Blog

As part of the exhibition program of St. Petersburg International Gas Forum 2022, KAMAZ presents the latest gas-powered vehicles in its exposition. The company’s wide production capabilities are demonstrated by the example of the KAMAZ-54901 LNG-powered truck tractor and the KAMAZ-6250 all-wheel drive bus.

The all-wheel drive KAMAZ-6250 bus is an innovative all-terrain vehicle. The novelty has an original design. KAMAZ-6250 can be equipped with various ICE options – diesel, LNG or CNG, and also with an additional set of options – a northern version and an additional cruising range (for CNG) up to 550 km.

As for the exterior of the model, this is a full-fledged middle-class bus with a frame-and-panel monobody, not just a truck with a traditional crew-type superstructure. The body has a bodywork basic structure (welded from steel pipes) and an external decoration made of composition materials, the front mask of the bus has common design features with KAMAZ trucks of the latest generation K5. The body of the bus is based on the KAMAZ-43502 (4×4) chassis.

The bus is equipped with a 290 hp engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. For travelling comfort, the bus has a front suspension with long-leaf springs, hydraulic telescopic shock absorbers and a stabilizer bar. The rear suspension is pneumatic – on four pneumatic elements.

The cab capacity is 32 passengers or 23 passengers + luggage compartments. The bus has modern comfortable seats for the driver and passengers. Convenient loading and debussing is ensured by an automatic pull-out sideboard. There is an air conditioner and an additional heater for comfortable conditions in the bus.

The bus complies with safety requirements – the bodywork primary structure ensures the passengers’ safety in case of a rollover, seats with three-point seat belts are installed (for all passengers). The body is universal and suitable for wider applications – as mobile laboratories, meeting offices, medical stations, engineering centers, control points.

Also at the company’s stand, the visitors were shown a K5 generation truck tractor – the KAMAZ-54901 running on liquefied natural gas (LNG). In addition to the new in-line six-cylinder KAMAZ-950.10 engine with a capacity of 450 hp designed for a new generation of mainline tractors, compliant with Euro 6 emissions standards, among the main advantages of the KAMAZ-54901 LNG truck is an automated gearbox with a retarder, a wide comfortable cabin with a flat floor and one or two berths. The capacity of two cryogenic gas cylinders is 1,060 liters (in total), the driving range of the road train with a full refueling is about 1,400 km.

In Russia, goods move over long distances, and reducing the cost of long-distance transportation is the most important task. The use of gas motor fuel in this area provides maximum savings. Therefore, KAMAZ has mastered the production of a whole range of tractors operating on both compressed and liquefied natural gas. The LNG KAMAZ-54901 is one of the models developed for long-distance transportation which allows to achieve significant savings when operating over long distances.

In total, the company has already produced 1,600 long-haul tractors using liquefied natural gas as fuel. The design of these vehicles is based on modern innovative solutions. For example, LNG is stored on board in special tanks with high thermal insulation at a temperature of minus 160 degrees. The high energy intensity of such fuels allows the tractor, when fully loaded, to cover long distances without refueling.

In general, KAMAZ can produce 8,000 vehicles and 2,000 buses in gas-powered versions per year. High productivity is achieved due to the fact that gas engines, vehicles and buses are manufactured in a single process flow alongside with diesel vehicles, and only the installation of gas equipment is carried out in a separate building. NGVs and buses are already standard series products for the company. Both CNG and LNG vehicles are produced almost completely equivalent to a diesel line.

The production of all types of specialized vehicles, long-haul tractors and buses running on gas motor fuel is organized by the company to solve environmental problems in the Russian regions, as well as to increase the economic efficiency of the vehicle use. The company is actively cooperating with the regions to replace obsolete diesel buses in their fleets with this environmentally friendly and economical vehicle, also under the Safe High-Quality Roads national project.

KAMAZ presented innovative vehicles at the exhibition organized by High-Technology Technopark IT Park in honor of its tenth anniversary. Festive events were held at the site of the Technopark in Naberezhnye Chelny on Thursday, August 25.

The Technopark is a unique platform for the development of information technologies in the Republic of Tatarstan. The first IT park in the Republic of Tatarstan was opened in 2009 in Kazan, and in 2012 a similar site was opened in Naberezhnye Chelny.

