Kockums Industrier celebrate their anniversary. The company has manufactured railway waggons for 150 years. As for many other companies, the financial crisis has resulted in a reduced demand for them as well. It is true that customers want to invest in new waggons, but the financing is a problem. In the long run, the future looks very bright, thanks to, among other things, the new cost-effective production technology.
Björn Widell, CEO: “The EU estimates that the transport sector is going to grow by 50% by the year 2020. Other forecasts show a threefold increase in railway transport. Railways are in right now. It is not only about the environmental aspects. Apart from this, the average age of railway waggons in Europe is very high – 29 years. Just imagine if there were so old trucks on the roads…”
When Björn Widell was 16 he was employed at Kockums as a shipyard sheet-metal worker. When the desire to study came back a few years later, it resulted in a Master of Engineering degree. But during all the years Björn has remained faithful to Kockums and now he is one of the major owners of the company. With his background, he is deeply involved in both product development and production.
The construction consists of 17 long profiles per one half-side
.Old construction
“We had a waggon concept with aluminium cowling for transporting cars and we knew that there was an interest for this on the market”, explains Björn. “But the design solution was 20-30 years old and the production was complicated as it involved, among other things, spot welding and a countless number of components. We had been looking internally for alternative solutions. When we met Sapa at a railway fair in Berlin, it gave a start to a rewarding development co-operation.”
Joint project team
Kockums strongly wished to simplify the production process and to avoid welding. Would it simply be possible to snap profiles together instead of welding them? “We established a project team consisting of both our and Sapa’s people”, continues Björn. “We have learnt a lot during the journey and we see a great potential in aluminium profiles and the co-operation with Sapa also with regard to other types of waggons. Together, we have built up a new kind of competence. And yes: Sapa Technicians solved the problem of how to snap together the over seven metres long profiles.”
Two waggons in one
The co-operation resulted in an essential step forward in the development of modern covered waggons, in this case in the form of a waggon that can be described as “two waggons in one”. You transport cars in one direction, twelve cars loaded on two levels. The cars enter the waggon from the short side. On the return trip, the upper floor is lowered and a single cargo space is obtained. Loading of pallets, for example, is possible from the side, as the overstructure consists of two parts and both parts can be slid together using a kind of telescoping function.
The gables: two bent aluminium profiles stabilise the construction.
In the lead
Björn concludes: “The whole construction is optimised for an as simple and cost-effective assembly process as possible. And now, as we avoid welding, we can use anodized profiles which do not corrode at all and are easy to keep clean in a railway environment. It is also much easier to remove graffiti.
We have, of course, experience from working together with other profile suppliers in Europe. But we are good at co-operation here in Sweden, we have a tradition and the required openness. Together with Sapa, we have worked as if we were a single company. It is exciting to be in the lead and to drive the development. And this is what we have really done. Together.”
Text: lg.linden/text