Key takeaways
- "350 hp" is a power rating used as a collective name – it doesn't denote a defined class.
- Such designations are imprecise: vehicles of the same power class can differ in axle count, frame and equipment.
- The builder's plate decides which manufacturer and which works number are actually present.
- The UIC type code 98 classes such locomotives as diesel shunting and light locomotives, as opposed to 92 for main-line diesel locomotives.
- Keeper, livery and location change constantly – note every such detail with a date.
Contents
Fact file
| Vehicle type | Diesel shunting and works locomotive |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Friedrich Krupp Lokomotivfabrik, Essen |
| Type of designation | Collective name by engine power in hp, not a class number |
| UIC type code | 98 (diesel shunting and light locomotive) |
| Typical setting | Works, port and private siding railways, heritage and society railways |
Identifying features
Is this really the class in front of you?
- Compact diesel shunting locomotive with a bonnet and shunting cab
- Builder's plate with the manufacturer name Krupp is the decisive feature, not the power rating
- Axles in a rigid frame; axle count varies by version
- Coupling rods may be present – they indicate power transmission via a jackshaft
- Shunting steps, running board and heavy draw and buffing gear
- Often traces of rebuilding: retrofitted exhaust, altered cab, extra plates
Updated: August 2026 – Some vehicle designations are a precise code, others are simply a number. Krupp 350 PS belongs to the second kind: a power rating used as a collective name for a manufacturer’s shunting locomotives. This page explains why that is, where the limits of such designations lie, and how to still identify such vehicles reliably.
Unclear type reference? The works number counts.
When the name is imprecise, only the builder's plate saves the sighting – capture it on the spot.
What’s behind the designation Krupp 350 PS?
The designation names two things: the manufacturer – Friedrich Krupp’s locomotive works in Essen – and an engine power class in horsepower. What it doesn’t name is the wheel arrangement, the type of power transmission, or a specific production series. The group’s rail technology division passed to Siemens Mobility in the late 1990s, by which point the Essen locomotive works itself had long been history.
That makes it a typical representative of the collective names long common in German industrial locomotive building. Vehicles of this kind fall under type code 98 in the European numbering system – diesel shunting and light locomotives – as opposed to code 92 for main-line diesel locomotives. Another well-known Krupp industrial vehicle is the Krupp Knapsack.
Why horsepower designations are imprecise
A full type key names power transmission, power class and wheel arrangement all in one. A pure horsepower designation states only the middle one of these three quantities. That has practical consequences for identification.
| Detail in the name | Full type key | Pure horsepower designation |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | yes | yes |
| Power class | yes | yes |
| Wheel arrangement | yes | no |
| Power transmission | often | no |
| Clarity of design | high | low |
| Extra source needed | builder’s plate for the works number | builder’s plate for everything else |
For you that means: with a horsepower designation, you have to observe more yourself. Axle count, frame design and the presence of coupling rods supply exactly the information the name leaves out. Comparable collective names can be found at other manufacturers too, for instance the Gmeinder 250 hp. How much more precise a spelled-out type key is shows, by comparison, in the Henschel DH 360, whose name states power transmission and power class at once.
How solid is your type reference?
Solid identification
Builder's plate plus axle count plus a drive detail: the sighting is verifiable and stays useful long-term.
Partly secured
Note the detail with an explicit caveat and fill it in next time – a second photo from another angle is often enough.
Only a suspicion
Without a builder's plate and axle count, the classification remains a guess. Record it as such, rather than as fact.
How to approach identification in general and in what order to work through features is described in the guide identifying classes.
Record the uncertain as uncertain
An honestly flagged guess is worth more than a falsely claimed certainty – document both cleanly separated.
Step by step to a reliable identification
When the type name gives away little, observation has to fill the gap. The following order has proven useful because it starts with the features recognisable from a distance.
1. Count the axles
Two, three or four axles? That's possible from twenty metres away and in poor light, and it immediately narrows down the design.
2. Assess the running gear
If the axle boxes sit in the frame sides of the locomotive body, it's a rigid frame. Recognisable pivoting assemblies are bogies.
3. Look for coupling rods
Rods at wheel-centre height indicate power transmission via a jackshaft. If they're absent, each axle is driven individually.
4. Secure the builder's plate
Manufacturer, type, works number, year built. This is the only step that needs proximity or focal length – and the most important one for identity.
These four steps work regardless of how the type name is put together. They supply exactly the information a horsepower designation leaves open: wheel arrangement, frame design and type of power transmission. Anyone who works through them consistently ends up with a more precise description of a horsepower-named locomotive than the name itself contains.
An added benefit: because you always capture the same features, your notes become comparable with each other. After a few dozen sightings you’ll spot patterns – which designs turn up at which operators, which type series resemble each other, and where the boundaries between light and shunting locomotive lie. For a vehicle class without any public data, that comparability is the real gain.
Where such locomotives stand and how to observe them
Shunting locomotives of this size work on works railways, private sidings and port railways. Many examples have also been preserved at heritage and society railways, because they’re simply built and cheap to maintain.
Shunting areas are especially dangerous
Vehicles there are moved unannounced, often pushed and without a signal; parked wagons can start rolling at any time. Works, port and private siding railways are private property – entering them is not permitted even without a visible fence. Observe only from public paths, bridges or platforms.
