Salzburg: PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL GmbH purchased the first rail milling train in Austria. The milling train is an interesting alternative to rail grinding, the technology previously used in Austria as the only way to re-profile worn tracks. “Adding the rail milling train to our equipment pool will allow ALPINE and PORR to offer railroad network operators in Austria and Europe a machine that can remove defective material from the rail’s running surface and running edge in a single pass and thus in a shorter period of time,“ Roman Esterbauer, ALPINE’s managing director in charge of the equipment joint venture and Johann Floh, Railroad Construction Manager at Porr Technobau und Umwelt AG, explain in unison. This rail milling train is the fifth of its type in Europe. “Due to its exclusivity, the train will be used throughout Europe,“ says Stefan Unden, Managing Director of PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL. The new rail milling train will be put into operation in Germany starting in November. The investment for the new machine is roughly eight million euros. The milling train is manufactured by Linsinger Austria from Steyrermühl, Upper Austria. The delivery time was two years.
Rail milling train
The rail milling train, which looks like to a locomotive, is used to re-profile the rail head and to correct cracks in the rail surface. Cracks in the rails are caused by the increasing burden on the railroad networks due to increasingly heavier trains. The rail milling train, featuring four milling stations and two grinding stations, runs over the affected stretch of rail and rectifies rail defects in one pass. Thanks to the new technology, the rail milling train can remove more chips and swarf from the rails in a shorter period of time. Another advantage over rail grinding is the avoidance of flying sparks and dust emissions.
PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL
PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL GmbH, formerly MMU Gleisbaugerätevermietung GmbH, is operated by its shareholders, PORR AG and ALPINE Bau GmbH, as an independent company. ALPINE is responsible for the commercial management, PORR for the technical management. The company engages in the maintenance of the rail infrastructure. PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL GmbH uses state-of-the-art machine technology and has years of experience in the use of railroad construction equipment. The responsibilities associated with the modernization of Europe’s rail infrastructure are multi-faceted. PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL is active in the construction, expansion and maintenance of railroad lines throughout Europe.
PORR-ALPINE AUSTRIARAIL commissions the first rail milling train in Austria (PDF)