CHENNAI: The Integral Coach Factory (ICF) will begin work on 70 coaches commissioned by Sri Lanka in May. This is the first time the factory will be making coaches for the island nation.According to officials, shelling works are to begin in a few weeks. “The requirements prescribed by the country are being taken into consideration now and since their topography is similar, the ergonomics of the coach will not be very different,” said an official.
It is learnt that Sri Lanka has emphasised on quality and that the coaches being produced will be better than the Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches being built by the ICF. However, officials emphasised that the coaches being made for Sri Lanka will not be as good as the revolutionary T18 coaches, which are likely to be rolled out in late June or early July.
T18 work on track
“Work on the first set of 16 T18 coaches is going on as per schedule,” said a supervisor at the LHB factory. An Express reporter, who visited the LHB factory on Wednesday, witnessed the first ever coach of T18, rumoured to be a brainchild of the General Manager himself. The coach, undergoing welding works, is yet to be furnished and fitted with wheels. Officials also said the cost of this flagship coach is yet to be determined. Each coach of T18 train will have drive enabled and will feature disk brakes.
“The drive in each coach will help in faster acceleration and better deceleration. Each stop time can come down by 10 minutes,” said Shankar, public relations officer. Officials also said research and development work for T20 train, which will feature aluminium coaches, is in full flow. This train is slated for release in 2020.