Because there are no public inventory lists for many of these vehicles, your own documentation is especially valuable. A side-on photo plus a detail of the builder’s plate, along with date and location – that’s all it takes for a permanently verifiable sighting. How to build a searchable archive from that is shown in the guide to a photo archive for spotters; how to pass on finds in a structured way is explained in the guide to reporting a sighting.
Common mix-ups
It suggests a Krupp industrial locomotive if …
- the builder's plate carries the manufacturer name Krupp
- the vehicle has shunting equipment with steps and a running board
- the axles run in a rigid frame
- the location is a works, port or private siding railway
Look more closely if …
- only a horsepower figure is stated without a manufacturer's name
- the locomotive has been rebuilt several times and carries multiple plates
- the markings are fresh and don't match the builder's plate
It doesn't fit if …
- the builder's plate names a different manufacturer
- the vehicle has two full driving cabs and main-line equipment
- the vehicle number begins with 92
Conclusion
Krupp 350 PS is not a type key but a collective name. It names manufacturer and power class and leaves open everything that actually matters for identification. That’s exactly why your own observation pays off so much with such vehicles: axle count, frame design, coupling rods and builder’s plate together give a classification that the name alone can’t deliver.
That’s all the more true because such collective names are in circulation without anyone ever having defined them bindingly. They come from sales documents, works records and later compilations, and have been passed on ever since. Anyone working with them should treat the name as a rough organising term – and draw the real informative value from what’s actually legible on the vehicle itself.
In short
Horsepower ratings describe a power class, not a design. Supplement them in the field with axle count, frame and builder's plate – and explicitly mark anything uncertain as uncertain.
Collect what no one else documents
Works numbers, photos, locations and dates bundled together – with industrial locomotives, that's often the only record there is.
Summary
- Krupp in Essen was one of the major German locomotive builders and, alongside main-line machines, also supplied shunting and industrial locomotives.
- Power ratings used as type names are common in industrial locomotive building, but less precise than full type keys.
- For a solid identification you need axle count, frame design and above all the builder's plate.
- Observe only from publicly accessible locations – works railways are private property.
Frequently asked questions
Is "Krupp 350 PS" a class designation?
No. It's a collective name by engine power, as was common in industrial locomotive building. A class number is assigned by a railway administration and denotes a defined series. A horsepower rating, by contrast, only describes a power class – vehicles under it can differ considerably in axle count, frame and equipment.
Why were locomotives named after horsepower figures?
Because engine power was the practically decisive figure for industrial customers: it determined which wagon groups could be moved. Manufacturers therefore offered their range in power tiers. Only later did more detailed type keys become established, additionally naming power transmission and wheel arrangement.
How do I reliably identify such a locomotive anyway?
In three steps: record the axle count and frame design, read the builder's plate with manufacturer, type, works number and year built, and note both together with date and location. The works number is the only detail that stays unchanged for a vehicle's entire life.
What else did Krupp build besides shunting locomotives?
The locomotive works in Essen was one of the major German manufacturers and supplied a broad range over decades – from steam locomotives through main-line diesel locomotives to industrial and shunting locomotives. For identification in the field, it's important to know: a Krupp builder's plate alone says nothing yet about the vehicle type.
Why do shunting locomotives carry the type code 98?
The twelve-digit European vehicle number begins with a type code for traction vehicles. 98 marks diesel shunting and light locomotives, 92 diesel main-line locomotives. What matters is purpose and registration, not age, size or manufacturer.
Where can you encounter such vehicles today?
On works, port and private siding railways, as well as at heritage and society railways that preserve retired industrial locomotives. These areas are almost always private property. Keepers and locations change regularly, because used shunting locomotives are traded and leased – check the current status before planning a trip.
Can you infer the build year from the horsepower rating?
No. Power tiers were offered over long periods, and the same tier could be delivered in different body designs. The build year is, as a rule, stated directly on the builder's plate – that's the only reliable source.
Am I allowed to photograph on works premises?
Works, port and private siding railways are private property. Photography there is only permitted with the operator's permission, and entering track areas is out of the question. From a public path different standards apply, but it depends on the individual case – ask beforehand if in doubt.
Log your sighting of the Krupp 350 PS
Date, location and vehicle number logged in seconds – and visible to the community.
Related classes
Krupp Knapsack
Krupp Knapsack combines a manufacturer name and a works designation – typical for industrial locomotives. Here's how to read such names and correctly identify the vehicle.
ShunterGmeinder 250 PS
Gmeinder 250 PS isn't a class, but a power-output designation for an industrial locomotive from Mosbach. Here's how to identify these vehicles all the same.
ShunterHenschel DH 360
The Henschel DH 360 belongs to the shunting-locomotive programme from Kassel. The type name follows a fixed scheme – here's how to read it and what it leaves out.
ShunterGmeinder D 25 B
The Gmeinder D 25 B is a two-axle small locomotive from Mosbach. Its type code reveals the drive and wheel arrangement – the rest is on the builder's plate.
ShunterGmeinder D 500 C
The Gmeinder D 500 C is a three-axle industrial locomotive with a rigid frame. Coupling rods and the wheel-arrangement letter make it identifiable from a distance.
ShunterGmeinder D 75 BB
The Gmeinder D 75 BB is a four-axle industrial locomotive with two bogies. The BB in the name is the key piece of information – here's how to read it correctly.
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