New signalling along the Durham Coast Line

A. Samuel
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The Durham Coast Line is now benefitting from new signalling following a £28 million scheme that has modernised the 25km section between Stranton in Hartlepool and Ryhope Grange. Five signal boxes have been decommissioned as part of the project, with control being transferred to a Westcad workstation at Ryhope. Hall Deane and Church Street level crossings have been renewed with a CCTV system.

The area is a notorious cable theft hot spot so Network Rail has adopted anti-theft measures to make the system’s new cables harder to steal and easier to trace.

The project has been completed on time and on budget in just 18 months and has had minimal impact on train services. Most of the 160,000 man hours of work were carried out during ‘Rules of the Route’ possessions.

West Hampstead Thameslink new station building

A. Samuel
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Construction of a new station building at West Hampstead Thameslink has got underway, with the work set to be completed in December 2011. It will increase passenger capacity, ease congestion and improve connections with the separate Overground and Underground stations.

As part of its commitment to delivering value for money, Network Rail agreed to revisit designs for the building. Whilst the outline of the scheme remains unchanged, significant cost savings have been achieved through changes to construction methods and materials. A silent piling method will also be used to minimise the noise impact on local residents.

New Zealand rail rescue service

A. Samuel
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Plasser & Theurer’s MFS system of conveyor and hopper units has been put to the test in the Manawatu Gorge on New Zealand’s North Island. Following a landslide, 60 metres of tracks were buried under 10,000m3 of material. The only way to remove it was with a rake of six MFS 40-6 wagons, with a combined capacity of 240m3.

Rail services through the gorge were suspended at the end of September after a freight train hit the debris and derailed. The locomotive was rescued within hours but access constraints in the remote area meant that the job of clearing the line proved far more time-consuming. Abseilers used explosives to loosen material at the top of the slip, bringing it safely down to track level for removal.

Ipswich Station’s new footbridge

A. Samuel
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A new footbridge has been lifted into place at Ipswich Station as part of the £370 million ‘Access for All’ scheme, providing a step-free route between the concourse and all four platforms. Two new lifts fitted with CCTV and telephone links will also be installed, together with tactile paving on the platforms.

To date, 148 stations in England, Wales and Scotland have been selected to receive similar improvements which are being managed and delivered by Network Rail. The facilities at Ipswich are due to be completed by spring 2011. Seven others on the National Express East Anglia network will benefit between now and 2013.

Russian Railways’ environmental protection work in 2010

A. Samuel
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Russian Railways invested 1.4 billion rubles in the construction and reconstruction of environmental protection facilities during 2010, as part of its Environmental Strategy. Under the programme, 110,000 tons of industrial and consumer waste were recycled and neutralized, and greenhouse gas emissions were slashed by 345,700 tons.

Company subsidiaries reduced emissions of atmospheric pollutants from stationary sources by 5%. The smaller environmental impact was achieved by technical retrofitting, an effective system for managing and monitoring environmental activities, and through investment projects.

During 2010, the company conducted shoreline reinforcement work near the lines along Lake Baikal and the Black Sea coast, and overhauled diesel locomotives, switching outdated engines for more modern and environmentally friendly models.

Gas-turbine and dual-mode shunters were used for moving trains, an innovative freight road locomotive was developed and tested, and energy saving measures were adopted, including the installation of LED lighting.

Russian Railways has drawn up and adopted an Environmental Strategy up to 2015 with an outlook to 2030. The document aims for a 35% reduction in the company’s negative environmental impact by 2015, and 70% by 2030.

Rail is recognized throughout the world as one of the most environmentally friendly modes of transport, because the intensity of its energy consumption is significantly lower than that of other forms of transport, for example cars. The environmental advantages of railway transport in Russia are ensured by broad use of electric traction (more than 85% of freight and 80% of passengers), which reduces harmful atmospheric emissions.

Russian Railways plans to buy 1,250 locomotives in 2011-2013

A. Samuel
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President of Russian Railways Vladimir Yakunin announced the plans.

“The locomotive fleet has traditionally been one of the key elements of the network’s operations. Its efficiency and reliability dictates not only the rhythm and results of the company’s work, but also the quality of freight and passenger services”, Vladimir Yakunin said.

The company president said that current reforms of the locomotive fleet should lead to substantially improved operational efficiency, with a 16% increase in locomotive productivity by 2015.

