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These are next Vectrons in the brand colours of DB Cargo Polska. Each of the new vehicles has been labelled for this special occasion with livery that the combines elements of the European Year of Railways, ecology and paintings by Jarosław Jaśnikowski.

The overall level of customer satisfaction with DB Cargo Polska's services has remained consistently high, above 4 points on a 5-point scale, for the past nine years. In this year's survey, the index reached 4.5 points, which is the second best result in the history of this survey.

Thirteen good practices of DB Cargo Polska have been published in this year's Report on Responsible Business in Poland. For the sixth time, the Responsible Business Forum points at DB Cargo Poland's activities in the area of sustainable development.

DB Cargo Polska, leading rail logistics operator, has purchased four modern Vectron multi-system locomotives as well as seventy pieces 80' and twenty one 90' container flat cars. 

Under the contract concluded with Siemens Mobility, the existing DB Cargo Polska’s fleet, which already consists of 23 Vectron locomotives, will be extended with four multi-system locomotives of the same series. The new locomotives will be delivered later this year. MS Vectron locomotives are ones of the most modern machines on the market. They are equipped with the ETCS system compliant with the current specifications, and the power of 6.4 MW allows them to achieve maximum speed of 160 km/h. The locomotives will be homologated for Poland and for the Czech Republic.

Under the contract with Tatravagónka a.s., 70 pieces of 80' container flat cars and 21 pieces of 90' cars will be delivered by the end of the year. The wagons will be approved for operation on the domestic and European markets. They will be suitable for operation in international transport and will fully meet the requirements of railway interoperability according to TSI.

“This investment confirms that DB Cargo Poland is a reliable and stable player on the market. Despite the difficult economic situation caused by the pandemic, we have been consistently pursuing our goals and delivering the high-quality logistics services our customers expect us to,” says Marek Staszek, CEO of DB Cargo Polska. “I am glad that we are able to carry out this investment in the European Year of Rail, the time when all of Europe points to rail as the future of safe, stable and green transport” - he adds.

The purchase of the locomotives and wagons is co-financed from the EU funds, in cooperation with the Centre for EU Transport Projects (CUPT), as part of the project “Improving intermodal transport in Poland by connecting container terminals on the Baltic coast and distribution terminals in southern Poland with the transport axis connecting Western Europe with the CIS countries and China”. The purpose of the project is to create conditions for launching fixed rail intermodal connections and improving the quality of services in this area.

“This year we want to focus on developing services of intermodal transport. Thanks to the purchased fleet we will be able to offer our customers new logistic solutions in this area” - says Paweł Pucek, Member of the Management Board for Sales – “We want to participate in handling transport streams on the North-South axis, from the Polish ports on the Baltic Sea to the southern border and further to the ports located on the Adriatic Sea” - he adds.

A state-of-the-art wheelset refurbishment pipeline was constructed in the Rybnik’s rolling stock production and maintenance plant. The line consists of 24 workstations arranged along three independent repair lines. The main line is the place to carry out P4 and P5 repairs according to Polish DSU (Maintenance System Documentation) or IS1 and IS2 according to VPI system. Axle boxes (IS LU) are repaired on the second line while the third line is where IS0 repairs and EVIC inspections are performed. The whole line is interconnected with technological tracks with turntables, allowing the autonomous battery trucks to shunt the wheelsets between the working stands.

If freight railway wants to use the historic opportunity brought by the Green Deal policy, it must make a radical technological  leap in every area of its activity. And this is what we are witnessing today in Rybnik. Our Rybnik’s facility has just become one of the most advanced places in Poland for the production and maintenance of rolling stock – says Marek Staszek, CEO of DB Cargo Polska. – It is also beneficial for the region, the citizens and the natural environment as well. Modern managerial thought and innovative technology, new jobs and highest safety standards are our contribution into the development of the local market – he adds.

The line has been equipped with innovative technologies from Polish and German manufacturers. Turntables with programmable rotation speed and direction from the Polish company HAK, a portal lathe for wheelset processing UFD140N from Rafamet, the latest generation high-pressure paint stripping station from Purima, equipped with KUKA robot, and a fully automated ultrasonic testing station from the German company BIP Technology.

“The technology used on the pipeline, combined with the systems of stream work and the electronic supervision, guarantees high quality of repairs, which will contribute to improved safety on both, Polish and European tracks,” says Robert Nowakowski, Member of the Management Board for Production at DB Cargo Polska. “This means fewer failures or accidents on the railway network caused by faulty running system of wagons, and consequently smooth, uninterrupted train traffic," he adds.

The wheelset refurbishment process is fully supported by IT solutions. A tailored system verifies the history of a wheelset before and during repair. It additionally monitors and supports the operator during repair operations and data entry into the wheelset's electronic measurement card. All operations are reflected in the system, which allows for further optimisation of the work and tracking the wheelset’s history.

Following the construction of the innovative m2 wagon, the wheelsets refurbishment pipeline is another step, which expands our product portfolio in the area of rolling stock production and maintenance. It is an innovative, automated, highly technologically advanced space, which allows for wheelset maintenance to the highest world standard – of up to 10,000 wheelsets a year – says Michał Batko, Director of Asset Management, Manufacturing and Maintenance at DB Cargo Polska.

DB Cargo Polska and PKP Energetyka signed a letter of intent expressing willingness to cooperate in the Green Railway Programme, the aim of which is to develop principles of supplying railway transports of DB Cargo Polska with traction energy coming from renewable energy sources (RES) in 100% within 3 years. As a result, DB Cargo Polska will be able to introduce ecological freight transport services into the Polish market.

Ten-year contract for one of Germany's largest sites in the steel industry • Europe's most state-of-the-art facility to be built by summer 2021.