Train 18 series, part 17...more about design and manufacture

I have been dabbling a lot in soft issues and initiatives, mainly to do with the human resources. Well, that is indeed the most important aspect for any organization wishing and willing to catapult itself from one rung to the next higher one. But for the benefit of my readers, let me dwell today a bit more in the designs and manufacturing issues of train 18.

We were nearing the end of the first half of 2018 and, the finer detailing of last minute design modifications, development of sub-assemblies & their endurance testing and manufacturing of shells at ICF were on at maddening speed. In respect of interdependent or interrelated works. Each member of the team wanted the other to do his part quickly and the threatening, cajoling and fulmination in the name of Train 18 were the order of the day. One day a Stores officer confided in me that officers used to try to goad him to faster action in name of the GM earlier; now all levels of officers come and express their urgency in the name of Train 18. Mission Train 18 was the CEO of ICF now because its writ ran more than the GM.

At this point in time, we had adequate design models ready for computer-aided verifications & simulations and a comparison with an equivalent conventional train could be presented more scientifically. We had clearly and steadfastly worked on the principle of ‘the best is the enemy of the good’ and ignored such features as design upgradable to 220 km/h test (why waste time and energy on something which would not have a test on, let alone run on?), tilting coach concept (benefits did not outweigh the effort and cost involved), articulated shared bogies/Jacobian concept (difficult in the axle load limitations we had to stick to) and Aluminium body (country not ready for design, tooling, sourcing and manufacturing yet, ICF had already pursued it very purposefully through a parallel project). Incidentally, I remember making a presentation in Board with some comparative data when I was challenged aggressively, with many declaring the concept quixotic; I merely said, “the proof of the pudding”! So please wait for some months!” The performance data in this table is very close to the results actually obtained in tests and trials since November 18 after turnout of the prototype.

Loco hauled Train (20 unit train with 2 locos, 2 power cars &16 AC coaches)	16 coach train set
Seating: Ex Class (56)  Eco/CC (78) Total capacity: 1204	Seating: Ex Class (52)  Eco/CC (78)** **2  DTCs with 44 seats, so the total capacity would be 1128 but the area for Divyang passengers far more spacious & comfortable
Reversal requirements at terminals	No reversal requirement at terminals
Passage from one coach to another through a rickety vestibule	Through passage from one cab to another, all 16 coaches through a wide sealed gangway
Sluggish acceleration & deceleration – 0.2-0.3 m/s2/  Time to reach 130 km/h – 279 sec.	Quick acceleration & deceleration– 0.8-1.0 m/s2  Time to reach 130 km/h – 50 sec.
poor utilization of platform on-board space	Full utilization of on-board and platform space
Concentrated weight in locomotive. Higher coupler forces	Uniform weight distribution. Lower coupler forces
No redundancy	Good redundancy
Energy efficiency: marginal	Energy efficiency: efficient, due to aerodynamic nose, fairings between coaches, overall lighter weight and energy efficient distributed equipment
Interior aesthetics: more of the same	Interior aesthetics: superior & novel
Exterior aesthetics: more of the same	Exterior aesthetics: superior & novel
Conventional bio-toilets	Superior bio-vacuum toilets
No PIS	GPS based conspicuous PIS

The broad technical specification of the train would be as under:

·                     160 km/h speed; test speed- 180 km/h

·                     Maximum design axle load – 17 T (Actual–16.5 T)

·                     Starting acceleration – 0.8 m/sec²

·                     Deceleration – 1 m/sec²

·                     50 % powering

·                     4-Car basic unit. One Pantograph per each BU.

·                     Wheel-mounted brake disc

·                     All traction equipment under-slung

The idea would be that on a 160 km/h section, the average speed should be in the region of 120 km/h, which would compare favourably with the following three fastest trains on IR:

Train	Route	Distance (Km)	Time (Minutes)	Max Speed (Km/h)	Avg. Speed (Km/h)
Gatimaan	Delhi-Gwalior	303	186	160	111
Shatabdi	Delhi-Bhopal	707	510	150	100
Rajdhani	Delhi- Mumbai	1,384	942	140	88

We had nominated a full bay with two lines & a wide middle pathway and cleared if of everything to accommodate only Train 18 shells. A large board boldly declared it as the Train 18 bay. It was obviously largely vacant in the beginning but as the assembled shells starting coming to shape, it was an exciting sight to behold. It was professionally befitting too and if you like it to be more poetical, just the rightfully divine place for parturition for the latest child of ICF. I found my frequent visits to meet the smiling members of team there as the high point of my typical day at ICF.

