Melbourne VLocity DMU – Australia

The VLocity fleet of diesel railcars (DMU), locally built by Bombardier Transportation (now Alstom) in Dandenong, Victoria, Australia are regional commuter trains operating in and out of Melbourne City connecting outlying regional towns with the state capital.

The first train entered service in 2005 with HVAC systems designed, tested and manufactured by Noske-Kaeser Rail & Vehicle. The scope of work included the design of the interior air-distribution system involving the building of a full-size mock-up to trial different ducting configurations.

To take advantage of the latest technology advances, in that time there have been numerous technology improvements to the HVAC systems, whilst maintaining backwards compatibility with the earlier equipment.

Due to the high ambient temperatures and wildly varying climatic conditions, regional Victoria is a challenging environment in which to air-condition passenger trains, and with the majority of the VLocity fleet’s journeys travelling far from the depots’, reliability is paramount. Since these trains first went into service, Noske-Kaeser Rail & Vehicle has supported the fleet successfully with a thorough preventative maintenance programme.

With over 260 cars currently in service and more in being built, this is a growing fleet.