R&D Background
Railway turnouts are one of the three key weak points in rail systems, serving as critical part that enables trains to switch from one track to another. They feature complex structures with multiple moving components, making them vulnerable to progressive wear and deformation under sustained cyclic loading.
As a key component of the railway turnout switch‑point mechanism, the slide baseplate has stress‑concentration issues, making the part more vulnerable to impact loading and material fatigue. Therefore, they often suffer from common defects including weld failure, fracture, foreign‑object jamming and corrosion. The welded slide baseplate, when operated under severe service conditions, has an average service life spanning merely 0.2 to 0.5 years. Should component failure occur, it may bring about adverse events including train derailment and operational delays, thereby jeopardizing rail operational safety. To address these issues, we have independently developed the lubrication‑free slide baseplate, they feature lubrication‑free operation, extended service life and consistent performance, which substantially improves key properties including strength, toughness, protection rating and other critical properties.
Common Defects of Traditional Welded Slide Baseplates
Lubrication-free Slide Baseplate for Railway Turnout
Our lubrication-free slide baseplate is manufactured from high‑strength composite material via one‑piece integral casting. A high‑strength wear‑and‑corrosion‑resistant cladding layer is fused onto its working surface, delivering outstanding anti‑wear and anti‑corrosion performance. It eliminates the need for daily oil maintenance, prolongs service life, enhances operational safety and cuts maintenance costs. Tailored solutions can be supplied for your specific project needs, feel free to contact us.
Key Benefits of Lubrication‑Free Slide Baseplate for Railway Turnouts
1. Resistance to weld failure and fracture
Our lubrication-free slide baseplate is fabricated with 20SiMn cast‑steel base stock via precision casting, it features a refined metallurgical structure, uniformly‑distributed residual stress and enhanced overall structural strength to withstand harsh railway turnout operating conditions. It substantially mitigates defects such as fracture of the base plate and pressure tongue. Meanwhile, its single‑piece cast construction eliminates any risk of weld failure.
2. Reduced Risk of Switch‑Point Jamming
Our lubrication‑free slide baseplate adopts the composite hardening process, treating only the moving zone of the switch point. It brings significant improvement in base‑plate surface hardness whilst preserving the inherent toughness of the pressure‑tongue segment. It helps restrict the embedding of iron chips and other foreign debris and reduce the occurrence of switch‑point jamming.
3. Cost savings and improved operational efficiency
Our lubrication‑free slide baseplate has excellent mechanical properties. It reduces slide‑baseplate‑related defects; it mitigates railway operation safety hazards; it extends replacement intervals for the slide baseplate; it lessens oiling requirements due to rust‑resistant composite‑hardened areas, delivering overall cost savings and improved operational efficiency.
4. Enhanced Scratch‑resistance and rust‑resistance
The base‑plate surface is made of high‑hardness, wear‑resistant and rust‑resistant alloy. It helps stop debris and iron chips from embedding to create surface scratches and trigger switch‑point jamming; it delivers reliable rust‑resistance performance; it lowers switching resistance; it reduces oiling requirements for field‑site staff, bringing overall cost savings and improved operational efficiency.
5. Superior Overall Strength
Compared with one‑piece‑cast slide baseplates available on the market, our products adopt precision casting; they feature denser metallographic structure; they have lower internal stress; they provide superior geometric accuracy; better mechanical properties; higher impact resistance and a more competitive price.
6. Optimized Staged‑Hardening Performance
Our lubrication‑free slide baseplate applies no hardening treatment on the pressure‑tongue segment and adopts high‑hardness wear‑resistant alloy for other table‑surface areas; it maintains the inherent toughness of the pressure‑tongue; it enhances fracture resistance; it provides superior wear‑resistance performance.
7. Available Custom‑Engineered Solutions
We maintain partnerships with a number of design institutes. We are able to develop design drawings for lubrication‑free slide baseplates based on site‑specific conditions, catering to customers’ customized requirements.
8. True Lubrication-Free Operation
The table surface of our lubrication‑free slide baseplate is fabricated from wear‑resistant stainless alloy, which is rust‑proof and scratch‑resistant, less prone to corrosion and surface scratches. its coefficient of friction remains stable over long‑term service; frequent greasing is not required. It is well suited for site conditions with high labor costs: the lubrication‑free design reduces O&M labor costs; For harsh field environments, it also prevents rubber tie plates from being damaged due to chemical reaction with manually‑applied grease.
