edition 2011 - contents... edition 2011 - contents:for customers, employees and friends. let’s...

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Edition 2011 - contents:

For customers, employees and friends.

Let’s burn some rubber … 2

Welcome to the home of STRAIL France 3

STRAILastic_A - quiet Elbe Valley 4

STRAIL - dual gauge track in Lithuania 5STRAIL - 3-rail track in Spain

Dr. Ramsauer visits STRAIL 6STRAIL workshop in Vietnam

InnoTrans 2010 in Berlin 7Sinking one’s teeth into getting to the top

STRAILedge - platform edge in Mulhouse 8

STRAILedge - platform edge in Florence 9

STRAIL 1,200 mm inner panel > Integration 10into post-production process

Maintenance work in the production 11department Installation of a combination level crossing

STRAIL in the Balkans 12

STRAIL in Greece 13STRAIL - new partner in Japan

STRAILastic_GRS > track section base plate 14STRAIL - railway forum at Schreck-Mieves

STRAILastic_A in Sweden 15STRAILastic_KFV in Bremen

STRAILastic - RAIL-noise in Berlin 15

STRAIL - in India 16STRAIL new sales organization in Italy

17 excellent reasons to choose STRAIL 17STRAIL road marking - now available in spray cansFour diff erent STRAIL systems in one level crossing

STRAILastic_F in Zeebrugge 18

STRAILastic_A - in Switzerland 19STRAILastic - ballast clearing equipment

STRAIL & STRAILastic team 20

CM Equipamentos Ferroviários www.equipamentosferroviarios.com.br 30/01/2012

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On 11 and 12 Sept. 2010, the weather was going to be very suitable to go for a climb in the high mountain region of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence in France. My father, two friends and I had decided on one of the highest peaks of the French Alps > the Brec de Chambeyron (3,390 m).When speaking of mountains, “Brec” (which es-sentially means something like ‘broken tooth’) re-fers to a mountain with a partially fl at i.e. ‘broken off ’ summit. Up to about 1878, this summit was considered unclimbable, so it’s really a challenge for climbers and mountaineers.

SaturdayWe set out to Fouillouse (1,900 m), a small village at the end of the valley of a small commune by the name of Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye, (GRS/GRS56) and passed the small church of Fouillouse, which was built in 1532 and had to be rebuilt in 1706 after an avalanche. The church still off ers some decorative paintings, dating back to the year 1879.

The ascent to the Chambeyron hut (2,626 m) las-ted approx. 2½ hours. Our backpacks were fi lled with our entire climbing equipment and a two-day supply of food.We spent the night at the hut, in order to make our ascent to the summit the next morning a bit easier. The hut is managed by the CAF (Club alpin français) and is open from May to September. Since the hut does not have any drinking water, we had to bring the entire supply we needed for our trip ourselves. The hut warden had prepared nood-le soup for us > it was nice sharing a meal with other groups of mountaineers and also spending the night in the hut. We spoke about our diff erent tours, tomorrow‘s ascent and the weather fore-cast. The light in the hut is turned off at sunset. At 9 p.m. it‘s lights out in the hut. Tomorrow’s ascent to the summit of Brec de Chambeyron would take approx. 7 hours.

SundayWe got up at 4:30 a.m., checked our entire equip-ment (climbing rope, harness, helmet, HMS cara-biner, slings, nuts, nut removal tool, descender, crampons, etc.) and then set off at 5 a.m. with our headlamps on. We arrived at the DES TERRES JAU-NES mountain pass (3,000 m), just as the sun was rising. A glorious landscape (Italian side) opened up in front of our eyes and we had a wonderful view of the Barenghi hut, as well as the Italian valley. On the other side we had a view of the Lac des Neufs Couleurs (the name translates to ‘Nine Colors Lake’) and the Ubaye valley. We headed to-wards the BREC ledge on the Italian side, walking through rocky terrain with stones slipping out from under out feet. We realized how important the helmet was for our safety. The rocks can crumble off at any time, particularly, shortly after another group has passed through the area.

Since the ledge is covered with snow and slopes down approx. 20 percent we decided to rope up. This moment was very important for us – everyone needed their own equipment. The rope will tie us together on our way to the summit. We must trust

each other > we need to be one unit in order to reach our goal.

We follow the rock markings (artifi cially erected piles of stones mark the way), but progress is dif-fi cult due to the brittle rock and snow. After we had reached the crux of “Gendarme Jaune” (3,300 m), we had to twice climb a distance of 30 m through a dihedral and then climbed through a chimney leading to the fl at part of the summit. Finally, we reach the summit cross at 3,390 m. It is noon. We only have a few minutes to take some pictures, eat a granola bar and some fruit, as well as admi-re the beautiful landscape surrounding us. In the northeast, we were able to see the Mont Blanc. On the Italian side, in the east, the Monte Viso and in the south, we saw some clouds moving in our direction (it is said, you can see all the way to the Mediterranean Sea on a clear day).We decided to take the safer route and rappel down through the chimney.It was especially important to be vigilant during our descent, since the path was unstable and the rocks under our feet were very slippery. Our de-scent to Fouillouse (where we parked our car) took about four hours.

