QUIETERRAIL D4.1 List of use cases and optimisation criteria QUIETERRAIL aims to support the development of quieter...
Deliverables: Results Published in June 2026
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Challenge
Switches and crossings remain critical yet failure-prone assets, with limited real-time visibility into their condition and degradation. Traditional maintenance approaches struggle to detect wear and defects early, leading to inefficiencies and disruptions. This constrains the ability to apply predictive maintenance and optimize asset performance through data-driven decision-making.
The solution
Smart Monitoring and Intelligent Asset Management for Switches & Crossings (S&C) provide:
- Integrated monitoring of switches and crossings using smart sensors, infrared, video inspection, Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR)-based measurements, among other sensing technologies, to detect degradation such as wear and plastic deformation.
- Development of new methodologies to improve the lifespan of switches and crossings, such as health indicators (Turnout Health Index and Turnout Maintenance Index), design and repair technologies.
- Use of advanced data fusion and analytics to feed an Intelligent Asset Management System (IAMS), enabling anomaly detection, predictive maintenance and decision support for traffic and maintenance planning.
Readiness for Industrialisation and Deployment
Most of the solutions are currently at lab and technology testing in relevant environment, working towards a prototype level, with several components:
- Monitoring technologies for S&C (infrared cameras, LIDAR, multisensory data fusion) have been tested on real networks in Spain, France and the Netherlands.
- Health and maintenance indicators for S&C are being validated on high-speed lines (e.g. Madrid–Valencia).
- Additive Manufacturing (AM) repair technologies for switches and crossings are currently demonstrated under laboratory conditions, laying the groundwork for future industrial deployment.
Maturity level
TRL 6 (Technology demonstrated in relevant environment )
Expected benefits
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The solution provides significant technical, operational, environmental and economic benefits:
- Real-time condition monitoring and predictive maintenance, reducing unplanned failures and service disruptions.
- A reduction in in-service failures and in maintenance costs.
- Extended service life of S&C components through design and advanced repair technologies.
- Improved safety by reducing the need for field inspections and enabling remote diagnostics.
- Lower lifecycle costs and more sustainable use of materials thanks to targeted repairs and optimised maintenance interventions.
Who benefits
Infrastructure Managers
Railway operators
Suppliers
Final users
Conclusion
Thanks to this solution:
- Infrastructure managers get improved asset reliability, optimised maintenance planning and reduced lifecycle costs.
- Railway operators benefit increased network availability, fewer disruptions and higher operational performance.
- Maintenance contractors and suppliers can have access to advanced diagnostic tools and innovative repair technologies.
- Final users (passengers and freight customers) can benefit of improved service reliability, punctuality and safety.
Learn more about the project
FP3-IAM4RAIL
This solution has been developed within the Europe’s Rail (EU-Rail) Flagship Project FP3-IAM4RAIL. The project FP3-IAM4RAIL focuses on seven different integrated demonstrators for rail assets which are key for research and innovation in the rail sector.