Let me go into some aspects of design once again. One important aspect of the design work was the selection and incorporation of a coupler, given that a train set coaches are usually permanently coupled; it was important that the train be totally free of jerks in spite of the faster rates of acceleration and deceleration. We were conscious of the fact that the couplers on LHB coaches had led to a great deal of criticism due to awful levels of jerks in traction and braking.

The story of Tightlock type couplers of LHB coaches is an interesting one showing clear bankruptcy in decision-making by a series of IR’s leadership. I bring it here as I am sure most of the readers would have suffered jerks while travelling in LHB coaches. We knew the problem, we were bombarded by complaints, we were criticized the every other day and the solution was available, ready to adopt, but we wasted time and energy in a series of modifications in the existing design. There was no one to take a tough call to change the design and go for the correct coupler, even given that it was being offered by only one vendor at an exorbitant price. A way had to be found with some firmness but the status quo continued ad nauseam. It was eventually adopted but after years of dithering and procrastination, often goaded and misguided to some other sub-optimal option by the existing vendors. Someone has so aptly once said, “Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status.”

Given this background, there was extensive deliberations at ICF and eventually a rigid CBC draft gear coupler with semi-permanent head, suitable even for much longer trains in future, was developed in association with the local plant of a multi-national company well-established  in the field.

Many options were under consideration for the interiors of the train just as you would have when you did the interior of an office or a home. I was always a bit wary of meeting the main interior consultants, particularly a European lady, who in one of the initial meetings had declared that I had no sense of a train interior. For examples, the gradual change of the hue and shade in the Eco class seats; I found it rather bizarre but she had the last word and you would find it in the train today. After the train was built, I checked with the senior most lady officer of ICF, the Principal Financial Advisor, Smt. Usha Venugopal and she agreed with me. The milk, however, was spilt. Another aspect: the slide instead of recline arrangement on seats. We all felt that it should have afforded more recline comfort but apparently the consultant insisted on this European design; to that extent she was right as I also recalled the seats in trains to of this type. I hope the decision would come for review and ICF would decide afresh based on feedback of passengers. Nevertheless, I attended many meetings and watched the progress with interest, even as I was barred from too much interference. The lady would present many models and I would find some need for change in all of them; she would explain patiently but her mind’s eye would say, like the king in Henry V, “your mind is not worth sun burning’’ or like Menenius in Coriolanus, “More of your conversation would infect my brain”. Involved I might have been but it was always the acumen of Sri. Srinivas, the Chief Design Engineer/M, leader of men and women alike, to keep good humour and even ensure good progress.

The broad framework of the interiors looked something like this on the drawing board:

The idea of diffused lighting looked novel for an IR train. The models of full and diffused lighting, as seen on the monitor, were pretty appealing:

Things were not looking as bad they would after passage of some months. There were days of excitement and smug satisfaction and there were days of grave disappointments as finishing touches to designs were in hand, manufacture of shell was in full swing, supply of newly developed sub-assemblies was in various stages and a whole team of ICF was busy conducting tests at manufacturers’ premises. Sri Dilip, the DyCME/Deign would present a redone PERT chart practically every week. Some laggards were fast and some cheetahs were slow. But we had no idea that these colourful charts were going to be just that: colourful charts with all the truth hidden behind colours. The reality would be not so comfortable. In the period Feb-May 2018, all the meetings except with some suppliers who were very slow were mostly decision-oriented with a lot of tea and samosas, not much fireworks and we thought Sri Dilip was rocking. Incidentally, this officer was an enigma. Let loose on the dance floor, he would gyrate as if Lord Shiva had himself descended upon him; otherwise he would be a silent bashful type. The progress looked like this:

Sri Dilip was, nevertheless, a silent and efficient officer although occasionally he would come close to earning jalebis in my room. Sri Srinivas would always defend him very strongly. He would proceed to placate anyone with concerns and apprehensions by presenting this model of the train; this is how the train is going to look like!

Everyone was eager and anxious to see if the train would actually look something like this model. I was, too, but more like the poet Rahi,

Kar na der aur hashr barpa karne mein

Miri nazar  tire  deedar  ko  tarasati hai*

(*Bring the judgement day soon, I am dying to get a peek at you)

It was only in June that we realized that all was not well. Furnishing in the first shell was far from starting and certain major deliveries of propulsion and allied equipment were likely to arrive only In August. Start of commissioning in July was clearly impossible. Shakespeare, sir, what price Mr. Ford’s wisecrack? “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late”, forsooth! Looked like we were not a minute but several months too late.

(to be continued...)