Heavy Freight
Solutions for Heavily Loaded
Rail Tracks

Higher availability of heavy
traffic routes

Longer service life

Reduction in life cycle costs

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Increased Profitability,
Placeholder
Text Service Life
longerUnion Pacific heavy freight train in the USA

Higheravailability

provides solutions for reducing>> Getzner
the life cycle costs of heavy freight routes.
Higher loads,
higher demands
Increasing loads on railway networks
accelerate track wear. In the heavy
traffic sector, availability and maintenance are the main factors that
determine the profitability of railway
lines. Getzner offers expert solutionsin this area, providing higher availability and a longer service life.

D

emand for transport capacities
on railway lines is rising rapidly
around the world. In the heavy traffic sector in particular, the demands
placed on the railway infrastructure
and its components are increasing.
Heavy freight trains are those withan axle load of 25 metric tons andabove or a total train weight of atleast 5,000 metric tons. Heavy trafficroutes are found in countries suchas the USA, Canada, Australia,Brazil, Sweden, South Africa or in
fast-growing economies like China.

reduce the availability and service lifeof heavy traffic routes and significantly increase maintenance costs.
Solutions for the heavy traffic
sectorGetzner has developed solutions
specially for this sector to increase
the availability of heavy traffic routes.
The service life of the entire superstructure is prolonged and maintenance costs are cut, thereby reducing
the life cycle costs of a route.

Benefits for customers— Increased availabilityof railway routes— Less maintenance workrequired— More elasticity in thesuperstructure— Protection of the superstructure components,including ballast, rails,sleepers and tension clamps— Improvement in track stability— Reduction in life cycle costs— Longer service life1

Key factors of availability andservice life
The considerably higher loads placedon the superstructure of heavy trafficroutes often cause serious damage toindividual components. For example,
destruction of the ballast and consequently rail, sleeper and tension clamp
breakages. These are all factors that

The Malmbanan (Iron Ore Line) in Sweden

32 Finding Solutions means
Identifying Causes

Identifying cost drivers

On the open track

Heavy traffic route operators are
faced with a number of challenges.
Damage to superstructure components and increased wear reduce theavailability of the route, increase
maintenance requirements and thus
drive up operating costs. Getzner has
the ideal solutions for every sector.

Relieving loads on ballasts
Due to the overloading of railway lines,
destruction of the ballast is common.
This causes damage to the essential
superstructure components. If theballast remains intact, the high qualityof the entire system is preserved andsuperstructure components such asrails and sleepers are subjected toless stress.

Reducing the load on the ballast canbe achieved in two ways: by increasing
the size of the contact area between
the sleeper and ballast, or throughimproved load distribution over the rail(increasing the bending line). Getzner
provides operators of heavy trafficroutes with the ideal solutions
to achieve these improvements.

Load distribution
with under sleeper pads

Load distribution
without under sleeper pads

4Tension clamp fracture

Destroyed ballast

Longerservice
life

Distributing loads
Solutions from Getzner add elasticity
to the superstructure and prevent
individual components from being
overloaded. For example, elastic railpads from Getzner placed under therail base significantly improve the load
distribution. Under sleeper pads canintensify this effect and also increase
the size of the contact area between

the sleeper and ballast. The latter isembedded in the Sylodyn® or Sylomer®
under sleeper pads. Using under ballast mats is another way of providing
the superstructure with a defined levelof elasticity. In addition, they relieve
the interface between the ballast
bed and hard concrete subsurface orbedrock.

Solutions from Getzner for the heavy traffic sector
12Rail pads

1

3

Under sleeper pads

Benefits for customers— Protection of ballast andother components— Defined level of elasticity— Improved load distribution— Entire superstructure is ofa higher quality

Under ballast mats2
3

Find out more about Getzner
rail pads, under sleeper pads
and under ballast mats at:
www.getzner.com/downloads/
brochures

5Fengsha coal line in China

Shenhua coal line in China

Less
maintenanceIn sensitive areas
1. Protecting turnouts

Relieving critical areas

Turnouts always require a high level ofmaintenance. On the one hand, variations in stiffness and the resulting highdynamic forces cause components towear more quickly. On the other, thespecific geometry and additional elements of a turnout lead to asymmetrical loading. The consequence of this isuneven settlement, eventually causing
the entire turnout to “tilt”.

If the turnout is positioned on anextremely hard subsoil, under ballast
mats can be used to add elasticity
to the superstructure. This measurerelieves the critical interface between
the ballast and the structure underneath it, which not only protects theballast, but also prevents settlement
and tilting.

