Advanced Rail Management - Rail / Wheel Interaction Management for Rail and Heavy-Haul Operations

Advanced Rail Management (ARM) is a consulting / contracting service company specializing in providing turnkey rail / wheel interaction management solutions on freight, passenger and rail transit systems, and for heavy-haul operations. The company has been delivering its services in the US and Canada since 1990.

ARM's comprehensive services extend rail and wheel life and optimize rail / wheel interaction. ARM employs a unique blend of technical design skills and practical know-how, backed by 15 years of field experience on Class 1, regional and shortline mixed-passenger and rail-transit systems.

Optical rail measurement

ARM performs optical rail measurement using highly accurate, state-of-the-art hardware and software. Services include:

• Measuring actual versus desired rail profiles
• Measuring gauge and cant angle
• Measuring percentage of vertical and gauge-head loss
• Identifying rail type
• Performing trend analysis (wear versus tonnage)
• Forecasting short and long-term maintenance and rail replacement needs
• Providing quality control through pre and post-grinding measurements that determine metal-removal rates and verify that the desired profiles are in place

Planning and supervision of rail grinding programs

ARM's experienced field and technical staff are uniquely qualified to plan and oversee all phases of a rail grinding process. The company can:

• Analyze rail (and wheel) conditions
• Recommend and design rail profiles that match your system's operating (and wheel) conditions
• Develop a grinding plan based on information gathered by ORMV field inspections and sample wheel measurements
• Obtain rail grinding equipment and manage the grinding operation
• Manage owned or leased rail-grinding equipment

Training and monitoring of wheel-truing procedures

ARM's knowledgeable staff and consulting vehicle dynamicists provide high-level expertise and implementation. They can:

• Measure existing wheel profiles
• Design improved wheel profiles to optimize vehicle performance
• Assess wheel-truing procedures
• Train railway personnel to operate and calibrate wheel-cutting equipment

Rail / wheel interaction data integration and analysis

ARM's database software is capable of analyzing and integrating ARM or customer-provided data on wheel and rail wear, ultrasonic defects or track geometry. It can also match rail measurements with wheel measurement data to:

• Model wheel / rail contact and interaction
• Predict rail and wheel wear and plan rail-grinding and wheel-truing cycles
• Recommend optimized rail and wheel profiles, and grinding and truing cycles

Rail / wheel interaction management services

ARM's full range of rail / wheel interaction management services includes wheel / rail interface studies; optical rail measurement; wheel measurement; dynamic wheel / rail interaction analysis via undercar video; track geometry measurement; planning and supervision of rail-grinding programs; training and monitoring of wheel-truing procedures; data integration and analysis; and monitoring.

Turnkey planning, implementation and management services

Turnkey services incorporate all aspects of ARM's broad expertise, delivering information that enables you to generate data, forecast maintenance needs and make decisions that can maximize your investment in wheel / rail assets.

Rail / wheel interaction consultancy and experts

ARM's unique approach to problem solving involves a combination of high-level consulting services with practical hands-on experience. Its team of scientists, engineers and practical-field staff works to provide clients with exactly the right blend of services and expertise required to address their unique challenge.

ARM's experienced staff gather and evaluate data on rail and wheel conditions, design intelligent corrective measures, efficiently implement and oversee all field work, then carefully monitor and report on the effect over time.

The company's expertise is unparalleled. It identifies the problem, provides a solution and presents the results in a format that you can work with. Available individually or as part of a complete turnkey package, ARM's services are designed to meet your system's design, maintenance and operating requirements.