The so-called ''Austauschbauart'' wagons were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

railway vehicles produced from the late 1920s onwards which had common components built to agreed standards.

Origin of the concept

The German term ''Austauschbau'' ('interchangeable component manufacture') is a manufacturing concept. The idea was initially used in the field of

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, ...

, but is now the basis for industrial

mass production Mass production, also known as flow production or continuous production, is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in a constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines. Together with job production and ba ...

techniques.

Fundamentals

The basis of ''Austauschbau'' manufacture is that: ''Any quantity of part 'A' produced at different times and in different places, must match any quantity of a similarly produced part 'B' without further finishing being required.'' In short, it is a system of common, mandatory, standard production tolerances and fits that are specified for components, based on their function. To comply with the standards, special machines and tools are used that also meet precise tolerances. In addition, measurement tools and training are needed, to ensure compliance with the guidelines, both during manufacture and as part of quality control afterwards. Part of the principle is to design in as many standard parts as possible - screws, bolts, etc. - right from the concept stage. ''Austauschbau'' has enabled the division of labour and specialisation in modern industry, leading to economic mass production of complex machines, tools and vehicles.

Identification markings and livery

From about 1921, by order of the Reich Transport Ministry (RVM), almost all goods wagons were marked with the name of their owner, "Deutsche Reichsbahn", the name of a so-called "

class district Class districts (german: Gattungsbezirke) were a classification system for railway goods wagons used by the Deutsche Reichsbahn (1920–1945) in Germany between the wars.category letters (''Gattungszeichen''). The wagon bodies were painted in red-brown livery (paint number 11a), the wagon roofs in light grey (paint number 47) and the chassis, railings, etc., in a black colour (paint numbers 14,24,33). In 1927 the DR switched over to standard colours (''Einheitsfarben'') based on the RAL colour system 840-B. From 1940, the livery colours were changed again, for example, from December 1941 the iron roofs of covered wagons were painted grey-black ( RA 7021) and no longer in green-grey, and, from 1942, most of the wagons only bore the letters "DR", the name of the class district, a wagon number and a category letter.

Additional class districts

From 1921 all goods wagons with the same or similar functions were grouped into so-called

German ''Austauschbauart'' railway vehicles

From the mid-1920s, in the spirit of such interchangeable component manufacture, the

Deutsche Reichsbahn The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...

began to use a greater number of standard parts. The idea was that, by specifying tight production tolerances, to enable the easy interchangeability of as many part as possible both within and between various vehicle classes, in order to make maintenance cheaper and easier. To that end the ''Joint Wagon Standards Committee'' (''Allgemeine Wagennormungsausschuss'' or ''Awana''), as well as the '' German Institute for Standardisation'' or ''DIN'', developed the relevant norms. The construction of wagons to these principles began in 1927. Whilst the various goods wagons that resulted are frequently classified as ''Austauschbauart'' wagons, when it comes to

passenger coaches A passenger railroad car or passenger car ( United States), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach ( United Kingdom and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie ( India) is a railroad car that is designed to carry pas ...

the term is only applied to the regular variants of the so-called 'thunderboxes' ('' Donnerbüchsen'').

Standard goods wagons

The first ''Austauschbauart'' goods wagons were based on the extremely successful ''

Verbandsbauart The German term ''Verbandsbauart'' describes both a type of goods wagon as well as a type of tram. In order to standardise the goods wagons classes of the various German state railways (''Länderbahnen''), the German State Railway Wagon Associa ...

'' or ''DSV'' wagons. Of the original 11 types of DSV wagon, eight were standardised into ''Austauschbau'' versions and built in significant quantities. The two short open wagon (O) types were not longer up-to-date, so that no A6 wagons and only 32 A1 wagons were made. Also outmoded were the cradle wagons (A5) produced in a small batch of 26 units. Their role had been subsumed in the meantime by the eight-wheeled rail wagons (''Schienenwagen'') built in large numbers. The wagons were initially fitted with Kunze-Knorr brakes. Several were built to be adaptable for Soviet

broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union ( C ...

and designated with the letter secondary letter r. From 1933, the transition from

rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite to the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the rivet is placed in a punched ...

ted to welded technology reduced the dead weight of the vehicles and increased the maximum load correspondingly. At about the same time the ''Hildebrandt-Knorr brake'' became standard, so that the majority of welded wagons were equipped with them. In the middle of the 1930s, several types appeared with a longer axle base that enable faster running. Some of these wagons were equipped with steam heating pipes (secondary letter h) in order to enable their inclusion in

passenger trains In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often know ...

