The world's highest railway

January 2009 Enclosures, Cabling & Connectors

Flexicon has supplied 40 km of flexible conduit to protect cabling on 361 high altitude carriages for the world’s highest railway in Tibet.

According to Mike Cronin, owner and managing director of Elquip Solutions, the Flexicon agents in South Africa, there are special demands for robust protection under these circumstances: “Clearly it is vital to protect the cabling for such high altitude carriages. Without power or lighting the passengers would become very uncomfortable.”

Rising to an altitude of 5000 metres above sea level, the conduit must withstand temperatures down to -50°C and protect the cabling from snow, dirt and lighting. The flexible conduit has a metal interior to provide strength and a plastic outer covering, which provides an IP68 rating to withstand immersion in water when the snow melts.

The high altitude carriages have enriched oxygen and UV protection systems, since the air has up to 40% less oxygen at these altitudes. The railway has several oxygen factories along its length to replenish the internal environment, while onboard water must be heated to avoid freezing.

The 1100 km Qinghai-Tibet railway has been built through some of the most difficult terrain on earth, and rises at one point to 5000 m above sea level. Because of the region’s extreme temperatures and unstable permafrost, long sections of track have been elevated to improve stability.

Cronin says that the Flexicon product is ideal for these circumstances: “This flexible conduit has been developed to withstand the harshest of conditions and will last for more than 10 years. This is the reason why Elquip Solutions successfully distributes Flexicon products into the South African market, where extremes of temperature and tough terrain demand products designed to handle exacting conditions,” Cronin concludes.

For more information contact Mike Cronin, Elquip Solutions, +27 (0)11 826 7117, [email protected], www.elquip.co.za

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