How much of your revenue dollars are being diverted to capital expenditures and maintenance expenses?
Did you know that since 1980, American railroad companies have been spending more than 40 cents out every revenue dollar¹ on locomotives, infrastructure and equipment costs? That’s more than $660 billion and it’s a huge investment.
At ZTR we know railroads need to see the true value in product upgrades and modernization solutions.
What is Railway IoT?
Railway Internet of Things (IoT) uses asset connectivity, remote diagnostics and precise position monitoring to improve the efficiency of railway operations through data driven analytics and decision-making.
Railway IoT can be applied to your fleet of locomotives or can also include all of your rail yard equipment and Maintenance of Way assets for a holistic view of your railway. You can find a more in depth explanation about Railway IoT here.
What is Railway IoT?
The phrase “Internet of Things” (IoT) describes the connection of devices to the internet and to each other. Although a seemingly simple concept, it has now become more complex with the vast network of physical devices, industrial vehicles, home appliances and a myriad of other items that are now able to connect and exchange data with each other and the internet.
The IoT can also allow objects to be sensed or controlled remotely, across existing network infrastructure, creating opportunities for improved efficiency.
Locomotive Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) provide many numbers when it comes to measuring locomotive performance. Locomotive horsepower (HP), starting tractive effort and continuous tractive effort are just some examples of locomotive performance; however, it isn’t clear what this really means for railways. ZTR can provide a tractive effort analysis that contains clear, real-world information on how your locomotives can be utilized for peak performance.
And how does it fit with the modern railway?
ZTR is proud to announce its new partnership with Surtees in South Africa. Combined, the two companies represent almost a century of experience and expertise in the global railway industry.
2017 Industrial IoT Predictions from the Industrial IoT Division at ZTR Control Systems
LONDON, ONTARIO - ZTR Control Systems is very cognizant of the need in our own community. We have a ZTR Community Giving Committee that looks for ways to give back in a meaningful way.
For the second consecutive year, we participated in the CP Holiday Train event, both by providing volunteers the night of the event and by raising food and monetary donations within our head office in London, Ontario.
There are many items on a locomotive that endure general wear and tear from use and the locomotive batteries are no exception. Even if they are well maintained and replaced before they burn out, they can still have occasional trouble starting the locomotive. The regular starting of a locomotive can damage batteries and reduce their lifespan, requiring more maintenance or replacement sooner. To help with this, engineers looked to supercapacitor technology.
The average age of a diesel powered locomotive in Europe is well over 30 years old, but in fact, many are much older. What other major industry, that is vital to the prosperity of a nation, operates equipment this old? It is commonly done in the railway industry. This begs the question: Why?
