Institution news
John explained his role and involvement with regards to the seminar, critical engineering challenges and what he is looking forward to at the Innovating Wheelsets 2020 live online event.
Q: Could you tell us a bit more about your role, as it relates to wheelsets?
John Reddyhoff (JR): I have been involved with wheelset management throughout my railway career. This has included all aspects of the wheelset life cycle and I have had the opportunity to work with designers, manufacturers, overhaulers, operators, maintainers and researchers. I am a past Chair of the industry’s Wheelset Management Group and continue to be involved in wheelset technical investigations.
Q: What are the key technical priorities which the railway industry must consider when making changes to wheelset design, operation, and maintenance?
JR: A wheelset will always represent a potential single point failure that can have catastrophic consequences. The lessons from historic incidents have become embedded in the railway culture and can make us reluctant to change. We need to improve our overall engineering knowledge so that we can make informed decisions that can reduce wheelset whole life cost and environmental impact without an adverse effect on safety.
Q: Why do you think it is important for industry experts to come together to discuss these challenges?
JR: This is a great opportunity to share knowledge between experts involved with the whole wheelset life cycle and to challenge the way that it has always been done whilst making sure that the lessons learned from history are not forgotten.
Q: Have you been involved in any particularly relevant projects recently?
JR: I have been involved in two projects where the introduction of new fleets has resulted in flange wear rates that were not predicted. One example was a non-GB metro system where the interaction between the vehicle and the track had not been considered fully at the design stage. The other was a GB case where the existing standards did not specify the limits for the wear pattern that occurred in service.
Q: What are you hoping to address with your presentation at the Innovating Wheelsets seminar?
JR: I am hoping to stimulate discussion between industry representatives to encourage innovation.
Q: Are there any other speakers or topics which you are looking forward to?
JR: I am looking forward to all the presentations as these represent a broad range of topics that all contribute to the wheelset life cycle.
The Innovating Wheelsets seminar will be taking place live online on 19-20 October 2020.
Join this seminar to:
- Recognise effective methods of performance management for a modern wheelset
- Learn how to better manage wheelset maintenance from practical examples
- Understand the lifecycle challenges of wheelsets and identify controls and technologies that can provide benefit
To book your place, please visit
www.imeche.org/wheelsets.