Ukraine: The manufacturer’s two pre-series 19-7160 prototypes were tested loaded and empty.
The acceptance commission with the national operator Ukrzaliznytsia as its member had a dedicated meeting which resulted in the recommendation to launch serial production of the rolling stock built by the Kryukiv Railway Car Building Works (KRCBW).
In comparison with the 19-7075 model (certified in 2012), the new four-axle cement hopper wagon has a body volume increased from 67 to 76 m3. That was achieved by making a more domed roof and changing the inclination of the end sides.
The 19-7160 hopper wagon features a payload of 73.5 t and an axle load of 23.5 tf. Built to the 1-BM loading gauge, the vehicle can be deployed on the EU networks with changing the bogies. There are four loading hatches which can be affixed with one seal.
New 19-7160 cement wagon from KRCBW. Source: KRCBW
Andrei Getman, Chief Engineer for freight car building and engineering at KRCBW, notes that this cement hopper wagon has been designed by the order of producers of construction materials. “They start favouring lighter cement which has lower density. It means, when loaded, the material occupies more volume. You need to place wagons at a standstill and wait for the shrinking of cement or tramp the material in order to load more of it,” says the specialist, indicating that these additional procedures will be unnecessary thanks to the increased body volume.
In light of a difficult economic situation in Ukraine, KRCBW has to deal with a continuous downward demand for freight cars. The plant’s revenue from wagon sales dropped to UAH 873.2 mln (€17.2 mln) over nine months of 2025, which is 56.7% less than over a comparable period of 2024. Currently, KRCBW’s activity is mainly supported by Ukrzaliznytsia with its orders for passenger coaches.
