**Bhubaneswar:** India has high-speed trains like Gatimaan, Shatabdi and Rajdhani which are capable of running at 140-160 kmph. These are ‘loco-haul’ trains that have an acceleration capacity of 0.3 metre/second-square, whereas the Train 18 has an acceleration of 0.7 m/s-square.
Therefore Train 18 gains speed faster and reduces the travel time between stations, than loco-haul trains, Debi Prasad Dash, Chief Design Engineer (Electrical) of Train 18 said.
In an exclusive interview to OMMCOM NEWS, Dash who hails from Odisha’s Jajpur district said that building Train 18 – ‘Semi-high speed world class train’, was a big challenge, and the entire team lived up to the challenge with competency and perfection.
“When you do something for the first time, there are no references available. Therefore it was a big challenge for the entire team to start from the scratch,” he said.
Acceleration and de-acceleration are two defining factors of Train 18. With a faster acceleration Train 18 reaches 100 kmph in 150 seconds and 160 kmph in 182 seconds.
A similar principle applies to the application of brakes. Train 18 can de-accelerate at 0.8 m/second square. That means it can arrive close to a station at a high speed and brake instantly to come to a halt. It reduces the time for braking, Dash added.
Out of the 16 coaches in this train, eight coaches are fitted with traction motors, fixed on the wheels. All the instruments are not limited to the locomotive, but distributed over eight coaches. This is a big difference between other high-speed trains and Train 18.
“Normally we used to put the components inside the coaches which occupied a lot of space. So, we decided to put these components below the coach.
Besides, the riding quality of Train 18 is a lot better. The riding quality is determined by vibrations and oscillations which is generated when the train moves on the tracks. More vibrations affect the coach and tracks.
Train 18 is a distributed-power train and concept-wise it is very similar to trains running in European countries. Train 18 is a set-train. It is an integrated unit all together.
“The benefit of distributing the components across the coaches is that in case one of them breaks down, the train can still move at a speed of 160 kmph,” said Dash.
The idea of Train 18 was presented by Integrated Coach Factory (ICF) at ‘Rail Vikas Shivir’ held in November 2016 at Surajkund, Haryana. Sudhanshu Mani was the General Manager who conceived this idea.
“In March 2017, the Railway Board approved the proposal and gave us a go-ahead. We wanted to make/complete by the end of 2018 as our lead Mr Mani was due to retire in December 2018,” he added.
As the Chief Design Engineer (Electrical) Dash was responsible for propulsion and passenger amenities which included air-conditioning, illumination, infotainment, passenger information system and the drivers cabin.