Together, we “four” > i.e. Pierre - 66, Alexis - 81 (!), my father Alain - 58 years old and I (35) have successfully climbed the Brec de Chambeyron summit!This climb was very intense and physically deman-ding > one more mountain peak in our collection. Thanks to my father, whom I started following as a boy, I have been climbing as a hobby for 20 years and will continue to accompany him in the years to come.

Page 3 - STRAIL & STRAILastic - // edition 2011

topTRAILS - Going climbing with Grégory Crouzet

Welcome to the Home of STRAIL France

Departure: Fouillouse (St. Paul sur Ubaye), 1,900 m Via le regufe de Chambeyron 2,626 m

Diff erence in altitude: + 1,490 mDiffi culty: moderately diffi cultClimbing grade: III/VMap: IGN TOP 25 3538ET

// edition 2011 - STRAIL & STRAILastic -

LET’S BURN SOME RUBBER…

That‘s the command given to drivers at the an-nual GTI meeting - Europe’s largest VW car show - at the Wörthersee (Lake Wörth) in Austria, encouraging them to put the pedal to the metal and - accompanied by lots of smoke and noise - turn their tire treads into merely black marks on the asphalt.

At STRAIL and STRAILastic it is also our passion to ‘burn rubber’! Just like the marks on the asphalt, our products consist to a large extent of buff ed off tread rubber (so-called buffi ng dust > visible in the background of picture 3 on page 6), which is collected during the tire retreading process.However, once we start ‘burning rubber’ the re-sult is not at all punishing to material. Quite the contrary is true: we develop solutions for the pro-blems of our customers, many of which we will be again reporting about in this issue of our news-letter.

We will also be covering the fact that we have be-come even more international (pages 6, 16) and can once again present you with new products (pages 8, 9, 14, 15, 17). Thanks to the continuous

optimization processes at our production facilities (page 10), we have been able to compensate - at least to some degree - the surge in raw material costs to your advantage.Like many companies in Germany, we too, are cur-rently in the excellent position of being able to fi ll new positions at our company (page 20 “Wel-come”).

We are now also seeing companies competing for the best workers as a result of Germany‘s positi-ve economic development. Just like it is essential when working with sales markets, it has become equally important for companies to build up a brand as an employer in their competition for top candidates. Not only to be recognizable regionally, but also beyond their respective region. The brand essences “STRAIL Employer” and “STRAIL - prob-lem solver for railway operators” are identical.

We want to succeed in both areas with thefollowing topics:

Cooperative partnership

Grow through each other

Long-term cooperation to our mutual advan-tage

Speaking of mutual benefi t:In order to be able to continue to steadily impro-ve the customer benefi t of our STRAIL / STRAILastic brand-name products, we are always looking for employees with an in-depth knowledge of rail-way track, e.g. civil engineers who have relevant experience and fi t to our team.

Tittmoning, where we are located, lies in the sou-theast of Bavaria, in one of Germany’s most beau-tiful (vacation) areas. Lake Wörth is only a two-hour drive from here.

Interested in burning rubber with us?We look forward to welcoming you!

Best regards,Andreas Herder

Management

01 / STRAIL & STRAILastic teams go rafting

01 /

STRAIL & STRAILastic are brands of the group.

Approx. 150 employees are working on finding solutions for track-related problems at our site in Tittmoning and under our brand

names STRAIL (street meets rail.) and STRAILastic (the gentle track.). As problem solvers for STRAIL & STRAILastic our customers

expect a complete track-related service package. In order to offer our customers the best service possible, we are looking for an additional (m/f)

WE BURN RUBBER!WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP?

CIVIL ENGINEER

Interested? Then please send your detailed written application, stating your desired incomeand earliest possible starting date to: Gummiwerk KRAIBURG Elastik GmbH / Goellstr. 8 / D-84529 TittmoningAttn. Ms Sandra Enhuber / Phone 0049 (0) 86 83 - 701 - 171 / Fax 0049 (0) 86 83 - 701 -4 171e-mail: [email protected] / www.strail.com

Your duties will include:• Construction site management (on-site organization and supervision of our STRAIL & STRAILastic installation projects)• You play a crucial role in the development and optimization of new and existing products, as well as their testing• You will have an active part in our brainstorming and strategy processes• You will lead project teams (production, process engineering and sales)

You should fit the following profile:• Hands-on experience in railway and/or traffic route construction• Good knowledge of English• Ideally have experience in project work• Be a creative and unconventional “thinker”• Have an open, extroverted and enthusiastic personality• Be a confident and successful team player• CAD skills (desirable)


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// edition 2011 - STRAIL & STRAILastic - Page 4

STRAILastic_A - Innovative noise protection in the Elbe Valley / Königstein

Germany’s 2nd Stimulus Package Facilitates 4 km of STRAILastic_A


STRAIL

A First: Lithuanian Dual Gauge Track Requires (Unique) Level Crossing Solution

“Rail Baltica” is the name of an EU-funded railway

project. Its aim is to integrate the Central European

standard gauge (1,435 mm) in the existing rou-

te corridor of the Baltic States, in addition to the

Eastern European wide gauge (1,520 mm), which

is currently the standard in the Baltics and Fin-

land. This is done as follows: Four rails are fitted

on a special concrete sleeper in such a way, i.e.

offset horizontally to each other, enabling the use

of normal gauge, as well as wide gauge rolling

stock. In its final stage, this “Rail Baltica” corridor

should lead from Warsaw in Poland, via Lithuania

and Latvia, all the way to Tallinn in Estonia (with

a connection via ferry or tunnel to Helsinki in Fin-

land).

