INNOTRANS: As part of Railway Gazette International’s commitment to providing comprehensive coverage of the InnoTrans trade fair, here we provide a summary of contracts, partnerships and agreements confirmed at the show.
Saudi Arabia Railways signed what it termed a ‘limited time service agreement’ with Deutsche Bahn under which the DBIO arm of the German state railway will take on a shadow operator role covering the Haramain High Speed Railway. SAR says the partnership is intended to help it to enhance its operational and passenger service capabilities. The Haramain high speed line linking Makkah with Madinah opened in 2018, since when services have been operated under contract by RENFE. During InnoTrans, SAR also signed memoranda of understanding with Italian track maintenance group Salcef, aimed at enhancing the understanding of asset maintenance in desert conditions, and with Spain’s Indra Sistemas, covering digital technology R&D.
Hübner Group signed a contract to supply 1 080 gangways for the 90 EMUs that Siemens Mobility is to build for the Munch S-Bahn network, with options for a further 1 080 gangways. It is one of the largest single orders received by the Hübner Group.
Polish high speed rail project promoter CPK signed a contract with Spanish engineering consultancy INECO covering advice on the design and construction of long railway tunnels, implementation of the 2x25 kV AC power supplies, design of high speed turnouts, implementation of the European Railway Traffic Management System, and new line certification. The four-year consultancy contract is worth approximately 2m złoty.
Irish national railway Iarnród Éireann and drivetrain technology supplier ZF signed an MoU further extending a partnership under which various DMUs have been retrofitted with ZF components. Subject to funding and government approval, the latest agreement paves the way for more than 200 IÉ DMU cars to be fitted with ZF’s EcoWorld 2 transmission following a trial launched in 2020 using a single three-car trainset.
The Association of European Rail Rolling Stock Lessors and the International Union of Railways met to discuss potential common areas of interest and explore the possibility of AERRL joining UIC as an affiliate member. UIC and AERRL have identified several key areas on which they could potentially work together, including application of the Entity in Charge of Maintenance Regulation; promoting the replacement of diesel traction; facilitating electric energy recording and invoicing across Europe; and exchange of information on FRMCS.
During InnoTrans, local operator Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn and Siemens Mobility ran a special train for local dignitaries using a Mireo Plus H hydrogen-powered trainset from Basdorf to Berlin Charlottenburg via the cross-city Stadtbahn. Mireo Plus H trains are due to be introduced from December on NEB’s Heidekrautbahn routes, while Mireo Plus B sets will be used on Ostbrandenburg services.
Alstom and Airbus cybersecurity subsidiary Airbus Protect provided an update on their September 2021 co-operation agreement through which the two groups have developed and field-tested a Risk Assessment Methodology for Industrial Security for the rail sector. ‘In the context of rising cyber risks across all sectors, Alstom is committed to safeguarding rail assets of our customers. Our collaboration with Airbus Protect will ensure the continued success of green mobility worldwide’, commented Eddy Thesee, Vice President of Digital & Cybersecurity at Alstom.
Siemens Mobility and MSI Global Ltd, a subsidiary of Singapore’s Land Transport Authority, signed an MoU on September 24 covering ‘a collaborative partnership that will develop rail capabilities for global networks’, with a particular focus on cross-border rail investment in southeast Asia.
The European Rail Data Space was formally launched at InnoTrans by consortium lead Knorr-Bremse. ERDS is being developed by a Europe-wide partnership as part of the MOTIONAL Flagship Project 1 workstream funded through the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking. The project aims to enable trusted data exchanges between rail sector stakeholders, including suppliers, train manufacturers, operators and ticketing providers. The underlying ERDS technology is being developed in a specialist environment provided by telecoms group T-Systems’ Living Labs arm. Meike van’t Hoen, ERDS lead at Knorr-Bremse, commented that ‘thanks to the T-Systems development environment, participants can — for the first time — exchange data while maintaining full data sovereignty, without needing to store the data in a central database or cloud. The creation of the European Rail Data Space represents a major milestone for digitalised rail operations.’
Rolls-Royce and leasing company Alpha Trains have signed a letter of intent for a planned a framework agreement for the overhaul of up to 1 000 MTU drive systems used in Alpha Trains’ fleet of Talent, Desiro and Lint diesel multiple-units.
This aims to replace components before they become obsolete. Rolls-Royce’s Power Systems division is also examining the introduction of the EU maintenance certification ECM 2 and 4.
At InnoTrans on September 24 Siemens Mobility and Dhaya Maju Infrastructure (Asia) signed an MoU to support the Malaysian rail industry with the digitalisation of railway technologies.
