MLNIT to design multipurpose rail wagons

Allahabad, July 12 (UNI) After bagging the Bihar Bridge Corporation project for testing the design of 186 bridges, the Moti Lal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MLNIT) will now play a significant role in designing rail wagons and electronic signal systems.

The institute is all set to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading rail wagon manufacturing company Besco at Kolkata on July 15.

Besco, a leading company in the field of manufacturing rail wagons and involved in various trans-national joint ventures, has sought help of the institute in designing indigenous rail wagons with optimum utilisation, said MLNIT director Prof Arun Samaddar last evening.

Prof Samaddar apprised that the technical education giant IIT Kharagpur would also be a party to the MoU.

Initially, the MLNIT would provide a week long in house training to the Besco engineers and thereafter, combined research would be conducted for the development of multipurpose rail wagons.

Presently, the traditional rail wagons are product customised, which constrains its broader utilisation. However, in the project, multitasking wagons would be designed, which could be used for various commodities of different nature and configuration, Prof Samaddar said.

''The designing of new wagons would also take care of its to and fro utilisation as customised rail wagons, after off-loading, often return empty as their architecture do not cater need of the commodity available for loading. The proposed wagons would be free of such shortcomings and infirmities and would be capable of adjusting itself as per the need of the loaded commodities particularly that of liquid and gaseous nature,'' he added.

The focal point of the wagon designing would be its mechanical upgradation, including development of existing three axle shaft wagons to a two-exle shaft wagons, Prof Samaddar said.

The MLNIT would also be working on the development of high technological electronic signal system for the wagons.

This system would be designed for facilitating automatic detection of problems and defects in wagons that would not only reduce the transition loss cost but also ensure the safety of the loaded commodities and products.

The project would be jointly carried out by electronics, applied mechanism and mechanical engineering department of the institute.

Applied mechanics department would be dealing with composition of the alloy to be used in manufacturing, while electronic department would be taking care of designing circuit of the proposed electronic system and the rest of the research would be handled by mechanical engineering department, Prof Samaddar said.

The first contingent of the Besco officials and engineers scheduled to be trained by the MLNIT are expected to arrve in the city in last week of this month.

UNI