Regional Focus Feature There is a very positive outlook on life I was a fish out of water as, initially, I couldnt find any rugby on TV Jim Claxton Director, Rail Control Systems THE Words Andrew Bennett Dion Church Principal Consultant Photos Cordelia Noble & Erlend Rehn RAIL FOR ALL VIEW SEASONS FROM HERE Whatever the weather, and no matter how demanding the environment, SNC-Lavalins consultants are braving searing desert heat, snow and frost plus other treacherous conditions to help clients across the globe Words Andrew Bennett Photo (Jim) Keith Friendship Photo (Dion) David A Gilmour Plotting a smooth course through the Nordic winter Jack Frost can certainly keep a rail engineer in Norway alert. Although the countrys climate is more temperate than some might think, winter weather can change rapidly, bringing hazardous snow falls, temperatures as low as -35C, strong winds and sudden rain showers. An additional problem facing rail operators is the sharp contrast in temperatures inside and outside railway tunnels rapidly freezing components when a train emerges into the cold air. This can affect suspension systems or take its toll on braking, and ice can damage cables, affect pneumatic systems, and have an impact on We find the most demanding passenger doors. lines, such as the Bergen Line in SNC-Lavalins engineers are experienced in advising clients on how to Norway, to do testing deal with winter-related challenges, including snow ingress into tractioncooling systems. Their rolling stock examination programme has an Erlend Rehn additional set of dynamic tests for Norways network. Senior Project Engineer The winter can be pretty demanding, but we should not exaggerate the issues either we need to be careful not to over-engineer, says Senior Project Engineer Erlend Rehn. Erlend is among those advising on the procurement of new high-speed, airport-express trains for operator Flytoget, which are being manufactured by CAF in Spain. Previously, he has tested other new fleets, including the Cargonet Euro 4000 class freight trains. They suffered brake-performance problems because of snow ingress on the brake discs, until a new pad material was specified. Reduced brake performance is one of the most common challenges. Different snowfalls and snow packing conditions will affect rail operations in various ways; in the worst case, avalanches can cause derailments, but these are rare. After using a climatic chamber to simulate extreme temperatures, Erlend and his colleagues put new rolling stock through its paces on taxing routes before it begins live service. It is always best to test in controlled conditions for instance, cooling the train down to -40C, and testing critical systems, before we do additional testing on the track. We find the most demanding lines, such as the Bergen Line, in Norway, or Malmbanan (Iron Ore Line) in Sweden, explained Erlend. Battling with Australias arid desert W estern Australia: dry, dusty, often thinly populated, and with unforgiving regions, characterised by arid land stretching across vast areas. SNC-Lavalin is working as independent safety assessors for a project to allow driverless heavy haul freight trains to carry iron ore between mining operations and coastal ports. Achieving safe automatic running of these lengthy heavy-haul services has brought several technical challenges not least ensuring trackside equipment along around 1,000km of track can function well in such a harsh climate. Level-crossing monitoring systems, where the track cuts across the public highway, are another safety focus. Onboard and wayside (trackside) equipment has been designed to Wearing full personal protection withstand a wide range of temperatures from -10C to 65C in both equipment (PPE) when we visit cases. But the unforgiving climate, isolated nature of the area, and sheer the operation in 40-plus-degree amount of dust make working conditions tough, according to Safety & Assurance Lead Candice Augur. heat isnt fun, but there are guys All the wayside equipment is under shade, within cubby houses, which based there permanently who are there to prevent direct sunlight. The solar panels to power them are wear PPE all the time on top of the huts, says Candice who has worked closely on the project since its outset, with SNC-Lavalin colleague Greg Newman. Candice Augur As well as the equipment being ruggedised with a high ingressSection Lead, Safety & Assurance protection rating, to ensure against damage by water and other unwanted materials the safety assessment team has had to consider how sensitive the system is to dingoes (wild Australian dogs), kangaroos or emus crossing the tracks. In addition to how the heat and climate could cause the automated service to fail, the safety assessment team has examinedthe obstruction-protection systemfor the many level crossings on the railway. The sensors lenses need to be cleaned manually by a maintenance team to remove dust from time to time, while trackside build-up of weeds and other debris must also be cleared. Candice and her colleagues consider it a privilege to be involved in this project, but she adds: Wearing full PPE [personal protection equipment] when we visit the operation in 40-plus-degree heat isnt fun, but there are guys based there permanently who wear PPE all the time. WSP is installed at the depot, ready for leaf-fall season Autumn solution offers true grip A utumn may be a colourful season, but it can bring significant headaches for rail operators. Leaf fall is a widely recognised problem in the rail sector, with leaves compacted onto the rail head sometimes causing dramatically reduced adhesion, resulting in longer stopping distances for rolling stock. The consequences of this include delays and a lack of availability of trains for passenger services, as well as damage to wheels. An innovative solution has been deployed in the UK by SNC-Lavalin and its partners, with the fitting of a wheel-slide protection (WSP) system onto rolling stock that was built in the 1980s and uses tread brakes instead of discs. The Class 15x series trains are in common use on some routes, but unlike modern vehicles were not fitted with WSP systems as standard. WSP works like anti-lock braking systems (ABS) on cars. The results from the first Retrofitting entire fleets in class fitment were so Commissioned by leasing company Porterbrook which owns around successful that the project team 250 class 15x vehicles SNC-Lavalins Rolling Stock Enhancements team, along with colleagues and partners, fitted a WSP system, installed the system on the manufactured by Knorr-Bremse Rail Services (KBRS), on a two-car 156 entire 156 fleet for Abellios and unit for Abellio Greater Anglia. EMTs Porterbrook units The test unit went into passenger service and the results were so successful during autumn and winter 2016 that the project team Rob Purdy installed the system on the entire fleet of eight units. Team Leader, Rolling Stock Enhancements After this, and with the proven increase in braking performance from the new automated system, SNC-Lavalin managed the retrofitting of this braking upgrade to a fleet of 11 East Midlands Trains (EMT) units, also owned by Porterbrook, during autumn 2017. Time was of the essence in this first in class engineering project by SNC-Lavalin, Porterbrook and KBRS, assisted by Loram, for Abellio. This type of vehicle is in heavy passenger use, so cannot be taken out of service for lengthy periods, and the project had to meet tight financial restrictions to deliver a return on investment. Other challenges the project team needed to overcome included designing the solution, installing new technology on an older train, and managing a supply chain spanning four European countries and their different ways of operating a railway. In recognition of their effective solution, SNC-Lavalin and its project partners won the Engineering and Safety category at the 2017 Rail Industry Innovation Awards for the WSP system project. viewpoint@snclavalin.com snclavalin.com