A first section of this corridor is currently being

completed in the south of Lithuania (roughly from

the border with Poland to Šeštokai). Our partner

in the Baltics, the company ELTAKA from Vilnius/

LT, had contacted us to inquire, whether we could

offer a solution for this four-rail track.

At first our plan was to cut out the required rub-

ber parts from other panels and then to glue them

back together again. But then we decided to in-

vest into new molds and tools, because we could

then offer the customer a higher quality product,

as well as a more economical solution. Since we

were not able to get any accurate drawings for

the special sleepers used for this 4-rail track, the

ELTAKA employee responsible for STRAIL, Mantas

Sciglinskas, got hold of some of these sleepers, in-

cluding rails and fastening materials for us, so that

we were able to measure them ourselves right here

in Tittmoning.

At the beginning of November 2010, after the

first samples had been produced (1,200 mm long

and 1,035 mm wide inner panels, as well as so-

called “dual gauge parts” with various widths,

each 600 mm long), we of course installed them

straight away on the original track to check whe-

ther everything fits properly. As this was the case,

we immediately started serial production for the

first four level crossings of the corridor. The outer

panels were delivered to Lithuania as early as Oc-

tober and installed immediately after the curbsto-

nes had been set, so there wouldn‘t be any delays

since winter was approaching.

At the end of November 2010, it was time to install

the inner panels and the dual gauge parts. Mantas

Sciglinskas and I visited the first site, in order to

assist the construction company with our advice

and support. The workers installing the track were

very pleased with the relatively simple and quick

installation of the inner panels, as well as the dual

gauge parts (a total of approx. 2 hours for a 9.6 m

wide level crossing).

We are hopeful that the success of this initial in-

stallation will result in many more level crossings

of the “Rail Baltica” project being equipped with

our system.

01 / Installing the dual gauge parts02 / Installing the inner panels (1,035 mm)

Hubert Mayer

Area Sales Manager

Northern Europe

STRAIL

3-Rail Track for “Double” Gauge (Spain)

We received an inquiry from Spain, which was si-milar to the Lithuanian “Rail Baltica” project, na-mely to combine two different gauges in one track.

On the one hand, this refers to track sections used by trains with an Iberian gauge of 1,668 mm, as well as the new high-speed trains with a gauge of 1,435 mm. On the other hand, this requirement is a result of the step-by-step implementation of the

plan to have a long-term and overall conversion to the 1,435 mm gauge.

Together with David Latorre from ELECTRANS, our STRAIL partner in Spain, we developed a suitable rubber panel, i.e. a panel which is adaptable to various rail types. In the meantime, it has been installed at numerous level crossings.

Without this special filler profile, it would not be possible to sell the inner and outer panels for the-se level crossings.

That is why it is and will continue to be important in future to offer original, custom-made solutions for such special customer demands.

Export Department STRAIL

04 /

Advantage of the installation site being located in Königstein/Elbe Valley: Picturesque view for the installation team (employees from the compa-ny Lasch/Zwickau and STRAILastic) while having a coffee break below the track system.

01 / 02 /

01 /

In this picture you can see the Elbe river, the track line and the town of Königstein. As you maybe can see, some of the houses of Königstein are barely 10 m away from the heavily traveled two-track line, which handles some of the freight and passenger traffic between Germany and the Czech Republic.Due to the closure of the track and in order to carry out the required noise protection work on the track, the site was equipped with an auto-matic warning system for rail traffic. This system heralded each train‘s approach with a deafening sound. This, of course, resulted in even more noise for the residents - at least for the time being!

02 /

Finally, we’re all set - and face our biggest chal-lenge right at the beginning: How do we get the material into the track? A total of 140 tons of ma-terial (the equivalent of seven fully-loaded trucks) needs to be brought onto the beautiful, but hard to reach railway viaduct.

03 /

With that the biggest hurdle had been cleared, because the way we designed STRAILastic_A the actual installation is quick and easy.We quickly >

applied the STRAILastic_A Coating pressed the absorber into the rail chamber and secured it to the rail using the two-piece

fixing clamp – finished!

As a result of our quick work, the first construction phase was completed within 16 hours.

05 /

A topsy-turvy world after completing the first con-struction phase: Trains still need to use the track which isn’t sound-insulated (on the right), until the track receives clearance.

06 /

Beginning the second construction phase in mid-May under difficult conditions: Shorter track possessions (only at night), at times heavy rain. Good lighting and weatherproof clothing is now called for.

07 /

During the second construction phase, we for the very first time used ballast clearing equipment designed by us: You will find a separate short article on page 19.

08 /

Advantage of our metal-free absorber elements: If necessary, they can be adapted to requirements during the manufacturing process, as well as immediately on site.Photo:STRAILastic_A including recess for DuoTrack cable

09 /

“Lucka” now runs quieter - at least through Kö-nigstein!

