Semih Kalay, senior vice-president, Technology Transportation Technology Center Inc (TTCI), assesses how North American railways are utilising results from the latest research to improve the performance of their freight operations.

IRJ at Railway Interchange: Frauscher is expanding its product range by offering a sensor with an open analogue interface alongside its wheel detection systems.

Freight wagons remain the source of high levels of ­noise despite European legislation prohibiting the use of cast-iron brake blocks on new wagons. Dr Martin Toward, Dr Giacomo Squicciarini, and Professor David Thompson from the University of Southampton's Institute of Sound and Vibration Research look at current efforts to mitigate rolling noise and curve squeal from freight rolling stock.

While measuring wheelsets offer the potential to improve track alignment quality analysis, adoption by infrastructure managers has generally been slow. Swiss company Prose's new web-based system aims to improve the economics of the process, as its general manager and head of measuring wheelsets, Dipl-Ing André Rohrbeck, explains.

Freight railways in the United States and Canada have encountered difficulties with wheels in recent years, specifically through vertical split rim wheel failures, which have become more apparent as axleloads have increased. With no obvious cause or solution to the problem, Cameron Lonsdale and John Oliver from Amsted Rail, investigated the role of axial residual stress in these failures.

SYDNEY suburban rail operator Sydney Trains has awarded DeltaRail, Britain, a contract to supply an automated wheel and brake monitoring system, which will be deployed at various locations around the network as part of its asset condition monitoring strategy.