Commenting on the state of the company’s locomotive fleet, Vladimir Yakunin noted that since the founding of Russian Railways, locomotive productivity has increased by 10%. Over the past seven years, the company has acquired more than 2,000 new locomotives, and modernized and extended the service life of more than 3,700 locomotives. Substantial funds have been spent on developing vacation retreats for locomotive crews, as well as rehabilitation centres, and on modernizing and renewing depots.

“Russian Railways is now switching to new principles of partnership with railway equipment producers, harmonized with European standards. These are focused on comprehensive safety parameters, operational readiness, and lifecycle cost of equipment, which will define the company’s technical policies in its relations with workers and producers”, Vladimir Yakunin said.

For example, the electric passenger locomotive EP20 is being developed at Transmashholding’s Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Plant, in conjunction with Alstom. In November 2010, the Sinara Group and Siemens finished work on a test model of a new-generation 2ES10 electric freight locomotive. In total, Russian Railways plans to buy 1,250 locomotives from 2011 through 2013 at a cost of over 112 billion rubles.

Bombardier Transportation signs agreement with Russian Railways

A. Samuel
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BT Signaling B.V. has signed an agreement to purchase a stake in the signalling equipment manufacturer United Electrical Engineering Plants, known as Elteza. Elteza is a subsidiary of Russian Railways (RZD). Initially, BT Signaling will purchase a 25 per cent stake in Elteza. Following further approval, BT Signaling will increase its stake to nearly 50 per cent. RZD will remain the majority shareholder. The agreement was signed at a ceremony in Moscow on December 13, attended by Pierre Beaudoin, President and CEO of Bombardier Inc. and Vladimir Yakunin, President of Russian Railways.

Elteza is Russia’s largest signalling equipment producer with more than 3,000 employees across seven manufacturing sites. The company focuses on the design, development and production of rail signalling equipment and automatic and remote train control systems which have been delivered in Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Baltic states. The new partnership will be one of the first successful examples of the privatisation of a Russian Railways’ subsidiary and part of the modernization strategy of RZD.

Already strong partners in the signalling sector, Bombardier and RZD have a well established engineering joint venture, Bombardier Transportation (Signal) Ltd., in operation in Moscow since 1996. This partnership has worked in close cooperation with Elteza to equip over 90 Russian stations with BOMBARDIER EBI Lock 950 computer-based interlocking (CBI) technology. This new agreement will lead to the creation of an Elteza department dedicated to new technologies and focusing on the manufacture of products including EBI Lock 950 as well as the latest generation of wayside products.

Commenting on the announcement, André Navarri, President and COO of Bombardier Transportation, said: “This agreement is a landmark for Bombardier Transportation, increasing our already strong presence in the rail control sector in the region and expanding our signalling technology interests.” He added: “We value this opportunity to further develop our presence in Russia but also in CIS and Baltic States.”

Sergey Ermolaev, Chief Country Representative Russia and CIS of Bombardier Transportation, stated: “We have had a strong relationship with RZD for many years and this new agreement further confirms the strong reputation of our technology and our organisation. We are very pleased to be working together on this exciting venture and look forward to continuing to develop our operations in Russia.”

Completion of this transaction is subject to the approval of all required governmental authorities and to other consents and other usual conditions. The transaction is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2011.

First Capital Connect kick starts young footballers’ careers

A. Samuel
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First Capital Connect has donated train season tickets to five young football scholars starting their careers at the Stevenage Football Academy.

The Stevenage FC scholarship is a two-year course for 16 year olds wishing to aspire to become professional footballers. They work throughout the year dividing their time between studying and learning the skills required to become a professional footballer. At the end of the course they can be selected to play for Stevenage, move to another football club or look into becoming coaches.

Five of the students enrolled in the football scholarship live in the London area and are commuting to Hitchin everyday to the North Herts College where the scholars train. In order to help them to achieve their goal of becoming professional football players First Capital Connect has provided them with free travel.

To mark the donation a First Capital Connect team challenged the young footballers to a penalty shoot out and five-a-side match at North Herts College. The FCC team won the penalty shoot out however the football academy team commanded the five-a-side match and won 9-2.

Steve Castle, a train driver manager at First Capital Connect who took part in the football said:

“We are delighted to be able to help out the young footballers at Stevenage Football Academy as they look to start their careers in football. Our team had a great (but exhausting) time playing against the scholars and we were extremely impressed with their football skills. We wish them all the best for their future careers and will certainly look out for their names in the future.”

