Robert Garbe
Encyclopedia
Robert Hermann Garbe (9 January 1847 - 23 May 1932) was a German railway engineer and chief engineer of the Berlin
division in the Prussian state railways
from 1895 to 1917. He was especially known for his forward-looking steam locomotive
designs and is described as one of the greatest authorities on the locomotive.
), in Prussian
Upper Silesia
on 9 January 1847, Garbe was the eldest son of the master locksmith, Ferdinand Garbe. He went to elementary school in Oppeln and learned his father's locksmith trade. The desire for further education led him to the technical school at Breslau, where he worked in the main workshops of the Upper Silesian Railway and passed his exams as an engine driver in 1867. He also visited the provincial trade school in Brieg
, passed the leaving exams with distinction and went, in 1869, to the Royal Prussian Trade Academy in Berlin (later the Berlin-Charlottenburg Technical High School and, today, the Berlin Technical University). He finished his studies in 1872 with top marks in all disciplines.
. In 1877 the Ministry entrusted him with leading the main workshop in Berlin-Rummelsburg
. In 1895 Garbe was nominated simultaneously as a board member of the Prussian Railway Division at Berlin and Head of Department for the Design and Procurement of Locomotives. In this capacity he also chaired the locomotive committee that had to make recommendations about future locomotive procurement to the Ministry of Public Works.
In 1907 the Prussian Railway Central Office was founded in Berlin. Here, Garbe took over the sphere of "Construction of Superheated Steam Locomotives and Tenders". Inspired by the work of Wilhelm Schmidt
('Hot Steam Schmidt') from Kassel
, Garbe was already in 1893 of the view that the use of superheated steam
would give steam locomotives a power advantage.
The Prussian P 8
symbolises to a great extent Garbe's design principles. A total of 3,948 examples were built (including the Rumanian copies) and they were working German railway routes until the end of the steam era around 1972-1974.
Garbe's major achievement in the field of technical steam locomotive development was the introduction of superheating
, for which he was a keen advocate. He disapproved of compound working
; he saw superheating as a total replacement for complicated and maintenance-intensive compound systems, not as an enhancement of them to produce increased power.
The most significant acknowledgement was granted to Garbe after he left the service of the state. The Berlin-Charlottenburg Technical High School awarded him an Honourary Doctorate of Engineering for his services in developing the superheated steam locomotive.
He died on 23 May 1932 in Berlin
.
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
division in the Prussian state railways
Prussian state railways
The term Prussian state railways encompasses those railway organisations that were owned or managed by the State of Prussia...
from 1895 to 1917. He was especially known for his forward-looking steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
designs and is described as one of the greatest authorities on the locomotive.
Childhood and Education
Born in Oppeln (present-day Opole, Opole VoivodeshipOpole Voivodeship
- Administrative division :Opole Voivodeship is divided into 12 counties : 1 city county and 11 land counties. These are further divided into 71 gminas.The counties are listed in the following table .- Economy :...
), in Prussian
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...
on 9 January 1847, Garbe was the eldest son of the master locksmith, Ferdinand Garbe. He went to elementary school in Oppeln and learned his father's locksmith trade. The desire for further education led him to the technical school at Breslau, where he worked in the main workshops of the Upper Silesian Railway and passed his exams as an engine driver in 1867. He also visited the provincial trade school in Brieg
Brieg
Brieg may refer to:* Brzeg , in Silesia, Poland** Duchy of Brzeg, a duchy of Silesia from 1311 – 1675* Briec , a town in Brittany...
, passed the leaving exams with distinction and went, in 1869, to the Royal Prussian Trade Academy in Berlin (later the Berlin-Charlottenburg Technical High School and, today, the Berlin Technical University). He finished his studies in 1872 with top marks in all disciplines.