Compensating forvariations in stiffness
Highly elastic rail pads and baseplatepads from Getzner also achieve an
improved load distribution when usedon turnouts. Stiffness variations in thesystem, caused by varying support
point geometries, are also evened out
to a certain extent.

Getzner has developed dedicatedcalculation programs for choosing theideal solution. Scenarios based on thereal circumstances can thus be simulated on the turnout before installation
or renovation to ensure the perfectsolution is found.

Under sleeper pads can be even more
effective in this respect. The increased
size of the contact area between thesleeper and ballast reduces settlement
and helps to prevent the turnout fromtilting.

Benefits for customers— Balancing out differencesin stiffness— Less wear of all turnoutcomponents— Settlement and tilting ofturnouts is prevented6

Hunter Valley coal line in Australia

Transition area on a steel bridge

Individualsolutions

2. Evening out transitions

Using customised products

Transitions are sections of track withvariations in stiffness. The reason
for these differences are the varying
superstructure constructions, forexample when the track passes overa bridge or enters a tunnel. As these
constructions exhibit different levelsof elasticity, the resulting differencesin deflection need to be evened out. If
no measures are taken, the ballast atthese transition points will be damaged, leading to increased wear of theessential superstructure components.

Rail pads, under sleeper pads andunder ballast mats from Getzner areused to level out these variations instiffness. The solution or combination
used in each individual case depends
on the design of the transition.
Here too, experts from Getzner canprovide customised solutions thanks
to their finely tuned product range
and calculation programs.

Benefits for customers— Balancing out differences instiffness— Calculations and simulations
before installation— Customised solutions
Turnout on the Carajás line in
Brazil operated by Vale7

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Rail with corrugation

Tunnel on the Fengsha coal line in China

Lessdamage3. Protecting track curves andwheels

Benefits for customers— Higher quality superstructure— Reduction in rail corrugationand short pitch corrugationon the rail running surface— Longer service life forsuperstructure and wheels— Less noise for residents— Relieving of the interface
between sleeper and ballast— Defined level of elasticity
between ballast and bridge
support structure or tunnel
invertOverloading at curves causes destruction of the ballast, resulting insettlement and damage to individualcomponents. Other damage, such asrail corrugation or short pitch corrugation on the rail running surface, requires further maintenance measures,
including rail grinding and premature
replacement of the rail. In addition,a rail with corrugation or short pitch
corrugation damages the wheels of
locomotives and carriages; once damaged, they cause heavier loading on
the rest of the track network.
Less rail corrugation and short
pitch corrugation
Rail pads from Getzner increase theelasticity below the rail and help toprevent rail corrugation and short
pitch corrugation on the rail runningsurface. Thanks to the elasticity, therail has a certain amount of play andthe ability to “move”. Under sleeper
pads ensure a high-quality superstructure and play a significant role inhelping to counter rail corrugation andshort pitch corrugation. Using a combination of complementary rail pads andunder sleeper pads is an effective wayof preventing damage of this type.

8

4. Relieving bridges and tunnels
Bridges and tunnels are very rigid
sections of the track. This is mainly
due to the structure of the subsoil
in these areas. The ballast and othersuperstructure components are often
destroyed. In addition, compaction of
the subsoil close to these structures
is a problem; insufficient compaction
leads to increased settlement in thetransition area.
More elasticity in thesuperstructure
Rail pads modify the stiffness to acertain degree. Under sleeper pads
are a more effective measure and add
more elasticity to the superstructure.
Furthermore, they increase the sizeof the contact area between sleeper
and ballast and reduce settlement in
the transition areas. Under ballast
mats provide the system with a large
amount of elasticity and relieve thecritical interface between the ballast
and bridge support structure ortunnel invert.

3 Solutions from Expertsthat Pay Off

Proven over more than
40 years
The exceptional properties ofSylomer® and Sylodyn® materials
and their tried-and-tested use invarious system components speak
for themselves. These materials fromGetzner have been used in countless
projects worldwide for over 40 years.

A

Effective solutions
Getzner provides durable solutions
that guarantee significantly higher
route availability — in many cases
twice as high — thanks to lower
maintenance requirements. Thismeans fewer closure periods for
operators of heavy traffic routes.
Overloading of components (destruc-tion of the ballast, sleeper and rail
breakages, etc.) and wear are significantly reduced and the service life ofrailway routes is increased. This saves
time and money.
Getzner also provides its customers
with comprehensive project support,
from the planning stage right throughto installation.

