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The eBearing News
May 10, 2006
SKF Wins Pendolino Bearing Contract
copyright © 2006 eBearing Inc.
SKF AB (Sweden) said it has won a significant axlebox bearing order from Alstom Holdings (France)
to fit 26 the latest fourth-generation pendolino trains.
Pendolino ("pendulum") is the nickname given Fiat's first generation tilting trains in 1967, and
has stuck since then.
Pendolino, by definition, is a high-speed tilting train originally developed by Fiat Ferroviaria, which was later
taken over by Alstom. Pendolino trains, in use through several European countries, can reach speeds exceeding
220 km/h on standard or slightly-modified rail systems. The electrohydraulic tilting mechanism leans
into corners, allowing passengers to not be thrown around by centrifugal force through
curves built primarily for standard low-speed service and not banked sufficiently for traditional
high-speed use.
Maximum lean angle is approximately 8 degrees; cabins are pressurized to eliminate
uncomfortable pressure changes when the trains pass at high speed or enter/exit tunnels at high speed.
Pendolino designs account for more than 75% of all high-speed trains in service today, and Alstom
has supplied 421 of those trains with its active tilting technology.
SKF said it will build bearings for at least 1,500 axleboxes for the 26 train sets.
Of the 26 sets being built by Alstom, 14 are designated for use by Cisalpino between
Italy and Germany via Switzerland. The other
12 are set for the Italian railway system's high-speed lines operated by Tranitalia.
Each train set consists of seven cars, four driven ("motors") and three not ("trailers").
They seat up to 430 passengers and offer amenities such as Wi-fi, television, and video information
touch screens at each seat.
The fourth generation trains are designed by Italdesign-Guigiaro and are set to be in service
toward the end of 2006 or early 2007.
SKF said it will manufacture the bearings in Italy, while the axleboxes themselves will be
manufactured in France.
The key breakthrough for the new trains is that they can run on the networks of other European
Union countries.
To accomplish that multi-network capability, the bearing units incorporate SKF-developed sensors
which monitor not only bearing condition but also wheel speed and train position. The signals
are used by the new European standard ETCS (European Train Control System).
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- by Bruce A. Carr
from individual research,
tips and commercial sources.
Copyrighted material; unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
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Entire contents Copyright © 1999-2010, eBearing Inc. All rights reserved.
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