NEWSLINES Thames Valley Section

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November 2016

Bristol

Dear Member,

Proceedings: Technical Meeting No.3 of 2016/17 Session, Reading, 2 November 2016.

Chairman: Jeremy Smith Secretary: Malcolm Pearce

Present: 23 Members, 3 Visiting Members Total 26

Apologies: Bryan McGaw, Clive Thompson, Peter Muir, George Nicoara, Richard Antliff, David Bancroft, Ian Page, Mike Clements, John Boothman, Bob Sanders.

Preliminaries: Section members, visiting Section members and our Speaker gathered for informal discourse, a light buffet provided by the Section and for refreshments kindly provided by our Sponsor, Network Rail.

Formal Meeting: The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting, thanking them once again for their support of the Section. He then asked the Secretary to present his Section report.

Section Secretary’s report

October Newslines reviewed, members present agreed could stand as a true record of the proceedings.

This meeting qualifies for CPD certification.

There will be a Section Secretary’s meeting with the PWI Board and Officers in Birmingham on 2 December. Malcolm asked members to contact him if they wished to have any items raised at the meeting. The second of the half-day seminars arranged jointly by the PWI and TfL takes place on 10 November. Malcolm reminded everyone that the form indicating an intention to take part in the proposed Section visit to the G-W Steam Railway in February or March 2017 needed to be returned to him by 4 November. (All details of the visit and the form were included in the October Newslines). A further updated Section Programme will be attached to the November Newslines. Presentation The Chairman then welcomed our Speaker for the evening, Jay Benson, JB Rail, and invited him to present his paper entitled “Switch Protection using Friction Modification” Sec’s Note: A full version of Jay’s presentation will appear in the Technical Papers Section of the January 2017 edition of the PWI Journal. Therefore I have restricted my usual resume of the Speaker’s address to the main points to avoid duplication).

NEWSLINES Thames Valley Section

www.thepwi.org

CHAIRMAN

Jeremy Smith 01635 865256 / 07721 755745 [email protected]

VICE CHAIRMAN

Philip Holbourn 07834 195 788 [email protected]

SECTION SECRETARY

Malcolm Pearce 01635 550326 / 07967 667019 [email protected]

Thames Valley Section PWI Page 1 of 4 Newslines - November 2016

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November 2016

Jay’s talk concerned the damage caused to switch and stock rails, particularly in the trailing direction, by the high angle of attack in certain circumstances by the wheel flange root on the rail, resulting in excessive contact forces. He described the problem and history of such damage, which accounts for some 3,500 switches of all designs having repeated failures of varying severity. These failures, found by routine S/053 inspections, trigger a series of actions both immediate to mitigate the risk and short term to remediate the failure. Jay went on to describe sites at Nuneaton Cemetery Junction and Reading West Junction where particular sets of switches had a history of failures with consequent disruptions to services due to the repeated necessity for remedial interventions, incurring considerable costs. Moving to potential solutions, Jay said that control of the co-efficient of friction – the rail/wheel interface – had been possible since the introduction of KELTRACK. This is a fully approved water-based friction modifier that is designed to be applied to both rails through S&C layouts, whose effect is to specifically reduce the angle of attack of the wheel on the rail. Trials of KELTRACK, authorised by Network Rail, commenced in 2007 on a short section of plain line of 150m radius at Barnt Green, which had suffered from excessive noise during the passage of trains for a number of years. After installation of a friction modifier system noise levels were reduced by some 15dB; subsequently, and very significantly, it was noticed that increased rotation of the wheelset occurred when it crossed from untreated to treated rail. This result prompted Network Rail to authorise the installation of friction modifier systems at other sites, including at the switches at Nuneaton and Reading. Jay then discussed using a series of diagrams the principles of wheelset steering in various circumstances, showing how the installation of a friction modifier system affects the angle of attack and can significantly reduce the rate of damage to the rail. In the cases described at Nuneaton and Reading, Jay showed a timeline comparing the onset and development of damage to the rail and consequent repairs, service delays and costs prior to the installation of a friction modifier system, with the results since installation which have significantly improved the situation. Finally, Jay said that for each installation a business case needs to be prepared to gain access to funding and to determine a prioritised plan to maximise the benefits at complex sites. In summary, installation of friction modifier systems:

