by Jeff Tuzik “Engineers predict things,” said Cory Hogan, Director of Vehicle Dynamics Studies at Ensco Rail Inc. As computing power and modelling have become more sophisticated, engineers have increasingly used digital-twins to model vehicle, track, and component behavior with incredible fidelity. Like engineers, digital twins can be great predictors. …
By Jeff Tuzik On freight railroads, rail is generally the largest single asset, capital expenditure, and one of the primary costs. From a maintenance perspective, rail is subject to wear and defect development, both of which can be actively managed in a number of ways. From an accounting perspective, rail …
By Jeff Tuzik The concept of big data is something the railroad industry has been aware of for many years. The Federal Railroad Administration, for example, has been involved in research and development projects involving big data, neural networks and machine learning since as early as 2002. The prevalence and proliferation …
By Jeff Tuzik It’s easier now than ever to collect data on wheel/rail interaction. The number of measurement tools, the number of parameters that can be measured, and the accuracy of those measurements have changed the way wheel and rail systems are designed, monitored and maintained. While all of …
By Jeff Tuzik (Continue to Part 2) Proper management of the wheel/rail interface is a daunting process. It involves elements of design and planning, automated and manned inspection, corrective and preventive maintenance and data management, to name only a few. Managing the systemic health of a railroad means understanding processes that range from the …