At Innova Systems, we are always amazed at how much influence design and particularly SOLIDWORKS as a design tool has on our lives, so we were interested to read how the design of the new family of Class 800 series trains from Hitachi – which constitute a step change in improved capacity, reliability and reduced environmental impact has been touched by SOLIDWORKS.
The trains which will be manufactured in the state-of-the-art train manufacturing plant in Newton Aycliffe with the creation of 730 jobs in the North East of England will be introduced in 2017/2018
Hitachi Rail has risen to the challenge of accommodating the differing needs of rail passengers, including ‘pedal powered’ commuters and travellers – and SOLIDWORKS has helped play its part in the design challenge through the connected supply chain. You’ll soon be able to relax in comfort on your way to work on a lovely new train, safe in the knowledge your bike is also enjoying the same treatment!
With Interior design by DCA in Warwick involving both Huntingdon based companies TRB Lightweight Structures and Lordgate Engineering – to design lightweight storage unit for bicycles throughout the train, located close to passenger seated areas.
The role of TRB was to evaluate the design and provide a cost effective method of manufacturing the bike storage unit to meet all technical specifications and rail standards, and to comply with PRM (persons of reduced mobility) passenger needs.
TRB has already designed, manufactured, and delivered more than 200 products to Hitachi in Japan for fitting on prototype trains.
With the Class 800/801 trains, Hitachi aims to set the standard for design, quality, and weight savings. Once again the TRB engineers and designers have risen to these challenges, meeting the demands of the programme. Working with partners who provide collaborative solutions to engineering challenges is essential to the smooth progress of these types of projects.
The TRB technical team set about doing a detailed analysis and design validation of individual components, creating bills of materials, production costings and the production planning for completed bike units.
The bike storage units are mostly comprised of TRB manufactured components, including wall panels, the sliding door, sills, ceiling and flooring framework. The racking inside each bike unit is custom built locally by Lordgate Engineering Ltd., a long term TRB partner, which also supplies other parts to Hitachi Rail Europe.
The bike storage project is a good example of the end-to-end service TRB provides its customers, and the company is already collaborating with Hitachi on the next phase of development.
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