South African Class E38

South African Class E38
38-003 at Sentrarand in September 2009
Type and origin Power type Electric Designer Consortium led by Siemens Builder Union Carriage & Wagon Model Consortium Class E38 Build date 1992 Total produced 3
Specifications Configuration: ​  • AAR B-B  • Commonwealth Bo-Bo Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Wheel diameter 1,054 mm (41+1⁄2 in) Wheelbase 11,700 mm (38 ft 4+5⁄8 in) ​  • Bogie 2,600 mm (8 ft 6+3⁄8 in) Pivot centres 9,100 mm (29 ft 10+1⁄4 in) Length: ​  • Over couplers 16,314 mm (53 ft 6+1⁄4 in) Width 2,780 mm (9 ft 1+1⁄2 in) Height: ​  • Pantograph 4,130 mm (13 ft 6+5⁄8 in) Electric system/s 3 kV DC catenary Current pickup(s) Pantograph Traction motors Four AC 6 pole ABB/6FRA5252 ​  • Continuous 378 kW (507 hp) Loco brake Knorr-Bremse air brake Spring applied, air release parking Train brakes Knorr-Bremse W450/150-3 compressor Couplers AAR knuckle
Performance figures Maximum speed 100 km/h (62 mph) Power output: ​  • Continuous 1,500 kW (2,000 hp) continuous Tractive effort: ​  • Starting 260 kN (58,000 lbf) @ 35% adhesion  • Continuous 180 kN (40,000 lbf) @ 30 km/h (19 mph) Factor of adh.: ​  • Starting 35%  • Continuous 25%
Career Operators Amcoal Anglo Coal Class Class E38 Number in class 3 Numbers E38-001 to E38-003 Delivered 1993 First run 1993

The Amcoal Class E38 of 1993 is a South African industrial electric locomotive.

In 1993 Amcoal, now Anglo Coal, a wholly owned subsidiary of Anglo American, placed three Class E38 electric locomotives in service at its Kromdraai Colliery near Witbank, Mpumalanga.

Manufacturer

The 3 kV DC Class E38 electric locomotive is an electric-only version of the Class 38-000 electro-diesel locomotive which was designed for Spoornet by a consortium under the leadership of Siemens. In 1992, three of these locomotives were built for Amcoal by Union Carriage & Wagon (UCW) in Nigel, Transvaal.

The locomotives were delivered in 1993 and numbered E38-001 to E38-003. UCW did not allocate builder's numbers to the locomotives it built for Anglo Coal, but used the Amcoal unit numbers for their record keeping.

Spoornet’s Class 38-000

Prior to the production of the Class E38 for Amcoal Mines, UCW also built fifty Class 38-000 locomotives for Spoornet. The Class 38-000 is a dual mode electro-diesel locomotive, identical in exterior appearance and dimensions to the Class E38 but designed for 3 kV DC electric as well as diesel-electric operation and equipped with a 780 kW (1,050 hp) Caterpillar DITA 3508 diesel prime mover.

Service

The three Class E38s now serve at the Landau Colliery near Witbank.

External links

Media related to South African Class E38 at Wikimedia Commons