Compacting ballast with traditional wacker plates can be a frustrating process. Under or over compact and the job can involve considerable overrun with ground having to be recompacted until the right density of ballast is achieved. Torrent Trackside’s triple wackers have a large, time saving working width of 3m and are fitted with an intelligent monitoring system which continually measures the density of the ballast and then gives a clear visual signal when it is achieved. The diesel power plant has also been refined to lower emissions and is water cooled to prevent overheating and reduce noise.
The machines are remote controlled, thus considerably reducing operator fatigue, completely eliminating vibration and keeping the operator away from dust and particulates. The infrared remote control is easy to use and is powered by a rechargeable battery. The remote control ensures operator safety by enforcing a 2m exclusion zone around the machine when it is in use, any operator moving within the exclusion zone when holding the remote control will result in the machine shutting down. The same will happen if the operator moves over 20m away from the machine. The remote control also means the machine is much safer when compacting on slopes and uneven ground.
The 3m wide compaction zone means a very wide area can be compacted with only one pass and around 4,200 square metres can be compacted in one hour.
The machine travels forward at 24m per minute. It is fitted with a large fuel tank that is easily enough for a full 8 hour day. This means time and effort refuelling is avoided during the workday. The watercooled engine provides reliable cooling even at high external temperatures. This also contributes to significantly lower noise pollution when compared to air cooled machines.
These triple wackers are just part of a continuous investment Torrent Trackside is making in innovative, easy to use and low emission equipment which clearly demonstrates they are the ‘go-to’ company for customers wanting cost saving, cutting edge technological solutions to portable rail maintenance and OLE projects.