Please read our report on page 19 for details concerning the technical data and measurements of STRAILastic_A.

Andreas HerderManaging Director


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STRAIL & STRAILastic at the InnoTrans 2010 in Berlin

Federal Transport Minister Dr. Ramsauer Visits STRAIL Booth

More than 1,000 national and international lea-ding representatives from industry, academia and politics took part in the opening of the 8th In-noTrans at the Palais am Funkturm in Berlin. In addition to Siim Kallas, the Vice-President of the European Commission, and Federal Transport Mi-nister Dr. Peter Ramsauer, many more transport ministers from other European and Asian coun-tries, as well as managers of railway manufactur-ers and operators from around the world came to Berlin to kick off the world‘s leading trade fair for rail transport technology on 21 September 2011.

For many companies, the InnoTrans fair was an important setting to present their innovations: Just in the categories of vehicles and components alone, there were 52 world premieres, such as the high-speed train “Velaro D” from Siemens, or “STRAILastic_A” the rail damping system from STRAIL, which was not only presented at our stand, but was also exhibited by Deutsche Bahn AG.

Secretly hoped for, but in the end still surprisin-gly, trade fair management informed us, that the Federal Minister of Transport, Building and Urban Development, Dr. Peter Ramsauer, would be visit-ing the stand of a small to medium-sized compa-ny (Mittelstand) as part of his guided press tour. Well, as it turned out that would be us. Was he maybe aware of the fact that Bavarian hospitality, i.e. white sausages and beer from his home state would be awaiting him at our exhibition stand? It goes without saying that nearly all of our exhibiti-on staff wore traditional Bavarian costume (Tracht) that day!

Andreas Herder, STRAIL’s managing director, wel-comed Mr. Ramsauer and informed him about the wide range of STRAIL and STRAILastic products. The minister was very impressed by the exhibits on display.In addition to this highlight on our first day of the fair, we saw sustained high demand for the inter-nationally recognized STRAIL brand name over the course of the next four days.


01 / 02 / 03 / 01 / 02 /

03 / 04 /

STRAIL in Vietnam

Workshop and Seminar in Hanoi

Workshops and seminars have, in the meantime, established themselves, as a very popular and successful tool to market our products. Beginning from Germany, we now have carried out a num-ber of such events in several export countries, e.g. twice in Vietnam last year due to high demand.We were able to welcome our guests from Vietnam Railways to attend a workshop in a hotel in Hanoi, thanks to the great organization by our distributi-on partner Eurosasiatic Jaya.A first level crossing in Hanoi has been equipped with STRAIL. Here we had the opportunity to con-vince our customers of the many application pos-sibilities and the great variability of our product range, as well as discuss and plan their applica-tion for selected level crossings. The ideal full-sur-face covering for each individual level crossing, so to speak.After discussing the theoretical part, we visited the level crossing already installed in Hanoi. Upon arrival, we all were able to see and confirm for ourselves the immaculate and excellent condition the rubber panels were in. And this after being installed and doing their job for two years in the daily traffic chaos.

In autumn, our company also received the oppor-tunity to attend and present our products at an in-ternational conference in Ha Long. The conference dealt with safety in mining and was organized and conducted by the state-owned mining company Vinacomin.Much of the coal Vinacomin mines in surface and underground mining is transported from inland to the coastal ports by rail and therefore, Vinacomin maintains a relatively large railway network. Poor-ly maintained level crossings, with an extremely pronounced rail groove, represent high hazard po-tential and repeatedly lead to accidents. Our pro-ducts STRAIL and especially veloSTRAIL generated significant interest in this context. Perhaps it was a bit too early to present our products for these applications, but it is never too early to enter a market and reach potential customers.We’ll have to wait and see what the future holds.

Export STRAIL

01 / STRAIL workshop with Vietnam Railways02 / Our partner in Vietnam > Uwe Hetzert

together with his team from Euroasiatic Jaya

01 / Dr. Ramsauer was able to convince himself first-hand of the advantages of the STRAIL products: a) veloSTRAIL > permits easy and safe cros-sing of level crossings.

02 / b) STRAILastic_A > the noise absorber for damping rail noise (especially in residential areas or on steel bridges)

03 / Raffle of great prizes (iPods / iPads) for our loyal customers

04 / Our exhibition stand

Wolfgang WeberHead of Team Germany

01 /

02 /

As he had announced at the InnoTrans 2010, Fede-ral Minister of Transport, Building and Urban De-velopment Dr. Peter Ramsauer paid STRAIL a visit in Tittmoning to start off the new year. After being greeted by Andreas Herder and Wolfgang Weber, Mr. Ramsauer and Mr. Schupfner, the mayor of Tittmoning, headed straight for a meeting room for a presentation (Picture 01 /). The presentati-on, which briefly introduced our company and the products we manufacture, was received with great interest by Mr. Ramsauer. He was particularly exci-ted about our STRAILastic products. Mr. Ramsauer stated that these innovative products are very im-portant for the future, since more and more level crossings will be dismantled due to the risk of ac-cidents. There will also be an increasing focus on noise reduction.