9. Extended Service and Fatigue Life
Our lubrication‑free slide baseplate adopts one‑piece casting to eliminate weld seams; precision casting removes stress concentration; it features high strength and high toughness; hence it achieves extended fatigue life.
Performance Comparison Between Our lubrication-free slide baseplate and Conventional Slide‑Plate
1.Experimental Data Comparison
| Test Item | Conventional Slide‑Plate | Integrally‑Cast Slide‑Plate |
|---|---|---|
| Tensile Strength | 370 MPa | 510 MPa |
| Yield Strength | 235 MPa | 295 MPa |
| Impact Toughness | 27 J | 39 J |
| Surface Hardness | 156 HBW | 350 HBW |
| 96‑hour Salt Spray Test for Working Surface | Extensive Rusting | Protection Grade Level 9 |
2.Field Application Data Comparison
| Test Item | Conventional Slide‑Plate | Integrally‑Cast Slide‑Plate |
|---|---|---|
| Tensile Strength | 375 MPa | 540 MPa |
| Yield Strength | 224 MPa | 310 MPa |
| Impact Toughness | 28 J | 56 J |
| Surface Hardness | 148 HBW | 510 HBW |
| 96‑hour Salt Spray Test for Working Surface | Extensive Rusting | Protection Grade Level 9 |
After over two years of technical evaluation and repeated testing, combined with field results from on‑track application, data from the above tables demonstrates that our integrally‑cast slide‑plate achieves stable overall performance, delivers superior mechanical strength, and exhibits excellent toughness and corrosion‑protection rating, yielding better operational performance, longer service life, and improved track‑safety performance. It has been successfully deployed in Guangzhou Metro, Beijing MTR Corporation and Qingdao Metro, etc.
Our Lubrication‑Free Slide Baseplate for Railway Turnouts
Why Choose Our Lubrication-free Slide Baseplate
Founded in 2015, Henan Tiechuang Railway Equipment Co., Ltd. is a professional manufacturer of railway equipment. Covering a plant area of over 80 mu, we have experienced technical team, including 31 professional technicians and 8 staff with intermediate and senior professional titles. We own professional technical center, quality‑inspection center, and independent R&D capabilities.
We have specialized workshops for turnout components, track fittings and machine maintenance. Production facilities include 3 semi‑automatic tie‑plate production lines, 4 sets of 160‑ton punching machines, 5 universal milling machines, 2 C630 lathes, 1 heating furnace and 2 overhead cranes. Our annual output capacity reaches 80,000 tie plates and 300,000 gauge blocks, together with R&D and custom processing services for turnout spare parts.
With years‑long dedication to railway product manufacturing, we keep upgrading our product portfolio including integrally‑cast slide‑plates, insulated gauge tie rods, frozen joint fishplates, elastic rail braces and turnout curve rail braces. Adopting state‑of‑the‑art production technologies, our products address key industry pain points and have won wide‑spread market recognition and customer trust.
Successful Project Cases of Our Lubrication-free Slide Baseplate
Our integrally‑cast cladding‑composite slide‑plates feature lubrication‑free operation, extended service life and outstanding overall performance. They drastically minimize on‑site greasing workload for track‑side maintenance. These products have completed multi‑year field application validation with numerous Chinese metro operators, as well as China Railway Guangzhou Group, China Railway Urumqi Group and China Railway Lanzhou Group. Proven with favorable real‑world test outcomes, our integrally‑cast cladding‑composite slide‑plates are now in large‑scale practical operation across these rail networks.
Our Lubrication-free Slide Baseplate Patents
Our lubrication‑free slide baseplates for railway turnouts are supported by multiple in‑house utility‑model patents. These proprietary innovations lay a solid technical foundation for the product’s key benefits. They offer reliable lubrication‑free operation, enhanced wear resistance, superior corrosion resistance and extended service life. For railway operators, these strengths drastically cut repetitive railway turnout maintenance work and bring down long‑term operational costs.
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