Interface - The Journal of Wheel/Rail Interaction

The approach to rail grinding in europe has changed within recent years from a railway- to a contractor-managed operation. In the past, grinding was planned by the railways, which determined the location and number of passes that were needed. Today, the contractor is expected to determine the amount of time and the number of passes required to meet the railway's specification. Contractors are also responsible for the execution and finished quality of the grinding work. Where railway inspectors directed grinding operations in the past, the contractor now controls how the equipment is used to best obtain the specified results.

"Except for the pilot, there is no longer a railway staff member on board the grinder," Wolfgang Schoech, Speno International SA's Manager, External Affairs, told delegates at Advanced Rail Management/Interface Journal's Rail/Wheel Interface Seminar in May.

And where railways in prior years approved the plan and accepted the finished product, it is now up to the contractor to document that the specification has been met. "This means that responsibility for quality control has changed from an expert on the railway side to the contractor," Schoech said.

Contractors determine the longitudinal and transverse profiles, surface conditions and the metal removal required to meet the specification. Using powerful, modular machines, the grinding plan is typically achieved in one to three passes. Average acceptance values (measured peak-to-peak) range from 0.01 mm for short wave (10 - 30 mm) longitudinal profiles to 0.1 mm for longer wave (300 - 1000 mm) longitudinal profiles, after grinding. In a move to standardize specifications across Europe, the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) has drafted a standard on Acceptance of Rail Grinding, Milling and Planning, which is in the final discussion stage.

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