Ural Locomotives has sent the first dual-system Finist EMU train for acceptance and certification tests expected to be performed until March 2025.
The dual-system train will undergo a full cycle of traction-energy, dynamic-strength tests on the experimental ring of the Research Institute of Railway Transport (VNIIZhT), in Shcherbinka oblast, Moscow. Also, at the high-speed testing at VNIIZhT in Belorechensk, Krasnodar oblast, the compliance of the train’s impact on the track with technical requirements and safety standards will be checked. Particular attention will be paid to the operation of the traction equipment when switching the power supply of the contact network from direct to alternating current and vice versa. Sanitary and chemical tests of the train will be carried out at the Russian Research Institute of Transport Hygiene (VNIIZhG, Moscow).
“We constantly analyse the needs of our customers and try to respond to their requests as quickly as possible. For example, in the Republic of Bashkortostan [between the Volga River and the Ural Mountains], one of the most popular tourist routes in the foothills of the Ural Mountains is currently using the ES104 series Finist DC electric trains. At the same time, the train runs using diesel locomotive on the part of the route and alternates with electric traction on other sections. The desing of the dual-system ES105 will optimise the schedule of such trains, improve the comfort of passengers, and will also lead to resource savings on such routes electrified with different types of current,” the Director General of the Ural Locomotives plant, Oleg Spai, said.
The new Finist EMU train for suburban services is equipped with a domestic traction system and auxiliary equipment for transporting passengers on railways electrified with both direct and alternating current. The use of such trains will minimise the time it takes to switch from one type of current to another and increase the number of routes.
The five-car train has a capacity of 386 seats equipped with USB ports for charging gadgets and offers four special places designed for passengers with disabilities which also benefit from and lifts. The trains also provide bicycle racks with places for transporting skis and snowboards.
Each railcar is equipped with a microclimate and air disinfection system. The new ES105 electric train has changed side and frontal displays, and video screens are installed in the cabin. The train is equipped with a passenger counting system, and the brightness and temperature of the lighting can be adjusted in the cabin.
Finist EMU train of the ES105 series is an improved version of Lastochka trains and is equipped with domestic traction equipment.
On November 2, 2024, interdepartmental commission ohas completed the acceptance of the new eight-car ES104 Finist manufactured at Ural Locomotives plant. The heads of Russian Railways departments, specialised research institutes, and representatives of component suppliers took part in the commission’s work.
The new Russian high-speed train Finist of the ES104 series operates for almost one year. To date, 30 five-car Finist trains have already been delivered to the customer. They serve routes in five regions of Russia (Sverdlovsk, Kurgan, Tyumen regions, the Republic of Bashkortostan and Perm Krai).
“Over the past year, conclusions were made on the results of controlled operation, which allowed not only to work on eliminating the shortcomings that are inevitable at the beginning of any new product, but also to determine the further path of development of new equipment – this is, of course, the development of the product line. The eight-car train ES104 was created considering the features of the routes in the north-western regions of the country, where it is necessary to ensure a higher intensity of suburban transport,” said the First Deputy General Director for Technical Policy at Ural Locomotives, Vitaly Brekson.
The eight-car Finist train features increased traction-to-weight ratio – it is 2 times more powerful than the 5-car Finist ES104 variant. The interior layout of the eight-car train has been changed providing 652 seats, including eight seats in the area for the train crew and four seats for passengers in wheelchairs, and more space has been created for bicycles. The trains have been equipped with an automatic passenger counting system in each car.
The certification and acceptance tests, research and development work for this train series have been fully completed in October. The train in the new modification passed traction-energy and braking tests, tests for heating of traction equipment and electromagnetic compatibility. A number of studies were conducted to ensure compliance with technical requirements including measuring the vibration acceleration values in the passenger compartment at high speeds, measuring the level of external noise from the electric train while moving and at a standstill, tests were carried out to confirm the main parameters of the traction motor, requirements for auxiliary equipment
The two-day acceptance committee summed up the results, confirming the train’s compliance with the technical specifications. The manufacturer obtained green light to produce 60 electric trains. It is planned that by the end of November the plant will receive a certificate for the new eight-car train.
The Finist 104 train performed the first test run at the end of September from Shcherbinka station, in Moscow, to Vladimir station at a speed of 160 km/h.
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