Our association's specialist areas
Every train is made up of thousands of individual components. Before the train can even move, rails, sleepers, signalling systems, train control systems and overhead lines are required. Passenger information display systems and ticket machines are also needed at the stations and on the trains so that passengers can buy their tickets and catch the right trains. Air conditioning, heating and fire protection systems allow passengers to travel in comfort and safety. There are also products and services that the passengers never see, such as vehicle testing, engineering services and software.
The Swiss railway industry has a solution for almost everything needed to run the railways. Take a closer look at the diverse world of Swiss railway industry companies!
Engineering & Services
Rail lines, rolling stock, power lines and everything else that is needed to run the railway must be planned, tested and approved. Our Engineering & Services specialist area is where Swissrail members working in these fields meet. The companies in this specialist area offer consulting and engineering services across the entire railway system.
Examples include:
- Assessment and certification
- construction concept development, procurement, construction, modernisation, etc.
- rolling stock approvals
- Support for tenders
Infrastructure Construction
Our infrastructure construction specialist area is home to over 30 companies. These companies are involved in the planning, construction and maintenance of railway infrastructure as well as in the manufacture of products needed for the construction and maintenance of infrastructure. The companies in the infrastructure construction specialist area are responsible for:
- Project planning of railway infrastructure construction, upgrading and renovation. Companies in our infrastructure construction specialist area cover the whole spectrum of planning – from railway stations and the track network to tunnels and bridges.
- From surveying to certifications: engineering solutions and consulting services in a wide variety of infrastructure construction projects.
- Construction, maintenance and renovation of track infrastructure, station infrastructure and electrical installations
- Manufacture of railway infrastructure products; from overhead line supports to cable solutions, from earthing contacts to track damping elements
Some of the flagship projects that companies from our infrastructure construction specialist area have worked on include: the Gotthard base tunnel, the Lötschberg base tunnel, the new Zurich through station, the Furka tunnel renovation, the modernisation of Lausanne station, and many more.
Mobility & Digitalisation
Digitalisation is not only the buzzword of our time; it is also a driver of innovation and development. For an industry like the railway, where life cycles of 30 years are not unusual, rapid development can be particularly challenging. However, it also offers opportunities that our Mobility and Digitalisation product group would like to take advantage of.The work of this specialist area can be divided into the following six topic areas:
- Route network capacity
- Efficiency improvement
- Smart networking
- Integrated mobility
- Driverless vehicles
- Data as an asset
Traffic Management & Security Systems
Rail transport in Switzerland enjoys a good reputation thanks to its punctuality and safety. The steady and carefully coordinated expansion of our rail network is seen as a model of success for the rest of the world. The following innovative products and services supplied by well-known Swiss companies ensure that our rail services maintain their appeal and excellent safety record now and in the future:
- Operations control systems facilitate the flexible and efficient flow of rail traffic
- Rail safety technology regulates and controls the entire train traffic management process
- Passenger information systems provide passengers with clear, real-time service status information
- Ticket sales systems with easy-to-use solutions make for stress-free travel
Our Safety and Control Technology product group offers a specialist platform for Swiss companies operating in these business fields. Membership provides access to specialist knowledge sharing and enables the representation of common interests.
Rolling Stock
Every train is made up of thousands of individual components. The companies in our Rolling Stock specialist area are responsible for the design and production of these components as well as for assembling them into finished rail vehicles.
Some examples of products from companies in our Rolling Stock specialist area are:
- Passenger coach interiors
- All types of technical facilities for the comfort and performance of rail vehicles
- Sensors, switches, control systems, onboard computing, cables
- Traction current components
- Bogies, brakes, chassis
- Design and planning of rail vehicles
- Development and construction of all types of rail vehicles
Maintenance
Railway facilities have to be constantly maintained and developed to ensure that they remain fully functional. This is the task of the members of our Maintenance specialist area.
Regular, economically efficient maintenance guarantees longevity and quality and enables the cost-effective operation (life cycle costs) of the equipment and materials required to keep the railway running smoothly.
Latest products
IGRALUB AG für Schmiertechnik
Wheel-rail monitoring for predictive maintenance.
Despite growing awareness of predictive maintenance as a means of reducing cost and improving reliability in the rail industry, its use is still limited.
Molinari Rail AG
Zero Emission Branch Line – Citybahn Waidhofen (Austria)
Together with the Fachhochschule St. Pölten and Niederösterreich Bahnen, Molinari Rail has launched the ZENeba (Zero Emission Secondary Railway) project, which is using the example of the Citybahn ...
Molinari Rail AG
Rolling Stock Maintenance & Storing Yard
Molinari Rail provided engineering consultancy and supervision services from construction to commissioning of the new maintenance and storing yard of the metro in Cairo, Egypt.
Molinari Rail AG
Procurement Consultancy Services for Ferrovie Luganesi
Molinari Rail accompanied Ferrovie Luganesi SA (FLP) during the complete procurement procedure of new low-floor trams.
Molinari Rail AG
Decontamination System for Rail Vehicles, Buses and Aircraft
Swiss Decontamination Solutions (SDS): Molinari Rail developed an automated decontamination system for public transport that is customisable for the use in buses, rail vehicles or small aircraft.
Molinari Rail AG
Auxiliary Power Units for Locomotives
Molinari Rail developed specific Auxiliary Power Units (APUs) to ensure that Indian locomotive drivers can enjoy also longer breaks in remote places inside the General Electric ES43ACmi and ES57ACi.
Molinari Rail AG
Procurement Consultancy Services for Aeroexpress (Russia)
Systematic analysis of operational and technical conditions enable the identification of potential for improvement and development. Our consulting expertise ranges from tender and bid support, feas...
Molinari Rail AG
Electrification of Powertrain / Development of Hybrid Drive Concept
Molinari Rail is supporting Plasser & Theurer in the electrification of railway construction machines from design and concept development, integration of the electric traction system and noise meas...
Molinari Rail AG
Crashworthy Front Structure for GE Transportation Locomotives
Freightliner (UK) awarded a contract to GE Transportation (Erie, US) for the delivery of 30 locomotives PH37ACmi over several contract batches. Molinari Rail was commissioned with the design of the...
Molinari Rail AG
Generator Sets – Astra/Vale (Brazil)
Molinari Rail received the contract for the design and delivery of the entire engine room equipment. In addition to that, Molinari Rail was responsible for the implementation.