. The numbers of ''Austauschbauart'' wagons never approached those of the ''DSV'' wagons because, to begin with, the worldwide economic crisis caused a reduction in the demand for transportation. Only with the start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

did the transport requirement rise again. As a result, the Oppeln (from 1937) and Stuttgart (from 1938) classes quickly became the most numerous ''Austauschbauart'' wagons built by far. All these vehicles were of robust construction, in contrast with their successors the wartime wagon classes (''

Kriegsbauart ''Kriegsbauart'' (German, 'wartime class') refers to railway goods wagon classes that were developed during the Second World War for the Deutsche Reichsbahn. The start of the war was an arbitrary dividing line for the classification of goods wago ...

''), which meant that they remained in service with both German railway administrations for decades after the war without much modification.

Covered vans "G(r) Kassel", "G(r)(h)s Oppeln"

The covered vans of the Kassel class were based on the DSV's A2 wagon, the most striking differences being the use of a

barrel roof A barrel roof is a curved roof that, especially from below, is curved like a cut-away barrel. They have some advantages over dome roofs, especially being able to cover rectangular buildings, due to their uniform cross-section. Barrel vault ...

instead of a flat roof and the

brakeman's cab A brakeman's cabin (also brakeman's cab) or brakeman's caboose (US) (German: Bremserhaus) was a small one-man compartment at one end of a railway wagon to provide shelter for the brakeman from the weather and in which equipment for manually operat ...

being located at floor level directly on the undercarriage rather than being elevated. The wagon body was stabilised by a diagonal reinforcing brace in the sections of wall next to the doors. In order to be able to use the undercarriage of the Om wagon (see below), the wagon body was shortened by 200 mm, so that the loading length was now only 7,720 mm. From 1937 the axle base was increased to 6,000 mm in order to give it better riding qualities; as a result the top speed could be set at 90 km/h ( secondary letter s). These exclusively welded wagons were grouped into the Oppeln class. The "short Oppeln" was the most numerous Austauschbauart with 28,000 units being built. In contrast to the "long Oppeln", (see below), it had a triangular strut frame.

Eight-wheeled rail wagon "SSl(a) Köln"

This

flat wagon Flat wagons (sometimes flat beds, flats or rail flats, US: flatcars), as classified by the International Union of Railways (UIC), are railway goods wagons that have a flat, usually full-length, deck (or 2 decks on car transporters) and little ...

, built from 1928, was longer and, at 40 tons, also had a higher maximum load than its

predecessor based on technical drawing A3. The most obvious new feature was the fish belly girder. All wagons had a hand brake. On the welded versions which appeared from 1934 there was an open, foldaway brakeman's platform instead of the

( secondary letter a), in order to be able to transport longer loads over the ends of the wagon.

Stake wagons "R(r)(h) Stuttgart", "R(m)(r)s Stuttgart"

The ''Austauschbau'' stake wagon was 600 mm longer than the A4 DSV wagon, so that the undercarriage now matched that of the "Gl Dresden" (see below). Optically the wagons can be recognised easily by their trapezoidal strut frames. Most of the 1,600 or so wagons were fitted with wheelsets for transition to

. Between 1936 and 1938 about 1,200 welded wagons were built with three-dimensional, diagonal strut frames and without hand brakes. They were also fitted with Kunze-Knorr brakes, the only mass-produced, welded wagons to get them. From 1938 the axle base was increased from 7,000 mm to 8,000 mm and the wagons equipped with a three-dimensional, diagonal strut frame again. This stable design enabled a top speed of 90 km/h and, from 1943, the maximum load to be raised to 20 tons ( secondary letter m). The other design innovations were driven by the requirements of the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

. For example, the end walls, made entirely from steel, served simultaneously as gangways and, as with the "SSla Köln" (see above), the

was omitted in favour of a folding brakeman's platform. For strategic reasons the secondary letter r was not, at first, written on the broad-gauge-compatible vehicles. Almost 24,000 of these robust vehicles were built up to 1943. In 1994 more than 1000 examples entered the DB AG, not being retired until the end of 1997.