Prussian Railway Division
Afterwards, Garbe was the director of the Central Railway Workshop in Frankfurt (Oder)Frankfurt (Oder)
Frankfurt is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, located on the Oder River, on the German-Polish border directly opposite the town of Słubice which was a part of Frankfurt until 1945. At the end of the 1980s it reached a population peak with more than 87,000 inhabitants...
. In 1877 the Ministry entrusted him with leading the main workshop in Berlin-Rummelsburg
Rummelsburg
Rummelsburg is a German locality in the borough of Lichtenberg, Berlin.-History:The locality was founded in 1669 and on January 30, 1889 became a rural municipality, with the name of Boxhagen-Rummelsburg...
. In 1895 Garbe was nominated simultaneously as a board member of the Prussian Railway Division at Berlin and Head of Department for the Design and Procurement of Locomotives. In this capacity he also chaired the locomotive committee that had to make recommendations about future locomotive procurement to the Ministry of Public Works.
In 1907 the Prussian Railway Central Office was founded in Berlin. Here, Garbe took over the sphere of "Construction of Superheated Steam Locomotives and Tenders". Inspired by the work of Wilhelm Schmidt
Wilhelm Schmidt (engineer)
Wilhelm Schmidt, known as Hot Steam Schmidt was a German engineer and inventor who achieved the breakthrough in the development of superheated steam technology for steam engines....
('Hot Steam Schmidt') from Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
, Garbe was already in 1893 of the view that the use of superheated steam
Superheated steam
Superheated steam is steam at a temperature higher than water's boiling point. If saturated steam is heated at constant pressure, its temperature will also remain constant as the steam quality increases towards 100% Dry Saturated Steam. Continued heat input will then generate superheated steam...
would give steam locomotives a power advantage.
Locomotive Development
The locomotives developed on the basis of the policy issued by Garbe were characterised above all by good performance and simple construction. Consciously, he did not strive for high performance with his designs, but gave priority to reliability and ease of maintenance. By the time Garbe retired, a total of 13 superheated steam locomotive classes had been developed along those lines for all the important locomotive duties, together with a number of experimental designs. Garbe's design fundamentals had been so much part of Prussian locomotive development that they continued to be used even after his retirement.The Prussian P 8
Prussian P 8
The Prussian Class P 8 steam locomotive of the Prussian state railways was built from 1906 onwards by the Berliner Maschinenbau and the Linke-Hofmann factory in Breslau by Robert Garbe...
symbolises to a great extent Garbe's design principles. A total of 3,948 examples were built (including the Rumanian copies) and they were working German railway routes until the end of the steam era around 1972-1974.
Garbe's major achievement in the field of technical steam locomotive development was the introduction of superheating
Superheating
In physics, superheating is the phenomenon in which a liquid is heated to a temperature higher than its boiling point, without boiling...
, for which he was a keen advocate. He disapproved of compound working
Compound locomotive
A compound engine unit is a type of steam engine where steam is expanded in two or more stages.A typical arrangement for a compound engine is that the steam is first expanded in a high-pressure cylinder, then having given up heat and losing pressure, it exhausts directly into one or more larger...
; he saw superheating as a total replacement for complicated and maintenance-intensive compound systems, not as an enhancement of them to produce increased power.
The most significant acknowledgement was granted to Garbe after he left the service of the state. The Berlin-Charlottenburg Technical High School awarded him an Honourary Doctorate of Engineering for his services in developing the superheated steam locomotive.
He died on 23 May 1932 in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Sources
- Robert Garbe: Die Dampflokomotiven der Gegenwart. (erschienen 1920) 1981 im Steiger-Verlag in Moers als Reprint.
- Robert Garbe: Die zeitgemäße Heißdampflokomotive. (1924) 1981 im Steiger-Verlag in Moers als Reprint.
- Maedel/Gottwald: Deutsche Dampflokomotiven - Die Entwicklungsgeschichte 1999 im Transpress-Verlag.
External links
- There is an English-language discussion forum at Railways of Germany