Mr. Ramsauer, who first visited our Tittmoning site back in 1991, on occasion of the visit by the U.S. governor of Ohio, expressed keen interest in the

locally manufactured products and also noted the positive development of the site over the past ye-ars: “The development has been tremendous.”Following the presentation, we all went on a tour of the premises. As part of the tour, every-one had the chance to really get some ‘hands on experience’ by courageously diving one’s hands into the rubber raw material. Mr. Ramsauer acu-tely remarked: “There’s a lot of future in this.” (Picture 03 /)A STRAIL panel was just being manufactured on the #8 press. Thus, Mr. Ramsauer was able to see for himself how our production works (Picture 02 /).

At the end of our tour, a nice “Brotzeit” (Bavarian snack), which had been prepared with loving care, was waiting for our guests. The mayor of Tittmo-ning pointed out how happy he was to be able to present such an innovative company “situated in the rural periphery” to the Federal Minister of Transport.

After our short snack, Mr. Ramsauer invited some of the participants to join him for a private con-versation, regarding the current situation and the future of transportation.

We all were very pleased with Mr. Ramsauer’s visit and thank him for taking the time to visit us!

We shared a request with Mr. Ramsauer to take back with him to Berlin: We asked him to kindly tell his colleague, Mrs. Ilse Aigner, about his visit in Tittmoning. Perhaps, we will soon have another Federal Minister pay us a visit in Tittmoning: Then with a focus on our AGRI products.

Florian StraßerCommunication Department STRAIL

01 / 02 / 03 /Photos > Südostbayerische Rundschau

An Important Visitor at STRAIL

Federal Minister of Transport Dr. Peter Ramsauer in Tittmoning

In the many conversations with our numerous cli-ents, we found that STRAIL enjoys an extremely high level of recognition.

A look back at InnoTrans 2010 >

106,612 trade visitors from 110 countries, 20 per-cent more than two years ago

2,243 exhibitors (17 percent increase) from 45 countries with 20 percent more display space

52 world premieres of innovative products Numerous contract signings Exhibitors and visitors very pleased Railway station fest attended by approx. 14,000

visitors Next InnoTrans 18 - 21 September 2012

… And we were among the winners!

Sinking One’s Teeth Into Getting to the Top!

Our neighboring country of Switzerland is not only known for its countless mountains and beautiful countryside, but also for its huge railway projects (e.g. the Gotthard Base Tunnel with a route length of 57 km).

The Gornergratbahn, Europe’s highest open air cog railway, was opened in 1898 for operation. It uses a track gauge of 1,000 mm (meter gauge) and has its base station in Zermatt (1,604 m). For over 100 years now it has faithfully day in, day out, traveled the total line length of 9.339 km up the Gornergrat ridge, climbing steep gradients and mastering an altitude difference of 1,469 m. After a ride of ap-

prox. 30 minutes passengers are dropped off at an altitude of 3,089 m and find themselves surroun-ded by a spectacular mountain panorama - a truly unique ride, only topped by the breathtaking and impressive view.Over the past years, we have repeatedly delivered crossing solutions for these very special level cros-sings, since they include a toothed rack rail. A while back we received an order from the custo-mer to cover a 10-track crossing in the area of the station in Zermatt. This job included full-surface covering for the toothed rack rails and switch sec-tion, as well as creating the connections to the existing stairs and access areas.

Fully assembled crossing with side marking Markus Deissenböck

Development Department


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STRAILedge

Sometimes it Takes Two: Platform Edge in Mulhouse (France)

The tram-train between Mulhouse and Vallée de la Thur is the first tram and train project in France to connect the RFF network and SOLEA (the city of Mulhouse’s public transport network).

This new connection permits travelers for the first time to conveniently combine the use of the public rail and streetcar network, which is an attractive alternative to the existing possibility of travelling by car.Commuters now have a direct connection to the center of Mulhouse or the main railway station.

Extensive work was required to connect the exis-ting rail network with the tram network.

The following work was carried out:

In the center of Mulhouse: Created 4 km of new electrified track to be used

for the tram and train Opened two new tram stops: Zu-Rhein and Mu-

sées.

Adapted / changed two existing tram stops: Dornach and Lutterbach.

Outside of Mulhouse: Laid 20 km of new traction current lines

STRAIL France was asked to find a solution for the platform edge of the four tram stops. Due to the larger clearance gauge, the solution had to be re-movable in order for the maintenance train, as well as the track measuring train still to be able to pass unhindered.

The STRAILedge rubber filler element is required to close the gap between the railway platform and the commuter train.

Additionally, it serves to create easier access and more safety for physically impaired or disabled persons.

Florent Vautherin / STRAIL FranceHubert Dumpler / Development Department

You can download the relevant project report from www.strail.de.

