At the beginning of 2018, Harsco Rail Europe ordered a total of 36 Caterpillar diesel engines for multi-purpose vehicles (MPV) from Zeppelin Power Systems. These will be used in carrying wagons for Swiss Federal Railways trolley system vehicles, and Zeppelin Power Systems will deliver the first batch of engines in autumn 2018.

The 36 self-driving vehicles include 28 carrying wagons for combined personnel and workshop modules containing a crane/platform, as well as eight vehicles with cable-dispensing structures for installing overhead lines. For the vehicles, Zeppelin Power Systems will deliver Caterpillar C9.3 series engines with wall-flow diesel particulate filter systems and a nominal output of 261 kW. These conform to EU emissions class IIIB and will be customized to suit the specific requirements of Harsco Rail.

The Caterpillar engines are standard industrial engines, modified by Zeppelin Power Systems to enable underfloor installation: “The main challenge with this order is making the necessary technical adjustments to the engines,” explains Thorsten Meyer, Sales Manager for rail vehicle diesel engines at Zeppelin Power Systems. “Our ability to implement these modifications for installation under the frame is thanks in particular to our engineering team, led by Martin Elias and Ingo Behrens.”

This is the first time Zeppelin Power Systems and Harsco Rail have worked on a joint project. “We decided to place this order with Zeppelin Power Systems because the company has already completed a number of highly successful projects in the rail construction maintenance vehicles sector,” explains Peter Hopf, Head of Purchasing at Harsco Rail Europe.