When cleaning the ballast bed using on-track ballast cleaning machines around 0.6 to 1.0 cubic metres of spoil per track metre will be obtained depending on the degree of fouling and the excavating depth.
An important cost-efficiency factor for ballast bed cleaning is that these quantities of excavated material are taken away without holdups. Any interruption of the operation of the ballast cleaning machine should be avoided at all costs. When using MFS units as a logistical system, it is assured that the ballast cleaning machine can work in continuous action and that transport problems are avoided.
As guide values for the amount of spoil generated during ballast bed cleaning, the following quantities apply:
1 km track 600–1.000 m³
When using large ballast cleaning machines there is the option of a supply of new ballast. This opens up additional options for effective ballast bed cleaning because even short track possessions can be utilised effectively.
The new ballast is supplied by MFS units in the course of ballast cleaning, added to the cleaned ballast as required.
Furthermore, in both cases – for transport of spoil or new ballast – the use of MFS trains would enable the reduction of operational hindrance costs during the construction project because the entire site logistics including material transport is limited to the track under repair. The second track remains open for traffic and this ensures uninterrupted operation of the ballast cleaning machine even in sections with restricted space.
