Lorry chassis piggybacking on the railway lines

We are continually moving so we can offer innovative and pioneering transport and logistics solutions. KRONE knew that too, which is why we also developed a specific transport concept for ISU long-distance transport. KRONE is a manufacturer of commercial vehicles and makes vehicle units (including non-craneable trailers and container chassis, to name but two examples) at its plants in Werlte (northern Germany) and Tire (Turkey).

The chassis were then to be transported from Turkey to Germany – in an eco-friendly manner to boot.

One of RCG’s partners handled the ferry transport from Turkey straight to the port of Trieste, where the chassis were loaded onto the tracks.

The Rail Cargo Group provided the perfect logistics solution, having already developed innovative transhipment technology for combined rail transport – the ISU system – years ago.

The Innovative Semi-Trailer Handling Unit (ISU) gives all conventional non-craneable semi-trailers, which currently account for up to 90% of all semi-trailers, and mega trailers, access to unaccompanied combined transport and thus to environmentally friendly rail transport.

What makes this system so special is the fact that, compared to the rolling highway, the traction engine remains at the transport chain’s end points. Only the chassis itself is loaded onto the track for piggyback rail transport – it’s quick, easy and doesn’t require any major changes to the infrastructure. So, at the beginning of April, the Rail Cargo Group transported a test train with 16 double pocket wagons (i.e. 96 lorry chassis in 32 spaces) for KRONE from Trieste to Wels and, from there, directly on to Werlte.

The nitty-gritty of the ISU system’s functional principle

• The articulated lorry drives onto a loading platform. The traction engine is uncoupled.
• Chains are connected to the wheel tyres and the crossbar by crane or reach stackers.
• The semi-trailer is now ready for loading onto the freight wagon.
• The chassis are lifted onto the wagon with extreme ease in a matter of minutes.
• The chains are removed again, and the semi-trailer and thus the train are ready for departure.
• This shows just how straightforward and time-saving long-distance transport of 96 articulated lorry chassis can be.
• Not to mention how environmentally friendly it can be too.
• Three modes of transport – road, sea and rail – are combined to form a trimodal transport chain.