Treats S/053 hazards 1, 2 and 4 Increases switch service life by up to 10 times Can treat complex layouts Has been shown to reduce noise, RCF and corrugation issues

Jay answered questions and entered into discussion during the course of his presentation, and then during a lengthy Q&A session conducted by the Chairman at its conclusion. After bringing the discussions to a close Jeremy asked Rodney Pinchen to propose the Vote of Thanks to Jay. Rodney remarked that Jay’s talk had provoked much interest and discussion, particularly regarding the investigations into the causes of, and remedial measures to overcome, the excessive wear taking place to the RH trailing switch rail in the Down Westbury line at Oxford Road Junction approaching Reading West Station – a site well known to many present. He said that the results using friction modification at the various sites described were most encouraging in reducing failures and increasing the time between maintenance interventions. Rodney then asked everyone to support his motion to Jay, this was carried with acclamation. Next Event Our Annual Social and Quiz will take place on Wednesday 7 December at the GWR SA Club, Station Hill, Reading. The Quiz has again been devised and will be conducted by our legendary Quizmasters David Brace and Colin Brading. See attached flyer for details. Do come along and take part in this renowned event, at which we will be joined by colleagues from Wessex, Birmingham and WoE Sections. By the way, the Club’s quite outstanding buffet will again be available during the interval between the quiz rounds.


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Meeting Closure

The Chairman closed the meeting at 1923, with an invitation to everyone to continue our discussions in the Monks Retreat.

Further information about your Section, and the activities of other Sections which you may wish to visit, can be found on the PWI website: www.thepwi.org

Committee Members: Mark Howells (07740 783466), Pat Parker (07971 156797), Rodney Pinchen (07985 062299), Ray Pocock (07789 900108), Tony Roberts (07766 695796), and Matthew Savastano (07909 905584). National Secretary (all financial matters): Kate Hatwell, 5 Mount Crescent, Warley, Brentwood, CM14 5DB (Registered Office). Other contact details in footer. Application forms for membership and information on the PWI are available from the Section Secretary, or online at www.thepwi.org. Please notify the Section Secretary of any changes in your personal details, and the National Secretary if you change your bank account, so that you can continue to receive information from the PWI and your subscription can be properly administered.

Malcolm Pearce Secretary November 2016 National contacts:

Thames Valley Newslines & Section Administration is supported by H J Skelton & Co Ltd, Thames Valley Network Rail and Balfour Beatty Rail.

01277 230031

www.thepwi.org

PermanentWayInstitution

@PermWayInstit

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PERMANENT WAY INSTITUTION

THAMES VALLEY SECTION

Programme 2016/2017 Session (as at November 2016)

Meetings are held at Network Rail’s Davidson House Offices, Reading,

at 1700 for 1745 unless otherwise stated

2016

Wednesday 14 September: Recognising and Understanding the Importance of Drainage.

Dean Jackson and Mark Howells, Network Rail and

Daniel Parkes, Balfour Beatty Rail

Wednesday 5 October: Beating the Elements – Railways, Weather and Climate Change.

John Dora, John Dora Consulting Limited

Wednesday 2 November: Switch Protection using Friction Modification

Jay Benson, JB Rail

Wednesday 7 December: GWR SA Club, Station Hill, Reading, 1750 to 2045

Annual Social Event, and Quiz devised and conducted by

David Brace and Colin Brading

Joint Meeting with Wessex, Birmingham and WoE Sections

2017

Wednesday 4 January: Choosing the Right Trackform for a High Speed Railway

Niall Fagan, HS2 Limited

Joint Meeting with IMechE Railway Dvn. SW Centre

Wednesday 1 February: Farnworth Tunnel Reconstruction

Beth Dale, J Murphy & Sons

Wednesday 1 March: S&C Track Design Good Practice Guide

Sin Sin Hsu, Network Rail

Wednesday 5 April: Building a Railway 50 years ago.

(Section AGM) Richard Watts, Section Fellow

Wednesdays 3 May and 7 June: Speakers and Subjects to be confirmed

Malcolm Pearce Secretary, November 2016


Documents

NEWSLINES Thames Valley Section