NSB Di 6

NSB Di 6
Di 6 in service with Nord-Ostsee-Bahn of Germany
Power type	Diesel
Builder	Siemens Schienenfahrzeugtechnik (Kiel plant[1])
Build date	1995 – 1996
Total produced	12
UIC classification	Co-Co[2]
Gauge	1435mm[2]
Length	21 m (68 ft 10 in)[2]
Height	4385mm[2]
Locomotive weight	122 tonnes [2]
Prime mover	MaK 12M282[2]
Transmission	Electric
Top speed	160km/h[2]
Power output	2650kW[2]
Career	Norwegian State Railways
Number in class	12
Number	6 661 – 6 672
Disposition	returned to Siemens sold to Vossloh

NSB Di 6 is a class of twelve diesel-electric locomotives built by Siemens for the Norwegian State Railways from 1995 to 1996. Twelve engines were built at the MaK plant in Kiel whilst it was part of Siemens Schienenfahrzeugtechnik, and numbered Di 6-661 to 6-672.

Construction

During the late 1980s, the Norwegian State Railways was looking for a new locomotive to replace the aging Di 3, in particular for freight and passenger trains on the Nordland Line.^[3] In 1980, the company had taken delivery of five Di 4 from Henschel,^[4] and NSB wanted a similar, albeit slightly more modern, locomotive.^[3] A MaK DE 1024 was test-run in Norway during 1990,^[5] and on 23 November 1992, the board of NSB decided to order ten similar units. This was later expanded with another two, because the price was lower than initially estimated by NSB.^[3] The Di 6 would have motors from Siemens, who had bought MaK, and would be optimized for Norwegian conditions and standards. The contract was worth NOK 380 million, or NOK 32 million per unit.^[6]

The contract called for the first delivery in February 1995. The contract called for several of the components to be manufactured by NSB, including the fuel tanks, sandboxes, engine frames, generator and some components for the bogies. The first locomotive was delivered on 7 March 1996. The locomotive proved to not meet the specifications in the contract. In particular, the locomotives had too high fuel consumption and the bogies had faults, not being sufficiently strong for the locomotive's weight. Both of these issues were difficult to solve. The Di 6 also had problems with overheating, in particular the main generator, the oil cooler and the brakes. The on-board computer failed when the temperature became too low.^[3]

NSB's administration recommended on 23 September 1996 that the purchase be terminated, but this was put on hold by the board. Instead, a renegotiated contract was made, where Siemens was obliged to deliver the locomotives, as specified, by mid 1997. If not, the two parties were agreed that the contract would be terminated. By then, five locomotives had been delivered, and these were returned to Kiel for upgrades. The first returned on 30 November, after the ventilator motors had been upgraded, new oil coolers installed and other minor upgrades had been done. From January 1997, they were put into regular use with freight trains on the Nordland Line. In mid-1997, no. 664 had been damaged in a fire caused by an incorrectly mounted exhaust system.^[3]

NSB's board decided on 17 December 1997 to purchase eleven of the locomotives, but not no. 664. This was based on an agreement where NSB would receive compensation for the incurred losses due to late delivery and under-performance. Siemens guaranteed that ten of eleven locomotives would have be operational at any time. But technical problems continued to haunt the class, and in April 1998, NSB's board announced they would terminate the agreement from 1 July 1998, if the locomotives had not achieved nominal regularity. This was rejected by Siemens, and NSB started preparing a court case, and signaled that it would require NOK 500 million in compensation.^[6]

The issue never reached the courts, after the parties announced on 5 May 1999 that they had reached an agreement for the trains to be returned to Siemens, and NOK 485 million be compensated to NSB, after about NOK 80 million had already been given in discount previously. The locomotives were immediately dismounted of any NSB-owned equipment and sent by ship to Hamburg on 20 May.^[7]

Operation

A Cargolink locomotive on the Dovre Line

Following the return to German, the locomotives were transferred to Dispolok, a division of Siemens that offered short-term leasing of locomotives. They were rebuilt to meet German standards and UIC profile. They were given the designation ME 26.^[3][5] Among the leasers were Cargolink, Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois, CTL Logistics, Hoyer Railserv, HSL-Logistik, KEP Logistik, NetLog Netzwerklogistik, Neuss-Düsseldorfer Häfen, Norddeutsche Eisenbahngesellschaft, Nord-Ostsee-Bahn, Osthavelländische Eisenbahn, RSE Cargo, Regental Bahnbetriebs, Schneider & Schneider, Seehafen Kiel and Verkehrsbetriebe Peine-Salzgitter.^{[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]}

In November 2003, the locomotives were sold to the transport technology manufacturer Vossloh and given the designation DE 2700.^[5] The main contract for leasing was then the Veolia-owned Nord-Ostse-Bahn, that operates a commuter rail in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. They operate hauling six to ten-car passengers trains.^[20] In 2008, three locomotives returned to Norway, when Cargolink leased them for their new autorack freight operations.^[21]

Specifications

The bidirectional locomotives are 20.96 meters (68 ft 9 in) long, 3.00 meters (9 ft 10 in) wide and 4.38 meters (14 ft 4 in) tall. The operating weight is 122 tonnes (120 long tons; 134 short tons). The prime mover is a MaK 12-cylinder 12M282 that provides a power output of 2,650 kilowatts (3,550 hp) at 1000 revolutions per minute. The locomotives have two bogies, each with three powered standard gauge axles, giving a Co'Co' wheel arrangement. The wheel diameter is 1.06 meters (3.5 ft) and the bogie center distance is 11.75 meters (38 ft 7 in). The motors are delivered by Siemens, and give a maximum speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). The fuel capacity is 5,000 liters (1,100 imp gal; 1,300 U.S. gal).^[5][22] The locomotives can be run in multiple with NSB's Di 3, Di 4 and Di8.^[3]

References

1. ^ See Maschinenbau Kiel for details of the factory
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} MaK Di6 for the NSB loks-aus-kiel.de
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} Næss: 138
4. ^ Næss: 72
5. ^ ^{a b c d} Meisner, Gunnar. "MaK - Di 6 für die NSB" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1400710&lang=1. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Næss: 138–139
7. ^ Næss: 139
8. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30005" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10068&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
9. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30006" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10069&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
10. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30007" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10070&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
11. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30008" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10071&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
12. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30009" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10072&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
13. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30010" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10073&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
14. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30011" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10074&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
15. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30012" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10075&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
16. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30013" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10076&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
17. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30014" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10077&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
18. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30015" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10078&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
19. ^ Meisner, Gunnar. "Fahrzeugportrait SFT 30016" (in German). Loks aus Kieland. http://www.loks-aus-kiel.de/index.php?nav=1401086&lang=1&id=10079&action=portrait. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
20. ^ "MaK DE 2700" (in German). Nord-Ostsee-Bahn. http://www.nord-ostsee-bahn.de/tmpl/ExtensionPage____5778.aspx?epslanguage=ML. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 
21. ^ Drammens Tidende (17 December 2008). "Premiere for Cargolink" (in Norwegian). http://dt.no/article/20081217/NYHET/48239890. Retrieved 24 January 2009. 
22. ^ "NSB diesellokomotiv type Di 6" (in Norwegian). Jernbane.net. http://www.jernbane.net/norge/di/di6/index.asp. Retrieved 20 November 2009. 

Bibliography

• Næss, Ståle (1999). Di 3: Billedboken omen loklegende. BSN Forlag.