A freight train loaded with 25-meter steel rails departed from Baogang Group in Baotou, North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, for Uzbekistan on Aug 21. This shipment marks the first batch of products for China's inaugural steel rail order to Uzbekistan.

Freight trains loaded with 25-meter rails are shipped smoothly from Baotou to Uzbekistan. [Photo/Baotou news network]

The steel rails were produced by Baogang Group, which has actively joined the Belt and Road Initiative by supplying pipeline steel, seamless steel pipes, and steel rails to Central Asian nations and regions on multiple occasions.

The order includes 130,000 metric tons of 25-meter steel rails, which will be used for Uzbekistan's railway maintenance projects. Baogang strictly controlled the production process during manufacturing and coordinated with the customer's on-site inspections. Baogang will provide technical service solutions for the after-sales phase to meet the client's product usage guidance needs.

Since this was the first time the product was transported by rail, there were unique challenges. The standard practice for transporting 25-meter steel rails by rail involves loading a bundle of steel rails across two train carriages. However, the latest standard from China Railway Group requires that loading tests include impact and theoretical stress analysis, making the group's existing loading and reinforcement plan inadequate.

Baogang developed a new loading plan to ensure on-time delivery and successfully met the standard for the required static load, impact, and braking tests for these products.

This marks Baogang's first independently conducted steel rail loading test, meaning it can now provide transport support to enhance the market competitiveness of its various products.