Trelleborg to provide London Underground springs

London – London Underground has selected Trelleborg’s industrial anti-vibration solutions operation to provide its Central line with a range of suspension products. The units are to be fitted on over 100 Tube trains, announced the company which supplied the original trains in the early 1990s.

As part of the second overhaul since the construction of the original trains, Trelleborg is to supply its chevron springs and range of bushes, said the Sweden-based company on 18 May. The Metalastik brand springs are manufactured in the UK and supplied globally.

A typical chevron spring, noted Trelleborg, has a linear spring rate but for this demanding application, a product with a rising spring rate was developed to provide better performance, especially when fully loaded. This, it said, provides a more controlled operation and longer service life.

The product’s low maintenance and longevity was the reason the company was chosen, according to Rod Holroyd, rail global market manager, at Trelleborg’s industrial anti-vibration solutions operation

“We developed the original Chevron spring back in 1959, and … we’re still selected to supply projects such as this,” he commented. “For our current project with TFL, we’ll supply exact replicas of the original design.”