BC

A MRS Logistica S.A. heavy freighttrain in Brazil
B Installation of under ballast mats on
a section of Union Pacific track inthe USA
C Padded sleepers for the Malmbanan(Iron Ore Line) in Sweden
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4 Experience, Expertiseand many satisfied
Customers
Padded sleepers for the Fengsha line

International successGetzner has a wealth of experienceworking on heavy traffic routes andcan boast the required expertise,
which is evidenced by internationalreferences and projects implemented
around the world.
MRS Logistica S.A., Brazil
A section of the heavy traffic routein Ferrovia do Aço in Brazil operatedby MRS Logistica S.A. has been fittedwith Getzner rail pads. The axle loadof the trains on the route exceeds 33
metric tons. Due to the considerable
stress on the line, rail breakages wereoccurring more and more frequently,
which resulted in significant maintenance requirements and long closureperiods. For this reason, the customer
installed Sylodyn® rail pads on steel
and timber sleepers on a definedtest section. The result: not a single
rail breakage on the test track after
subjecting it to a load of 400 million
metric tons over a three-year period.
Some of the rail pads were removed
to check their condition. Both a visualinspection and the results of elastic
property measurements in the laboratory demonstrated that the highstrength Sylodyn® rail pads showedno signs of wear whatsoever.
Malmbanan, Sweden
In northern Sweden, Getzner has
equipped over 17,000 sleepers andturnouts with under sleeper pads on
the “Malmbanan” (Iron Ore Line). The
client, Trafikverket, renovated thesection between Gällivare andKoskuskulle. To increase the availability of the route, the operator
decided to install under sleeper pads.
Meanwhile, under sleeper pads fromGetzner were installed on sections of
the Trafikverket heavy traffic route.
Union Pacific, USAAmerican rail operator Union PacificCorporation has installed Getzner
under ballast mats on a bridge on aheavy traffic route in Nebraska. Theaxle load of the trains on the route
exceeds 36 metric tons and the su-More references and Case
Studies from Getzner for theheavy traffic sector can be
downloaded from:www.getzner.com/downloads

MRS Logistica S.A. route section

10

Installation of padded sleepers on theMalmbanan route

perstructure is subjected to a load of
approximately 250 million metric tons
each year. Before the installation, ballast wear occurred extremely quickly,
causing sleeper breakages and thus ahigh level of maintenance work.
Since the under ballast mats wereinstalled, there has been practicallyno wear to the ballast and therefore
no sleeper breakages. After five years
and an operating load in excess of one
billion metric tons, there has also been
no wear of the under ballast mats.
No additional maintenance work has
been required during this period, so
the heavy traffic route has remained
continuously available.

Union Pacific heavy freight train
in Nebraska

Fengsha line, China
The Chinese state railway operates theFengsha line in the north of the country — a heavy traffic route along whichmainly coal is transported. The axleload of the trains on this route exceeds
25 metric tons. Damage to sleepers
and other components, as well as destruction of the ballast, are the consequences of this high level of loading.
To improve the quality of the line andreduce the maintenance requirement,
the operator installed Getzner undersleeper pads on a defined test section.
After being in the track for a year,
some of the sleepers were removed
for inspection. Both the under sleeper

pads and the ballast beneath themwere found to be in excellent condition. The measurements performed on
the track also demonstrated a significant improvement in the quality of thistest section.

Page 3: 1 © David Gubler, bahnbilder.ch, Page 8: 2 © ÖBB

Heavy traffic route references (extract):
Rail pads

Under sleeper pads

Under ballast mats— Brazil, Ferrovia do Aço;
MRS Logistica S.A.
— Colombia, Santa Marta;
Ferrocarriles del Norte de Colombia
S.A. (FENOCO)— USA, Pueblo; Transportation
Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI)— USA, Oshkosh; Union Pacific (UP)— USA, Pendelton; Union Pacific (UP)— Mexico, DF; Ferrocarril y Terminal
del Valle de México S.A. de C.V.
(Ferrovalle)— Sweden, Gällivare – Koskuskulle;
Malmbanan— Norway, Narvik; Ofotbanen— China, Fengtai - Shacheng; Fengsha
line of the Beijing Railway Bureau— USA, Pueblo; Transportation
Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI)— USA, Oshkosh; Union Pacific (UP)— USA, Pendelton; Union Pacific (UP)— Brazil, Estrada de Ferro
Carajás (EFC); Vale S.A.

— USA, Oshkosh; Union Pacific (UP)— USA, Pueblo; Transportation
Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI)— Mexico, Monterrey; KCS deMéxico (KCSM)— Canada, Oakville; Canadian
National (CN)— Canada, Moncton; Canadian
National (CN)11

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