In honor of its anniversary, the company organized festive events for residents of the city – a free master class for schoolchildren on creating their own 3D game, a discussion meeting “Boiling Point” on the impact of IT on modern reality for students, a World Cafe format business meeting for residents and managers of IT companies and others. During the official part of the holiday, Minister of Digitalization of Public Administration, Information Technologies and Communications of the Republic of Tatarstan Ayrat Khayrullin presented Gratitude to the staff of OOO Digital Platform KAMAZ for their contribution to the development of information and communications technologies and innovative services in the Republic of Tatarstan.

As part of the anniversary program, KAMAZ, a partner of the Technopark, presented its innovative developments: unmanned vehicles KAMAZ-6559 (Jupiter-30) and KAMAZ-65119 (Argo), electric vehicle Kama-1, electric buses KAMAZ-6282 and KAMAZ- 6292, medium-duty vehicles Compass-9 and Compass-12, mining dump trucks KAMAZ-65807 (Atlant-65) and KAMAZ-6561 (Hercules), as well as an electric garbage truck KAMAZ-53199 (Chistogor), a fuel cell bus KAMAZ-6290 and a robotic KAMAZ-43118.

The unmanned KAMAZ-6559, named “Jupiter-30”, is one of the latest developments of the auto giant. This mining dump truck is designed to transport loosened rock mass or ore using unmanned technology – without the presence of people in the danger zone of heavy vehicles and excavators.

The truck features a series hybrid transmission, with bypass accumulators for energy recovering when braking and driving downwards. Besides, for better performance, the dump truck has a shuttle mode of moving. The dump truck is equipped with a KAMAZ in-line six-cylinder engine 910.12-450 with a capacity of 11.9 l. All-wheel drive without a transfer case is provided by two traction electric motors, one per each axle.

The vehicle can transport cargo weighing up to 30 tonnes in a fully automatic or remote control mode. The speed of the vehicle is limited to 56 kph.

The fuel cell electric bus KAMAZ-6290 is another innovative development of the company in the line of passenger eco-transport. It runs on hydrogen fuel cells and is equipped with six cylinders for storing compressed hydrogen. For safety reasons, the cylinders are installed on the roof – in the event of a leak, hydrogen will go up, and not into the cabin.

The fuel cell electric bus is equipped with a modern high-performance air brake system with EBS, ABS, ASR, EPB, slope hold function, motion blocking function when the doors are open, and a brake pad wear monitoring sensor. Braking is also provided by a traction motor with a recuperation system. The maximum speed is 80 kph, the cruising range is 250 km. The total passenger capacity is 80 people, there are 33 seats. Like the electric bus, the new eco-transport is adapted for operation at ambient temperatures from -40° to +40° С.

The sided electric garbage truck KAMAZ-53199 “Chistogor” with a 4×2 wheel formula is a truck designed for operation in the city. It is equipped with an electric motor with the index TM4 LSM280, with a power of 245 kW. The battery capacity is 150 kWh. The driving range of the truck is 150 km. The maximum speed of the drop-side vehicle is 90 kph. The batteries are charged through a three-phase socket and a charging unit. The curb weight of the garbage truck is 9,400 kg, the gross weight is 18,000 kg.

On Tuesday, August 16, in the course of a working trip to Tatasrstan, Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Investment Policy Svetlana Malinskaya visited KAMAZ PTC.

During the visit, the guest attended a cab assembly conveyor and the main assembly line of the truck assembly plant, got familiarized with operation of the 1^st and 6^th sets of Kama Industrial Park Master JSC. Deputy Minister also visited OOO Center for Service of Business – a subsidiary of KAMAZ PTC and educational sites of the company – Multifunctional Center of Applied Engineering Qualifications and the Factory of Processes.

Besides, Svetlana Malinskaya visited the exhibition of the latest vehicles at the Research and Development Center of KAMAZ and toured the museum of the KAMAZ-master racing team in NP KAMAZ-Autosport.

The visit was crowned with negotiations on promoting cooperation in which Zhanna Khaliullina, Deputy General Director of KAMAZ PTC for Human Resource Management, Organizational Development and Corporate Governance, took part.