Lidded wagons "K Elberfeld / Wuppertal"

These lidded wagons were longer (length over buffers with/without hand brake: 9,100mm / 9,800 mm) and had a greater axle base (4,000 mm) than their forebears designed on the basis of technical drawing A7. The side walls were now divided into two panels by a vertical brace either side of the door. With the renaming of the recently formed town of Barmen-

Elberfeld Elberfeld is a municipal subdivision of the German city of Wuppertal; it was an independent town until 1929. History The first official mentioning of the geographic area on the banks of today's Wupper River as "''elverfelde''" was in a doc ...

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "''Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and tow ...

in 1930 the designation of this class also changed.

Livestock wagons "V Altona / Hamburg"

Just like the A8 DSV wagon, a livestock van also appeared in ''Austauschbau'' configuration that, in terms of dimensions, maximum load and technical properties, was the same as the covered van (see above). Initially built with rivetted technology, in 1936/37 another 27 welded wagons were built, all without hand brakes. With the absorption of Altona into

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

, the class name also changed from 1938.

Large volume covered vans "Gl(t)(r)(h)(s) Dresden", covered vans "G(e)hs Oppeln"

These large volume, covered goods wagons can be distinguished from the A9 DSV wagon version by their different roof shape, trapezoidal strut frame and diagonal braces on the wagon body in the section next to the door. They were built in rivetted and, later, in welded form in various configurations: with end doors on one or both ends and sometimes with exchangeable wheelsets and/or steam heating pipes. The Gl wagons were often used in ''Leig-Einheit'' pairs for the transportation of express, part-load goods. From 1933 onwards, 650 Dresden class wagons were built, still in rivetted form, with an axle base increased from 7,000 mm to 7,700 mm. These demonstrated excellent running qualities and were therefore permitted to be used at speeds up to 90 km/h (secondary letter s). However it was problematic that the wagons did not fit on most weighbridges due to their long axle base. Even the wagons built from 1935 with a 7,000 mm axle base, were in spite of their long overhang, authorised for 90 km/h running. After these experiences a completely new goods wagon was developed and built from 1934. It was produced only with a hand brake, and had a 7,000 mm axle base and overall length over buffers of 10,800 mm. It had, like the Gl Dresden with a 7,700 mm axle base, a trapezoidal strut frame and very good riding qualities as a result of its short overhang. Because its size was between that of the Gl and G wagons, it was grouped into the newly formed Oppeln class. To distinguish it from the later, shorter, type (see above) it is often referred to as the "long Oppeln".

Open goods wagons "Om Königsberg, Breslau, Essen"

The open goods wagons of the Königsberg class, with a 20-ton maximum load were manufactured from 1927 in ''Austauschbau'' form. They could barely be distinguished from the A10

versions which had been built from 1923. As a result, the literature often wrongly cites the first year of manufacture of the ''Austauschbau'' form as 1923 or 1924. Its 9,100 mm long undercarriage over buffers (9,800 mm with hand brake) had a 4,500 mm axle base and was also used for the other wagon classes "G Kassel" (see above) and "V Altona" (see above) as well as numerous special and private goods wagons. From 1935 to 1939 close to 4,000 welded Om wagons appeared, without handbrakes, that were grouped into the Breslau and Essen classes. From 1939 the production of these wagons in Germany was halted in favour of the larger Omm wartime open wagons (''

'') with a 25-ton maximum load. By contrast, in several occupied territories during the

, rivetted Königsberg class wagons were built in significant quantities, so that between 1927 and 1941 a total of just under 20,000 examples were produced. The Om wagons were retired by the DB in the 1960s, but they were still indispensable in the DR in

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In t ...

until the 1970s.