Jimmy Gilligan, Stevenage Football Academy’s Head of Youth, said:

“On behalf of the academy I would like to thank First Capital Connect for their generosity. The season tickets have made a real difference to the boys and I am pleased they were able to express their gratitude in person.”

IBM reveals five innovations that will change our lives in the next five years

A. Samuel
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IBM have formally unveiled the fifth annual “Next Five in Five” – a list of innovations that have the potential to change the way people work, live and play over the next five years:

• You’ll beam up your friends in 3-D

• Batteries will breathe air to power our devices

• You won’t need to be a scientist to save the planet

• Your commute will be personalised

• Computers will help energise your city

The Next Five in Five is based on market and societal trends expected to transform our lives, as well as emerging technologies from IBM’s Labs around the world that can make these innovations possible.

In the next five years, technology innovations will change people’s lives in the following ways:

You’ll beam up your friends in 3-D

In the next five years, 3-D interfaces – like those in the movies – will let you interact with 3-D holograms of your friends in real time. Movies and TVs are already moving to 3-D, and as 3-D and holographic cameras get more sophisticated and miniaturised to fit into cell phones, you will be able to interact with photos, browse the Web and chat with your friends in entirely new ways.

Scientists are working to improve video chat to become holography chat – or “3-D telepresence.” The technique uses light beams scattered from objects and reconstructs a picture of that object, a similar technique to the one human eyes use to visualize our surroundings.

You’ll be able to see more than your friends in 3-D too. Just as a flat map of the earth has distortion at the poles that makes flight patterns look indirect, there is also distortion of data – which is becoming greater as digital information becomes “smarter” – like your digital photo album. Photos are now geo-tagged, the Web is capable of synching information across devices and computer interfaces are becoming more natural.

Scientists at IBM Research are working on new ways to visualise 3-D data, working on technology that would allow engineers to step inside designs of everything from buildings to software programs, running simulations of how diseases spread across interactive 3-D globes, and visualizing trends happening around the world on Twitter – all in real time and with little to no distortion.

Batteries will breathe air to power our devices

Ever wish you could make your laptop battery last all day without needing a charge? Or what about a cell phone that powers up by being carried in your pocket?

In the next five years, scientific advances in transistors and battery technology will allow your devices to last about 10 times longer than they do today. And better yet, in some cases, batteries may disappear altogether in smaller devices.

Instead of the heavy lithium-ion batteries used today, scientists are working on batteries that use the air we breath to react with energy-dense metal, eliminating a key inhibitor to longer lasting batteries. If successful, the result will be a lightweight, powerful and rechargeable battery capable of powering everything from electric cars to consumer devices.

But what if we could eliminate batteries all together?

By rethinking the basic building block of electronic devices, the transistor, IBM is aiming to reduce the amount of energy per transistor to less than 0.5 volts. With energy demands this low, we might be able to lose the battery altogether in some devices like mobile phones or e-readers.

The result would be battery-free electronic devices that can be charged using a technique called energy scavenging.  Some wrist watches use this today – they require no winding and charge based on the movement of your arm.  The same concept could be used to charge mobile phones. for example – just shake and dial.

You won’t need to be a scientist to save the planet

While you may not be a physicist, you are a walking sensor. In five years, sensors in your phone, your car, your wallet and even your tweets will collect data that will give scientists a real-time picture of your environment. You’ll be able to contribute this data to fight global warming, save endangered species or track invasive plants or animals that threaten ecosystems around the world. In the next five years, a whole class of “citizen scientists” will emerge, using simple sensors that already exist to create massive data sets for research.

Simple observations such as when the first thaw occurs in your town, when the mosquitoes first appear, if there’s no water running where a stream should be – all this is valuable data that scientists don’t have in large sets today. Even your laptop can be used as a sensor to detect seismic activity. If properly employed and connected to a network of other computers, your laptop can help map out the aftermath of an earthquake quickly, speeding up the work of emergency responders and potentially saving lives.

IBM recently patented a technique that enables a system to accurately and precisely conduct post-event analysis of seismic events, such as earthquakes, as well as provide early warnings for tsunamis, which can follow earthquakes. The invention also provides the ability to rapidly measure and analyze the damage zone of an earthquake to help prioritize emergency response needed following an earthquake.

