Knorr-Bremse has expanded its plant in Berlin by adding 9 large machining centers for the manufacture of brake discs for train braking systems. The commissioning of the 9th center in January 2022 concludes a programme of investment in manufacturing technology that was launched in 2019 and three brake disc production facilities entered operation in 2021.
The investment will enable Knorr-Bremse to substantially increase the Berlin plant’s brake disc production capacity by 54%.
“Just the three machining centers we brought onstream in 2021 have already enabled Knorr-Bremse to considerably reduce average delivery times for brake discs. What’s more, this additional capacity means that Knorr-Bremse can now offer customers even higher levels of flexibility and adaptability when fitting out their train fleets,” Andre Janis, the head of Knorr-Bremse Rail Vehicle Systems Berlin plant said.
The new machine tools are capable of the highest possible speed and versatility. The new end-to-end machining capacity means production teams can now combine multiple operations, reducing production times. All maintenance and set-up periods run in parallel so they do not impact output, and the systems are also capable of rapidly switching from one type of brake disc to another – for example from brake discs for high-speed trains to brake discs for metro trains.
The investment project that would eventually result in nine machining centers and new jobs for 27 skilled workers was launched back in 2019. A total of five centers came onstream in 2019 and 2020, followed by another three machining centers in the summer and autumn of 2021. The ninth and last centre is expected to enter operation this month.
The centre’s enhanced output has already borne fruit in deliveries for one of Knorr-Bremse’s major customers. The customer reported low stocks of brake discs, posing a serious risk of vehicle downtime. But thanks to the new production capacity, Knorr-Bremse was able to respond with appropriate flexibility, supplying roughly a thousand brake discs in a very limited timeframe.
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