At present, the average locomotive spends more than 30% of its operating time idling due to train formation processes, bottlenecks and loading and unloading periods. The new solution, approved by the German Federal Railway Authority (EBA), enables automatic engine shutdown and restart, reducing idle times by an average of 720 hours per year, offering potential fuel savings of up to 11,000 litres per vehicle.
The system also monitors the status of the engine and auxiliary systems to avoid long set-up times, enabling the locomotive to be ready for operation even in stop mode. In addition, the number of refuelling stops is significantly reduced, and maintenance intervals can be extended due to the reduction in operating hours.
