Progress Rail Highlights Advanced Technologies and Predictive Analytics Capabilities

Progress Rail, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., showcased the latest technology solutions and one of the broadest offerings of rolling stock and infrastructure products for transit and heavy haul customers at InnoTrans 2016.

“For years, we have invested heavily in technology advancements to enhance our customers’ experience, resulting in improved productivity and reliability. Recently, we formed strategic partnerships with other industry leading companies, such as Uptake, on our latest predictive analytics platform, and Seeing Machines, for fatigue monitoring, leveraging our already substantial capabilities. In the past year alone, we have also acquired companies and technologies, such as Inspired Systems, Applied Ultrasonics and our new drone inspection technologies. All of these steps result in improved value for our customers by deploying integrated solutions across the entire rail ecosystem,” said Progress Rail President and Chief Executive Officer William (Billy) Ainsworth.

“This year, we are showcasing our highly anticipated predictive analytics platform — EMD Uptime — to help customers not only get the most out of their locomotive fleets, but also help prevent potential failures before they occur,” said Senior Vice President of Marketing and Analytics Paul Denton.

EMD Uptime is a complete condition-based analytics platform. Uptime monitors locomotive fleets to increase reliability, optimize maintenance activities and improve mission success. The result is improved fleet utilization and productivity, better fuel efficiency, enhanced safety and significantly less downtime. Rail operations can conveniently track the status of a single locomotive or an entire fleet – all from their tablet or smartphone.

Progress Rail exhibit highlights include a focus on its infrastructure products and technology, combining trackwork, fasteners, signaling, rail welding and maintenance-of-way equipment, as well as technology applications in real and interactive forms, including drone inspection, infrastructure asset protection and data analytics for the wayside sector.

Making its international debut was EMD Uptime. This predictive analytics platform will build upon Progress Rail and EMD’s analytics offerings, and is expected to help customers optimize train building and improve mission success, while also delivering additional fuel savings and minimized shop cycle times.

Also on display were 3D renderings of several locomotive and engine models in the company’s on site Immersive Visualization Center (known as the CAVE), as well as Augmented Reality demonstrations, a locomotive simulator complete with fatigue monitoring, and product and service information on the company’s extensive line of locomotives, engines and service packages available for customers all over the world.