01 / & 02 / & 03Installed platform edge STRAILedge04 / Exploded view of platform edge05 / Installed fastening system06 / Onsite installation of the platform edge

01 / 02 / 03 /

05 /

04 / 06 /


STRAILedge

Platform Edge in Florence (Italy)

Project dataPlatform edge made of rubber “Le Tram-Train” >Total length of the new line: 4 kmNumber of tram stops: 4Length of the railway platform: 75 mLength of the rubber element: 800 mmWeight of the rubber element: 40 kgNumber of rubber elements delivered: 750Installation date: August 2010

STRAILedge profile

Injection anchor

Bracket (substructure)

Hexagon socket screw with cage nut

Granite

Foundation (grout, concrete)

123456

3

4

2

5

6

6

1

Project dataPlatform edge made of rubber: STRAILedgeStreetcar line 1: 15 stopsLength of platform edge: 2 x 42 m for each stopLength of the rubber profile: 500 mmWeight of the rubber profile: 3.3 kgNumber of STRAILedge rubber profiles delivered: 2,460 pieces and 60 end profiles

“mind the gap” is a warning that probably eve-ryone, who has been in London and has used the Underground, has heard. In the meantime, this announcement has achieved cult status in the Bri-tish capital. T-shirts, coffee mugs, keychains and many other souvenirs are available with this war-ning printed on them.

In Florence, the Tuscan culture capital, souve-nir dealers will have to find another way to se-cure their business in future, since gaps no lon-ger exist. At least not at the 15 stops of the newly built streetcar line 1, thanks to STRAILedge from KRAIBURG / STRAIL. This first of three lines began operation in early 2010 and is an attempt to get a

more environmentally-friendly local public trans-portation system up and running in Florence, since the city‘s public transportation previously was so-lely based on the use of diesel buses.

Initially, our product was only viewed as a problem resolution. In the meantime, however, the identi-cal solution has been included as an integral part in the other two lines currently being planned.

True to the region, platform edges in Florence are made of granite. To ensure the optimal safety of passengers, the only thing remaining to do was to close the gap between the streetcar and platform edge.

The material to be used for this purpose had to be strong enough to carry the weight of the pas-sengers, while acting as a “buffer” between the streetcar and granite > STRAILedge closes this gap.

Thomas Namberger / Development

You can download the relevant project report from www.strail.de.

01 / - 05 /Installed platform edge > STRAILedge in Florence06 / Underground in London

01 / 02 / 03 /

04 / 05 / 06 /


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STRAIL & STRAILastic

Maintenance Work in the Production Department


We interrupt the entire production at STRAIL & STRAILastic for maintenance and repair work on the machines twice a year.

We plan ten days of downtime during our plant shutdown period in summer and 14 days for our second plant shutdown at Christmas. During these periods all production facilities are cleaned, ins-pected and repaired. This usually means that the technical department is up to their eyes in work.

The fitters and electricians are supported by em-ployees from the STRAIL & STRAILastic production department.

Christian BrandnerHead of Production

01 / Adjusting the feeder of the #8 press (Robert Slup)

02 / Inspecting a batch mixer (Hans Westner / Josef Irnstötter)

03 / Fitter’s shop (David Kutschera / Hans Westner)

04 / Inspecting the screw conveyors (Andreas Grüssmer)

05 / Examining the heating mixer (Josef Hölzl)06 / Maintenance on the #8 press

(Christian Lebesmühlbacher)07 / Renewing the seals of the hydraulic cylinder

on the #10 press08 / Exchanging the seals of the hydraulic cylin-

der (Richard Marx / Klaus Brandacher / Christian Lebesmühlbacher / Georg Baumann / Andreas David)

STRAIL - Production Department

Integrating the 1,200 mm STRAIL Inner Panel Into Our Post-Production Process

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02 / 03 / 04 /

The steps following the molds, i.e. cooling, brus-hing and drilling the STRAIL products were desig-ned for a width of 900 mm. In order for us to have an efficient production sequence, it was necessary to adapt our production to our 1,200 mm STRAIL panel.

First concepts regarding the integration were in-troduced and put up for debate in August 2009.The best suitable solution for us was selected and the details worked out.Investment funds were approved in March 2010.

The plan was to increase the shelf width of the cooling shelf, increase the maximum permitted load of the storage and retrieval vehicle, as well as a new brushing machine with an additional la-teral loading station and a turning station for the STRAIL products.

The investment was largely planned and imple-mented by members of STRAIL’s technical depart-ment. The overall plan, cooling shelf, as well as planning and execution of the entire electrical system was carried out at STRAIL.The brushing machine and turning station were developed in cooperation with a mechanical en-gineering partner.

Conversion took place during our annual plant

shutdown periods in summer and winter 2010 / 2011, in order to minimize downtime during pro-duction.

Employees from the production department vigo-rously supported our technical department during conversion.

The facilities were completed on time and now contribute to the success of STRAIL.

A huge THANK YOU to all colleagues and suppliers who played a role in the successful completion of this project.

Christian BrandnerHead of Production

01 / Cooling shelf02 / Layout of the brushing machine/drill and

turning station03 / Installation work on the cooling shelf

(Erich Zirnitzer / Franz Wolfsöldner)04 / Electrical assembly (Martin Stecher)05 / Electrical assembly (Toni Mörtl / Martin

Stecher)06 / Starting up the brushing machine

(Vlad Dan Vasile)07 / Assembling the chain conveyor

(Martin Dreier /Richard Marx)

01 /

08 / Switching on the brushing machine (Christian Huber / Markus Auer)

09 / Installing the sound-insulation material (Andreas David)

10 / Turning station (Andreas Mörtl, Production Manager)

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Combined Level Crossing > pedeSTRAIL / veloSTRAIL in France

Technical data:Y-sleeper / gauge: 1,000 mm / 5 km long / maxi-mum gradient: 155 ‰

Construction of the cog railway on the Puy de Dôme started back in 2010 and will be completed by November 2011. It is here, the valley station of Orcines-Puy de Dôme, where we installed a 10.8 m wide level crossing.

