Triple advantage

Mr Nowotny, the digitalization of the railway is in full swing. tmc is among the most successful companies who are in on the act. What skills are behind your rapid development?

The managing director of a well-known consulting firm provided a good answer to this recently. He said that we as digitalization experts in railway construction have a triple advantage: with our product range, our expertise, and our experience. I would like to add that we are true railway enthusiasts and are really enthusiastic about utilizing the potential of digital technologies for this sustainable mode of transport.

How would you briefly summarize your portfolio?

We serve three areas: Machine - Fleet - Infrastructure. For machines, we supply the ALC automatic guiding computer or the DRP reporting tool, among others. A current highlight is the tamping assistant that captures the track bed with several laser scanners, classifies it based on artificial intelligence, and then precisely positions the work units such as the tamping unit, the lifting and lining unit, the 3rd-rail lifting unit, etc. A real relief for the operators, since they only have to confirm the suggested actions but can intervene any time if they want to optimize the process. For fleet management, we offer the MachineConditionObserver and the MachineDataConnector, two systems that can be used from the back office to monitor machines and gather data as a basis for analysis to be carried out together with Plasser & Theurer. Lastly, in the area of infrastructure, we offer measuring services that ring in a new era for the planning, construction, and maintenance of railway infrastructure.

Digital systems are deployed under the most challenging conditions in track construction and maintenance. How does tmc deal with these?

This is precisely one of our great strengths. As part of the Plasser group of companies, we know what awaits our systems at the worksite and in operation, and so can configure them robustly. We also know the requirements expected from the staff and so can deliver true added value for everyday working. Digitalization has to make work easier, safer, and ensure greater efficiency.

Let’s talk about life cycles: machines are often deployed for over thirty years, digital systems have an expected service life of around seven years. How can you reconcile this?

With this particular challenge, the key is to develop open and highly compatible systems. Therefore, we place great emphasis on looking after our customers throughout the whole life cycle of a machine. In principle, it is always possible to equip even older machines with digital updates.

tmc has grown enormously since its inception. What are your expectations of the future?

If I look at the potential of our products and at the same time think of the requirements of the rapidly growing railways, then I would say we have only just started. Anyway, we have big plans, as it is our aim to make digitalization in the areas of machines, fleet, and infrastructure simple.