TRACK TECHNOLOGY
Cross and Paddington during the Christmas period left thousands of commuters stranded, and the rail operator facing a potential multi-
Following the problems, Network Rail’s CEO Mark Carne said that the events highlighted the “unacceptable impact on the travelling public when plans go wrong”.
broader, industry-wide review, into the timing of our major works programmes” and the “passenger contingency arrangements for such works”.
Next project phase
project will see the engineering team adding “another crossover each weekend for the next stressing, tamping and welding week in early February”.
GREX’s Aurora inspection system scans track using a combination of high-tech cameras and lasers conveniently mounted on a road-rail vehicle.
RTM asked why a date had not yet been set Wessex programme this year (calendar as remember, and I’ve been doing this 25 years.
“Then we have a series of about 50-60 midweek welding and completing the job,” he said.
“At this point we will go under the radar and most people won’t know we’re there because we will be operating in the ‘white period’ between morning.”
noted that the team has approximately 320 welds to put in – as well as having time to stress the layout – before the hot weather arrives. “We want to get that done by the end of March,” he said.
renewal programme for Wessex.”
that it will boost reliability and punctuality for passengers travelling through Wimbledon and from many other stations and locations.
“Currently there are a number of quality issues and points failures in the area, all of which will be dealt with under the cover of the track with a fully welded layout our lineside neighbours terms of noise pollution, as we’ll be taking out a number of joists, being reduced.”
Shaun Hodges FOR MORE INFORMATION
W:
www.southwesttrains.co.uk/ wimbledonengineering.aspx
Taming
technology to maximise track time
Detailed Aurora scans reveal the exact condition of every tie, joint bar and fastening component along any given section of track.
commuter railway aspired to advance the line’s track inspection programmess. Chief among their concerns were tie assessment and joint bar inspection, as well as minimising the track time needed to complete these programmes.
In
They turned to Georgetown Rail Equipment Company (GREX), an innovative rail solutions provider and creator of the cutting-edge Aurora track inspection system. GREX quickly enhanced its Aurora technology to meet the exact needs of the railway.
Travelling in excess of 30mph, the Aurora road-rail vehicle scanned every tie and joint with a combination of high-tech cameras and mile marker of every tie, joint bar and missing fastening component. With the detailed Aurora report from GREX in hand, the railway was able to quickly deploy preventive maintenance
With manpower and track time at a minimum, railways are seeking out high-tech solutions to track inspection and safety challenges, say Nate Bachman and Greg Grissom from GREX.
with pinpoint precision. This was all completed with little to no interruption of passenger operations.
Aurora is giving railways the ability to maximise their track time in ways never before possible. GREX isn’t stopping with Aurora, either. It recently unveiled Aurora Xi, which adds to Aurora’s powerful capabilities with backscatter x-ray technology. It provides the ability to look inside railway ties to reveal hollow spaces or voids. While the initial roll-out of this product focuses on wood tie
inspection, capabilities are under development.
lidar to measure ballast requirements for its use an analytical measurement to determine the ballast needs for any given stretch of track. If the customer wants to dump according to the survey, they can do so with GREX’s
additional
to drive considerable savings into customer maintenance and construction budgets.
Rail technology is perhaps most powerful when it’s combined and used together. GREX is capable of combining Aurora, Aurora Xi and to provide comprehensive analysis of both provides railways with a wealth of information they can use when planning their capital maintenance programmess. They can now plan purchases well in advance, as well as minimise the manpower and materials they need to get the job done – all while maximising the time their tracks are carrying revenue-generating passengers and freight.
W:
www.georgetownrail.com FOR MORE INFORMATION
rail technology magazine Dec/Jan 15 | 51
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