OUR NEW FREIGHT WAGONS –
QUIET, ENERGY-EFFICIENT AND COST-EFFECTIVE
QUIET, ENERGY-EFFICIENT AND COST-EFFECTIVE
Research project “Development and testing of innovative freight wagons” on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI)
Contractor: Arbeitsgemeinschaft DB Cargo AG / VTG AG
DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING
OF INNOVATIVE FREIGHT WAGONS
OF INNOVATIVE FREIGHT WAGONS
Research project on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI)
In the fall of 2016, within the scope of an invitation to tender, the BMVI awarded the consortium DB Cargo AG and VTG AG a research contract entitled “Development and testing of innovative freight wagons” designed to investigate the migration of noise mitigation and energy efficiency improvement technologies to the freight wagon sector
INNOVATIVE FREIGHT WAGONS
FROM DB CARGO AG / VTG AG
FROM DB CARGO AG / VTG AG
For the purpose of this research project, DB Cargo AG and VTG AG formed a consortium, each with a share of 50%.
DB Cargo AG is Germany and Europe’s biggest rail freight operator. With some 90,000 freight wagons, it has the biggest fleet in Europe. VTG AG has more than 80,000 freight wagons worldwide and, with a fleet of approx. 60,000 freight wagons, is the biggest private wagon provider in Europe. The IFW were optimized and structurally enhanced with regard to noise and weight reduction on the basis of existing wagon types, such as the 6-axle flat wagon for the transport of steel products, a 2×2-axle open car transport wagon, a 4-axle tank wagon and an 80 ft container wagon.
INNOVATIVE COMPONENTS
In the past, technically interesting innovations for rail freight have often failed due to lack of economic viability. The aim of this project is to identify and trial innovative components (such as innovative bogies, wheelsets, telematics, etc.) that contribute towards reducing overall life-cycle costs. An additional key focus is the reduction of noise emissions through the testing of noise skirts and innovative wheelset coatings.
MILESTONES
The project was started in September 2016 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
Key milestones were the delivery of new rolling stock, including innovative components, in December 2017, followed in January 2018 by a 4-week test phase of the IFW and reference stock on the Siemens test tracks in Wegberg-Wildenrath. A separate institute of measurement and testing was commissioned by the BMVI to carry out neutral noise and energy measurements of the IFW and reference stock.