Machining And Engineering

Piston retarders

To meet the needs of railway companies our product range consist of wagon catcher retarders, retarders for holding trucks stationary, boosters to move trucks and retarders to ensure that wagons are moved into specific positions.Piston retarders are manufactured from high quality durable materials to demanding quality standards.  

Each unit detects freight car speed as the freight car travels over and depresses a sealed hydraulic unit. The unit which contains precision control valves is preset during manufacture from speed control in the range of 0 to 11 mph (0 to 5 m/sec).For freight cards travelling above control speed, energy is extracted as the wheel depresses the unit.

The wagons below control speed are not significantly affected as there is low idling resistance in the non-retard mode. All units are designed for easy installation and maintenance, and for operation at working temperatures from -40º C to 120º C, including snow and ice conditions.Long service life and excellent corrosion protection are provided by surface treatments.

Units have been successfully installed in Chicago, Kansas City, Oklahoma, Zimbabwe, Richards Bay Coal terminal South Africa and we are actively involved in installation of units at Transnet Freight Rail at Sentra-rand.  We supply complete units or spare parts.