Chicago-based NxGen Rail Services announced Wednesday, March 12, 2014 what it calls "the release of the world's first high-speed rail inspection system capable of detecting missing and displaced rail anchors."
Until recently, the most common way to inspect rail anchors was to walk the track or manually inspect them from slow speed road rail vehicles, NxGen says. The new software module within the NxTrack inspection system can automatically scan for clusters of missing anchors at 70 mph aboard the CRDX391 inspection car. It also provides detailed reports of any defects.
The NxTrack CRDX391 currently houses the anchor inspection software module, but NxGen plans to include it in all new inspection cars as well.
"At NxGen we are responsive to customer's needs," said Robert Grant, NxGen Managing Director. "We are excited to provide the industry with the first, high-speed solution for inspecting rail anchors as a part of our NxTrack inspection system."
Last December the company announced the launching of NxTrack, describing it at the time as "a fully integrated, line speed, rail track inspection system."
NxGen Rail Services, with operations in the U.S. and Europe, is a subsidiary of Sasser Family Holdings, Inc.