Engineering news
Scotland’s railways have a number of new trains on the way, including the LNER Azuma, class 365s and class 385s, and it’s important to make sure these trains will actually fit on existing lines.
The Trimble GEDO Scan system – operated by Network Rail’s team of absolute track geometry engineers – has been deployed to collect detailed information about the track and surrounding features such as bridges, parapets and platforms. It quickly gathers precise, high-resolution data for use in track clearance assessments on structures and tunnels.
The scanning system has been used across the network to carry out general surveys for maintenance and monitoring but also to assess the capability and suitability of specific routes to carry certain types of rolling stock – such as to review the possibility of introducing class 158 rolling stock on the West Highland Line and ahead of the introduction of high-speed trains on the network between Scotland’s seven cities.
“Three-dimensional scanning provides more and more detailed information in a shorter time which reduces the need to be on the track – making it safer as well as more efficient,” said Graham Hutchison, absolute track geometry engineer with Network Rail in Scotland.
“This system is ideally suited to tunnel surveys where irregular construction can make it difficult to locate the main pinch points. The three-dimensional scan measures the full extent of a tunnel precisely in about a fifth of the time that it took previously.
“It can also be used for proactive monitoring to inform maintenance requirements and to better predict and prevent faults and to reduce disruption for passengers.”