Abstract
The aim of the research is to find the factors that cause engine failures in diesel locomotives within Transnet. The research will focus on the diesel locomotives in the region of Thabazimbi and Pretoria. Diesel locomotives need to be in good working order for them to be able to haul goods for the growth of the economy. The company must deliver everything on time according to customer demand. The failures affect the company financially: they have to repair the engine, which costs about R1.2 million to rebuild, and a new engine costs R 3.2 million. Corrective actions play an important role in coal transportation. Reliable engineering and maintenance ensures that the product is always available. Reliability is known as the probability that an item or device can perform the required functions without failures for a specific period of time. Maintenance and reliability engineers should know all the techniques to solve engineering issues.
The research shows that the company had the same problem as China and Ukraine. The failures were caused by maintenance that was not done properly on the diesel locomotive. The company has a maintenance strategy that they used on the diesel locomotive. It was found that the major cause of engine failures was using the wrong type of cylinders on the 39 200 class diesel locomotive. The 39 200 class uses millmille cylinders, not chrome cylinders. These cylinders differ from the usual material used to make cylinders. It was found that most artisans and the logistics department did not know which cylinders were supposed to be used on the 39 200 class diesel locomotive. The locomotives were newly built in South Africa, but not all the artisans, planners and trade hands were aware of the different cylinders used on the locomotive. The reliability and maintenance engineers, including the logistics department, have to work together in purchasing new material by making sure the specifications are clear to the supplier. The company had to do root cause analyses because they wanted to be competitive in the railway industry. The company should increase resources in the Thabazimbi depot to avoid locomotives having to be hauled to Koedoespoort owing to the insufficient number of artisans and trade hands they have at Thabazimbi. The workshop in Thabazimbi should do all the lifting work required on the locomotive, change radiators, change out compressors and change out cylinders.
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)