Russia: RPK Remmash, the sales partner of the Tulazheldormash plant (part of the PTK Group), has received a TR CU 001/2011 certificate of conformity for its two-section flash-butt welding complex. The certificate runs for five years, until July 2031, while the machine’s assigned service life is set at 30 years.
PTK Group has previously given details of the RSM-2000. The complex comprises two autonomous sections, each capable of carrying out the full cycle of rail-joint welding. Each section can move under its own power at up to 6 km/h. The manufacturer says welding two rails simultaneously lets the machine meet Russian Railways’ (RZD) technical requirements for track overhauls at a rate of 1,100 m/h.
Welding head for the RSM-2000 rail welding machine. Source: Alexey Stolchnev/ROLLINGSTOCK
Tekhnosvar KS has developed a new suspended flash-butt welding head, the T-1400, specifically for the RSM-2000. The head was unveiled at the PRO//Motion.Expo 2025. According to the developer, the T-1400 offers an increased upsetting force of 140 tf (1,400 kN), enabling it to weld long rail strings directly in track. It passed acceptance testing as part of the RSM-2000 this summer and has been recommended for trial operation, including welding DT350VS400 rail for high-speed lines as well as the heavy R-71 and R-75 rail types.
T-1400 welding head for the RSM-2000 machine. Source: Tekhnosvar KS
Together with the MS-700 machine, the RSM-2000 will form part of the KSP rail string replacement complex. One of its key advantages, the manufacturer says, is the ability to weld rail strings inside a rail transporter train, sheltered from the weather, before they are unloaded. This allows the complex to operate in all weather conditions — including temperatures down to -30°C — around the clock, without restricting traffic on the adjacent track.
PTK previously said it signed a contract with RZD last summer to supply three RSM-2000 machines, with an option to add three more. Railway newspaper Gudok has also reported that the first RSM-2000 was due to complete running-in trials on the Northern Railway this summer before moving on to construction work on the Moscow–St Petersburg high-speed railway.