Rail wagons "Sm Augsburg"

This four-wheeled,

with 8,000 mm axle base, 12,988 mm loading length, 20 ton maximum load and no hand brake was built from 1927. It differed from the ''

'' version based on technical drawing A11 in a large number of design details. Including the welded wagons, a total of about 700 were built up to 1938. Only 20 units were made in 1939 with fish belly girders and interchangeable wheelsets, and classified as "Smr Augsburg". The design was however too expensive in comparison with the "Rs Stuttgart" (see above).

Special goods wagons

Despite all attempts at standardisation the 'special goods wagon' group became ever larger. Many standard components like the undercarriage with a 4,500mm axle base, were used here. There was a range of wagons for special purposes, that were often designed to facilitate loading and unloading: *As early as 1923 (thus to start with, not built as ''Austauschbau'' versions), four-wheeled, refrigerated vans (''Kühlwagen'') were built with modern insulation that, unlike the insulated vans used previously, were also suitable for the transportation of fish and frozen meat (Class Gk... Berlin). *For ferry services with

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, covered vans (Gfh), refrigerated vans (Gfkhs) and stake wagons (Rfh), all with a smaller loading gauge, were built from 1927. They were similar to the rivetted ''Austauschbau'' wagons (Class Trier, from 1935: Saarbrücken). *Eight-wheeled, covered vans were procured in 1934 (Class GGhs Dresden). These had a loading room and were significantly bigger than Gl vans Because they were very costly to build and maintain in comparison with four-wheeled vehicles, they were only produced in small numbers. Equally rare were the special vans for racehorses (GGvwehs Dresden). * The Talbot ballast hoppers with controllable discharge were built from 1926 and classified as

departmental wagon Departmental vehicles, also called departmental wagons or engineering vehicles, are special railway vehicles used to support the engineering functions of the railway.Ellis, Iain (2006). ''Ellis' British Railway Engineering Encyclopaedia''. Lulu, p ...

s. They were manufactured from 1928 in large numbers in a revised design based on ''Austauschbau'' principles. In the following years the design was changed several times. * For coal transportation in the

Saar Saar or SAAR has several meanings: People Given name * Saar Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player * Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist * Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor Surname * Ain Saar (born 1968), E ...

a four-wheeled hopper, with rapid discharge, was developed from that of the

Prussian state railways The term Prussian state railways (German: ''Preußische Staatseisenbahnen'') encompasses those railway organisations that were owned or managed by the State of Prussia. The words "state railways" are not capitalized because Prussia did not have a ...

(Otm(m) Mainz). *

Coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

, coke and ore transportation over long distances could be achieved smoothly and considerably more efficiently from 1924 using trains composed of saddle-bottomed wagons (''Sattelwagen'') (Class OOt(n) Oldenburg, from 1935: Saarbrücken). * For the conveyance of coal and coke from inland ports to the iron works in the

Ruhrgebiet The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

, special bucket wagons (''Kübelwagen'') were developed in 1933 (Ok Nürnberg). * Special well wagons were built in small series or as one-offs to various sizes and maximum loads (Class U). * In addition there was a great number of private goods wagons, e.g. fishtank wagons for live fish, beer vans and wine wagons, heated fruit vans, dry bulk goods wagons (for goods in powder form), tank and carboy wagons, all of which used components of the ''Austauschbau'' wagons as far as possible.

Literature and sources

*Autorenkollektiv: Güterwagen Handbuch, Transpress VEB Verlag für Verkehrswesen, Berlin, 1974. *Behrends H et al.: Güterwagen-Archiv (Band 1 und 2), Transpress VEB Verlag für Verkehrswesen, Berlin 1989. * Carstens S: Die Güterwagen der DB AG, MIBA-Verlag, Nürnberg 1998. *Carstens S et al.: Güterwagen (Band 1 und 2), MIBA-Verlag, Nürnberg 2000. *Carstens S et al.: Güterwagen (Band 3 und 4), MIBA-Verlag, Nürnberg 2003. *Carstens S: Güterwagen (Band 5), MIBA-Verlag, Nürnberg 2008. {{German rolling stock Rail freight transport in Germany