 by integrating its latest acquisition, Rail Product Solutions (RPS), a provider of fastening systems for both freight and transit customers.

“The addition of RPS to the current product line reinforces Progress Rail’s position as the largest provider of value-added infrastructure products and services to the rail industry,” the company said.

The latest product offering from Progress Rail’s Fastener Solutions Division are GageLok® screws. The self-drilling GageLok secures rails and tie plates to traditional, wood ties and the company notes that they can be used to replace traditional cut track spikes and screw spikes to prolong tie life and minimize tie splitting during insertion.

According to Progress Rail Director of Fastening Engineering Jose Mediavilla, “The unique manufacturing technology allows GageLok screws to be formed cold and that results in a tougher, more shear resistant product that can stand up to the rigors of curved track in heavy-haul environments. The added shear strength and thread grip of our GageLok screws allow them to be used against the rail or as plate holding screws to prevent gauge widening. This improves track safety and minimizes maintenance costs. Laboratory and field tests on Class 1 railroads have proven that our GageLok screws can hold track gauge up to three times longer than traditional methods.”

Progress Rail Vice President of Engineering & Track Sales Patrick Jansen said, “Our Fastener Solutions Division has taken a systematic approach to develop products adjacent to our core rail anchors and resilient fasteners to provide more complete systems that add customer value by designing systems that are meant to work together. As an example, Progress Rail anchors are used for longitudinal rail restraint can be paired with GageLok rail screws to help prevent lateral rail movement on wood ties and provide a complete solution to holding rail in place.”

Progress Rail says that for concrete ties, gauge restraint is achieved with the ME63 “skl” style fastening system by using the inherent structural strength of the concrete, coupled with advanced design and manufacturing process of the fastening components. The ME63 system was brought to the North American market through Progress Rail’s joint venture with Switzerland-based Schwihag AG, complete with manufacturing in Atchison, Kan., making the ME63 Buy America compliant.

The system features the ME1 Clip with the highest fatigue limit of any resilient clip available on the market, along with a rail pad, abrasion plate, screw spikes, dowels and both field and gauge guide plates. All ME63 components work as a system; however, the guide plates set gauge orientation of the rails and transfer the lateral forces into the concrete tie. The guide plates are designed to cover the full width of the tie to prevent point loading and excessive compression of insulators. Progress Rail says that by spreading the load across a wider area and using a proprietary abrasion resistant polymer material, the ME63 guide plates limit wear and prevent gauge widening on concrete ties to maximize the life of the rail seat.
Progress Rail’s MACRO Armor is designed restore gauge on concrete ties with rail seat abrasion.

“Progress Rail believes that MACRO Armor can extend the life of repaired ties by at least 10 years, while delivering significant cost savings when compared to replacing gauge worn concrete ties,” the company said.

Vossloh Fastening Systems
Vossloh Fastening Systems introduced a new fastening solution for high speed and conventional slab track applications: System 300 NG, which stands for new generation. The company says the new system is the evolutionary next step of the company’s System 300 and features design updates that optimize surface geometries and increase material efficiency, thereby reducing the overall volume of material needed to achieve the same performance and safety standards as System 300.

“This improved usage not only saves the environment, but also reduces logistics costs. These new components are adapted to the already approved Vossloh Skl 15 tension clamp to ensure the established characteristics of System 300, e.g. high fatigue strength and high toe load. The highly elastic cellentic intermediate plate optimizes load distribution,” said Vossloh.
The company also notes that its development and integration of advanced materials in rail fastening systems provide optimal functionality, as well as numerous cost saving attributes, which help railroads maximize economic efficiency, performance and safety.

“Many of our systems utilize composite plastics components that are resistant to corrosion and abrasion, while also providing electrical insulation. Compared to steel, these lightweight materials also provided the added benefit of reduced logistical costs as these lighter weight materials are much less expensive to transport to the job site. Examples include, Vossloh fastening systems DFF 21 and DFF 300 UTS for urban transport – both feature a durable nylon baseplate. Many of our systems include our patented cellentic rail pad, an elastomer made of EPDM that serves to increase stability, as well as reduce noise and vibration. Our W40 systems for heavy-haul utilize another type of innovative rail pad geometry that reduces rail tilting and deflection, increasing the life of the components,” said Vossloh.

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