Text 1 1 . Switching Operations
The operating business includes making separate working programmes for locomotives and train crews, planning regular switching operations and so on. Switching operations are performed on rail yards.
A rail yard, or a railroad yard is a complex of railway tracks for storing, sorting, loading or unloading railway cars and locomotives. They are usually built where cars must be stored while they are not being loaded or unloaded, or waiting to be assembled into trains. Large yards may have a tower to control operations. Railway yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock off the mainline. Thus they do not obstruct the traffic flow. Railway cars are moved around by specially designed yard switchers. Cars in a railroad yard may be sorted by numerous categories such as the name of the railway company, destination, car type, or whether they need repair.
A classification yard is a railway yard found at some freight train stations. It is used to separate railway cars into one of several tracks. First cars are taken to a track, called a lead or a drill. From there cars are sent through a series of switches called ladders onto classification tracks.
There are three types of classification yards: flat-shunted yards, hump yards and gravity yards. The largest and the most effective yards are hump yards. The heart of these yards is a hump. It is a lead track on a hill (hump) over which the cars are pushed by engine. Single cars or coupled cars in block are uncoupled just before or at the crest of the hump. They are rolling by gravity into their destination tracks in the classification bowl. It is a special track where cars are sorted.
So, classification yards play a very important part in railway operation, providing the work of the switching service.
Questions for discussion:
1. What does operating business include?
2. Where are switching operations conducted?
3. What is a rail yard?
4. What is a switcher?
5. What is a classification yard?
6. How many types of classification yards do you know?
7. What is a lead?
8. What yard is the largest and the most effective one?
9. Where are single cars uncoupled?
10. What is the heart of hump yards?
Text 1 2 . Dispatcher Service
In the early days of railway operation there was almost no need for more than one train to operate on a section of track at any given time. As traffic increased, it became necessary to operate trains in both directions over a single track without disaster and with a minimum of confusion and delay. It was achieved by introducing time schedules and also by creating a special service dealing with all these problems - a dispatcher or controller service. Charles Minot, a Division Superintendent on the Erie Railroad, made the first attempt to control the movement of the train beyond the rule book and operating timetable. In September 1851 he sent a telegram to a railway employee at another location. Minot directed all trains to be held at that point until his train could arrive. Since then the system of train dispatching has been evolving.
|
|
|
A dispatcher is employed by a railway to direct and facilitate the movement of trains over an assigned territory. Each train dispatcher is responsible for the operation of traffic on his/her territory. A dispatcher must set up routes and signals for traffic, arrange meets of trains and provide protection for railway workers. Train dispatchers should know the physical characteristics of the railway territory as well as the operating capabilities of the locomotive power. An efficient train dispatcher must use the rule book, timetable, train orders and personal experience. His main task is to move a large number of trains over the assigned territory with minimal delays even in a single-track section.
Initially, train dispatchers issued train orders using American Morse code over telegraph wires. Later most railways constructed their own telephone systems. Before World War II most major railways installed centralized traffic control (CTC) systems to control train movements. Using CTC, a train dispatcher can track switches anywhere on the territory so that trains move into and out of sidings. A train dispatcher can also control the trackside signals governing the movement of trains. Satellite radios enable train dispatchers to communicate directly with train and engine crews.
Questions for discussion:
1. What is the role of dispatcher service nowadays?
2. How can you explain the necessity of railway schedules?
3. Who is the “father” of dispatcher service?
4. When was the first attempt to control the train movement made?
|
|
|
5. What is dispatcher responsible for?
6. What do dispatchers’ duties include?
7. What kind of knowledge must dispatchers have?
8. What modern equipment assists with train control system?
9. Train dispatchers initially used Morse code to communicate, didn’t they?
10. What is the main task of train dispatchers?
Text 1 3 . Logistics
Logistics is the art and science of managing and controlling the flow of goods, energy, information and other resources like products, services, and people, from the source of production to the marketplace. It is difficult to accomplish any marketing or manufacturing without logistical support. It involves integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging. The operating responsibility of logistics is geographical repositioning of raw materials, work in process, and inventories. They are required at the lowest cost.
Logistics as a concept evolved from the military's need to supply the Armed Forces moving from their base forward. In ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine empires, there were military officers with the title “Logistikas”. They were responsible for financial and supply distribution matters. Military logistics first appeared in the 19th century. However, only in World War II logistics theory and practice became sophisticated. As the conflict was carried out with an unprecedented deployment of personnel, equipment and supplies, logistics played a central role in ensuring success for the Allies. Logistics as its own concept in business appeared only in the 1950s. This was mainly due to the increasing complexity of supplying business with materials and shipping out products in an increasingly globalised supply chain.
The main functions of a logistics manager include purchasing, transporting, warehousing, organising and planning. Logistics managers combine general knowledge of each function to coordinate the resources of the organisation. There are two fundamentally different forms of logistics. The first one optimises a steady flow of material through a network of transport links and storage nodes. The other coordinates a sequence of resources to carry out some projects.
Questions for discussion:
1. What is logistics?
2. What integration does logistics involve?
3. How can you describe the operating responsibility of logistics?
4. What did logistics as a concept evolve from?
5. What did the word “Logistikas” mean?
6. How can you characterise the role of logistics in World War II?
7. When did business logistics appear?
8. What factors caused the appearance of business logistics?
9. What are the primary functions of a logistics manager?
10. What are the main forms of logistics?
Дата добавления: 2019-02-12; просмотров: 1529; Мы поможем в написании вашей работы! |
Мы поможем в написании ваших работ!