Railway Track & Structures - June 2008 - (Page 57)

Figure 2 illustrates one such rail grinding plan developed by the GrindManage grinding planning software. 5. Monitor effectiveness of rail maintenance activity. It is extremely important, as part of an overall rail managements process, to monitor the effectiveness of the maintenance activities. This is to include monitoring the effectiveness of rail grinding and of rail lubrication. Newgeneration analysis tools allow for the monitoring of the effectiveness of the rail grinding process, not just simply in checking metal removal, but in evaluating the effectiveness of the grinding in achieving the desired rail profiles necessary to control fatigue and/or wear (Figure 3). In addition it allows for the longerterm tracking of the rail profile condition and the use of this long-term behavior to plan future grinding cycles, as illustrated in Figure 4. Likewise, in the case of rail lubrication, such analysis tools examine the rate of rail wear, based on actual measured wear data from profile measurement systems, and use that information to assess the effectiveness of the lubrication process and determine if modification to the lubrication capabilities, on a local basis, need to be made. curves and tangents) and planning of rail grinding activities. They are also used directly for quality control monitoring (Figures 3 and 4) using quantitative indices such as SmartGrind’s Grinding Quality Indices. Thus, these grinding management tools would allow for comparison of existing profiles, as measured by the rail profile systems onboard inspection vehicles with rail profile templates. The difference between the actual and desired profiles is then calculated and the proper grinding patterns and grinding steps defined, based on this difference. Note, as part of the initial activity, a determination of what rail profiles are required, as function of problems (corrugations, fatigue, wear) and location (high rail, low rail, tangent) must be made and the required set of profile templates developed, based on actual wheel con- Rail grinding management Management of rail grinding is a key part of an overall rail maintenance strategy. This includes: • Determining grinding requirements to include final rail profiles (templates) and surface condition standards. • Development of a grinding strategy to determine what is the focus of the grinding, i.e., corrugation control, fatigue defect control, wear control, etc. Note different strategies can be employed on different track segments exhibiting differing problems. • Development of a grinding plan showing locations to be ground, number of passes, grinding speed, etc. • Rail grinding process monitoring • Quality Control to determine if the final profiles left in track are correct, if defects are removed to the proper depth, etc. New-generation grinding management tools allow for the analysis of intrack railhead profiles, comparison with desired templates (separate for www.rtands.com Railway Track & Structures June 2008 57 http://www.rtands.com

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Railway Track & Structures - June 2008 Contents On Track Industry Today Supplier News AREMA News NRC News TTCI R&D Grade Crossings Provide Interface Between Railroads, Public Grade-Crossing Equipment & Materials Guide Fastener Suppliers Getting a Grip Grinding Plays Part in Rail Maintenance Big Picture Products and Literature People Calendar Sales Representatives Website Directory Advertisers Index Professional Directory Classified Advertising Chicago Perspective

Railway Track & Structures - June 2008

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