The Puy de Dôme volcano (1,465 m) is situated in the Puy-de-Dôme department. It is part of the

Massif Central in south-central France and is its highest peak.Puy de Dôme is approx. 1,000 m higher than Cler-mont-Ferrand, which is located about 15 km away.

Jürgen DehnerHead of Installation

01 / Combined level crossing > veloSTRAIL inner

panels and pedeSTRAIL outer panels


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STRAIL

Continued Success in the Balkans

After the countries Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia, bigger projects using STRAIL systems are now also being planned in Bosnia and Montenegro.

MontenegroReconstruction work has begun on the railway between the cities of NIKŠIĆ and PODGORICA in Montenegro. 20 level crossings in urban and rural areas were installed with different STRAIL systems in this section.

SZ -ZGP, a track construction company from Ljublja-na already familiar with STRAIL products, carried out the entire installation. They started in October and completed all installation work including sig-naling equipment and road connection within 45 days. The only problems encountered were due to the bad weather.

Thanks to the great work our local STRAIL partners, we were able to land and carry out this project for STRAIL.

BosniaBig projects to overhaul various railway lines using STRAIL systems were also planned in Bosnia.

41 level crossings have been installed in the track section between the cities of KOSTAJNICA and JOŠAVKA. Five level crossings, using STRAIL and in-noSTRAIL, have been planned and already partially installed between MOSTAR and CAPLJINA. Here too, our STRAIL partner in Bosnia, Mr. Mugdim Had-ziahmetovic did an excellent job during the plan-ning phase. The entire project is being executed by ARGE Swietelsky - Alpine. Both companies are longtime STRAIL partners and very familiar with the installation of STRAIL systems.

During the course of contract negotiations in Mostar, the capital of the Herzegowina-Neretva Canton, we were able to visit the city’s beautiful old town. The Stari Most (“Old Bridge” in English) spans the river Neretva and is one of Mostar‘s most recog-nizable landmarks. It was built from 1556 to 1566

by the Ottoman architect Mimar Hajrudin, but was destroyed by heavy artillery fire during the Bosni-an War on 9 November 1993. Major reconstruction projects commenced in 1996 and the reconstructed bridge was formally opened on 23 July 2004. The bridge and old town of Mostar were added to the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites on 15 July 2005.

Regrettably, time was too short for us to see all of the sights and therefore we only had time for a quick overview. A trip to the region of Herzegovi-na and the historic center of Mostar certainly are highly recommended.

Walter GruberArea Sales Manager

01 / Level crossing in Bosnia02 / Map03 / Mugdim Hadziahmetovic04 / Impressions from Mostar

01 / 02 / 03 /

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STRAIL in Greece

Installation for Greece‘s Largest Transportation Center

Urban transportation around Athens has changed radically due to the Olympic Games of 2004. All projects built prior to 2004 were based on a ge-neral plan, which was drawn up to outline infra-structural developments which were to be realized after the Olympic Games.

One of the major development projects planned is the construction of the central railway station of Thriasio, next to the harbor of Elefsina. Due to its location, Thriasio could easily become a trans-portation hub in South East Europe. It can be con-veniently accessed from sea, via the two harbors of Elefsina and Pireaus, it is in close proximity to Athens‘ biggest highway connections and can be easily connected to the main line of the Greek rail-ways. As a result, once it has been completed the central rail center of Thriasio will be the biggest in Greece and in the Balkan region, as well as one of the biggest within Europe.

This very ambitious project is combined with two other major projects: the first being the construc-tion of the railway connection with the harbor of Ikonio in Pireaus (operated by the Chinese com-pany Cosco), which is the major Greek port and

the second being the connection with the main railway line which leads to the Balkans and Turkey.

The Thriasio Project is divided into two phases. The first, which is currently under construction, consists of creating the infrastructure by construc-ting the required railway lines. Work on this phase started back in 2007 and should be completed by early summer of 2011. The budget for this part of the project was calculated to be 80 million euro. The second phase, for which tenders are being accepted, however has been delayed due to the severe financial crisis in Greece. This part of the project includes the buildings, the electrification of the line and only a small remaining part of the infrastructure. Without the quick completion of the second phase of construction the entire pro-ject will not be able to be completed and operated properly.

The first phase comprised a total of twelve level crossings. Seven of which have been designed for normal traffic usage. The constructor therefo-re chose to use Innostrail for these crossings. The remaining five level crossings will be used for hea-vier loads, which is why our customer chose Strail

as the system solution. In order to close this deal we had to prevail against strong competition. But in the end we came out on top, due to the excel-lent quality of our products and our first-rate ser-vice, which includes working closely together with our customers, e.g. by offering and supporting them with our technical expertise and repeated-ly visiting the worksite in order to recognize and head-off potential project problems early on. All this allowed us to successfully close the deal. Our customer was able to quickly install the level cros-sings, without any complication whatsoever and was overall very happy with the combination of good quality, fair pricing, short delivery times and generous technical assistance.