The company is also contributing mobile phone “apps” that allow typical citizens to contribute invaluable data to causes, like improving the quality of drinking water or reporting noise pollution. Already, an app called Creek Watch allows citizens to take a snapshot of a creek or stream, answer three simple questions about it and the data is automatically accessible by the local water authority.

Your commute will be personalised

Imagine your commute with no jam-packed highways, no crowded subways, no construction delays and not having to worry about being late for work. In the next five years, advanced analytics technologies will provide personalized recommendations that get commuters where they need to go in the fastest time. Adaptive traffic systems will intuitively learn traveler patterns and behavior to provide more dynamic travel safety and route information to travelers than is available today.

IBM researchers are developing new models that will predict the outcomes of varying transportation routes to provide information that goes well beyond traditional traffic reports, after-the fact devices that only indicate where you are already located in a traffic jam, and web-based applications that give estimated travel time in traffic.

Using new mathematical models and IBM’s predictive analytics technologies, the researchers will analyze and combine multiple possible scenarios that can affect commuters to deliver the best routes for daily travel, including many factors, such as traffic accidents, commuter’s location, current and planned road construction, most traveled days of the week, expected work start times, local events that may impact traffic, alternate options of transportation such as rail or ferries, parking availability and weather.

For example, by combining predictive analytics with real-time information about current travel congestion from sensors and other data, the system could recommend better ways to get to a destination, such as how to get to a nearby mass transit hub, whether the train is predicted to be on time, and whether parking is predicted to be available at the train station. New systems can learn from regular travel patterns where you are likely to go and then integrate all available data and prediction models to pinpoint the best route.

Computers will help energise your city

Innovations in computers and data centers are enabling the excessive heat and energy that they give off to do things like heat buildings in the winter and power air conditioning in the summer. Can you imagine if the energy poured into the world’s data centers could in turn be recycled for a city’s use?

With up to 50 percent of the energy consumed by a modern data center goes toward air cooling. Most of the heat is then wasted because it is just dumped into the atmosphere. New technologies, such as novel on-chip water-cooling systems developed by IBM, the thermal energy from a cluster of computer processors can be efficiently recycled to provide hot water for an office or houses.

A pilot project in Switzerland involving a computer system fitted with the technology is expected to save up to 30 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, the equivalent of an 85 percent carbon footprint reduction. A novel network of microfluidic capillaries inside a heat sink is attached to the surface of each chip in the computer cluster, which allows water to be piped to within microns of the semiconductor material itself. By having water flow so close to each chip, heat can be removed more efficiently. Water heated to 60 °C is then passed through a heat exchanger to provide heat that is delivered elsewhere.

ABB’s $55 million order from Stadler Rail

A. Samuel
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ABB, the power and automation technology group, has won orders worth about $55 million from Swiss train manufacturer Stadler Rail for equipment that will help to maximize the reliability and energy efficiency of rolling stock for two Swiss rail operators.

ABB will deliver specially designed traction converters with integrated onboard power supplies as well as traction transformers and battery chargers for 28 double-decker trains to be delivered to BLS, the biggest private railway company in Switzerland. Traction products convert electricity from overhead power lines to the voltage levels needed by the trains’ motors and a host of auxiliary power systems (lighting, heating, ventilation, automatic doors etc.).

ABB will also deliver traction converters and traction transformers to SBB Cargo, the freight unit of the Swiss Federal Railways, for 30 shunting locomotives, which couple carriages and wagons. The new shunters are versatile hybrid locomotives with a supplementary diesel motor to power the drive chain on lines that are not electrified.

“This contract demonstrates ABB’s special combination of leading-edge technology and rail industry expertise,” said Ulrich Spiesshofer, head of ABB’s Discrete Automation and Motion division.

The orders, booked in the fourth quarter of 2010, continue the highly productive business cooperation between ABB and Stadler Rail.

ABB has a long history of providing reliable, innovative and energy-efficient technologies to the rail sector, manufacturing and servicing all the systems, subsystems and components used in modern urban, conventional and high-speed rail networks. This includes rail infrastructure and components for rolling stock, as well as signalling, and telecommunication systems.

Increasing concern for the environment, rapid urbanization, the need to move more people and freight faster, especially in emerging economies, as well as volatile fuel prices, make rail one of several high-potential growth industries ABB has specifically targeted for its power and automation technologies.

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