Filippos FilippidisS&F S.A. Consulting Engineering /

STRAIL Greece

01 / 02 / 03/STRAIL & innoSTRAIL > installed levell crossing systems

STRAIL

Nishiyama Corporation: New Sales Partner in Japan

Japan is already a very “old” STRAIL market. The highly developed railway infrastructure and very dense railway network in the “Land of the Rising Sun” were deciding factors for STRAIL to start sales activities there 20 years ago.

Measured by the number of level crossings, the Ja-panese market is one of the most interesting mar-kets for our products on the whole. So it was only logical for us to try to work and serve the market more intensively and better than in the past.

One measure to achieve this was to find a sales partner who not only had a higher level of techni-cal know-how, but also would work more intensi-

vely on marketing our products than we had done or were able to do to date.

Together with the German Chamber of Commerce in Tokyo, we looked for alternatives. We believe we have found a good business partner with the Nishiyama Corporation.

Five employees from Japan have already partici-pated in intensive product training in Tittmoning. Since then, Nishiyama has cultivated the Japane-se railway market with a great deal of enthusiasm and joy.

We wish them all the best, especially in these difficult times, and hope they have much success.

Export STRAIL

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04 / 05 / 06 /

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STRAILastic_GRS

Track Section Base Plate Passes Acid Test

Track renewal and track conversion work for street-cars is always under enormous time pressure. Re-directing traffic and bustitution are expensive and often annoying. That is why construction time is increasingly being reduced.We have developed the “STRAILastic_GRS” track section base plate, which eliminates several steps, thus reducing construction time. That is why the track construction company Albert Fischer in Elze chose this solution for their building project “Uhl-hornstrasse” in Hanover. Before construction even commenced, the track panels had been isolated using the chamber-filling elements and rail base sheathing. The prepared track panels were then stored on the side of the track. After the old tracks had been removed, the new track panels were laid onto the subgrade. Once the track section base plates were placed and installed under the

rails, the track section was roughly aligned. Precise alignment of the track section - in terms of height and position - was then carried out according to the directions of the surveyors. Adjusting the height of the track is particularly convenient using the adjusting screws of the STRAILastic_GRS. After the side shuttering had been put up, everything was prepared for the concrete to be poured. The track supporting layer is produced in one go from the subgrade to the height of the rail base. After the concrete has set, streetcars are able to resume operation. All other road construction work is car-ried out after operation has resumed.

Due to this construction method additional work steps like drilling, placing anchor plugs, setting up and taking down shuttering for grouting, as well as grouting the rail become redundant!

In addition to saving time, this also reduces costs significantly!Last but not least and taking the height reduction of the track superstructure into account (i.e. by the height of the grouting), one can only arrive at one conclusion: STRAILastic_GRS is a real “win-win” situation for all parties involved.So, to briefly sum up: Using the track section base plate is not only a great time-saver, but also pays off in hard cash!

Reinhard GiglmaierApplications Engineering

01 / Preassembled material02 / Pouring the concrete for the track03 / Installed track section base plate

> STRAILastic_GRS


STRAILastic_A

Test installation in Sweden

Saltsjöbanan, a suburban rail system between Stockholm and Saltsjöbaden, was opened in 1893 and renovated in 2010. It has a track length of 18.6 km and on average 17,000 passengers use it on a daily basis.The wooden sleepers were replaced with concre-te sleepers during the course of the renovation, which resulted in increased noise emissions.

The track was classified as a new line and there-fore had to comply with a threshold value of 70 dB(A). Measurements, however, showed results of 73-76 dB(A).

STRAILastic_A was tested in combination with damped wheels. (Wheel and rail emissions need to be damped.)

Preliminary results indicate that the existing noi-se problem can be controlled effectively with this measure.

We are currently still waiting for official test re-sults.

Andreas GöschlArea Sales Manager

STRAILastic_A - Attending the RAIL-noise Symposium in Berlin

Wolfgang Weber and Hubert Dumpler, both em-ployees of STRAIL, presented the innovative STRAILastic_A rail damping system followed by a discussion to an international rail-oriented au-dience of suppliers and experts from industry at the third Rail-noise symposium of IFV Bahntechnik e.V. (Interdisciplinary Railway Research Associati-on) in Berlin on 17/18 March.

Theoretical and practical aspects of noise gene-ration and propagation, as well as modeling and measuring technology were also discussed in va-rious specialists’ presentations. Participants had

ample opportunity to socialize and make exten-sive contacts during the event and also exchange important information dealing with the current and future scientific treatment of noise prevention within the field of railway traffic.

The symposium has shown that STRAIL(astic) can contribute significantly to combat noise pollution.

Hubert DumplerDevelopment

Hubert Dumpler (left) being introduced byEckhard Schulz (CEO IFV)

STRAIL

Workshop > Railway Forum With Schreck-Mieves

The already traditional railway forum hosted by the company Schreck-Mieves took place for the sixth time in Stuttgart in November 2010. Among other interesting contributions, Dipl. Ing. Karsten Schönewald, the Head of Railway Technology for Hamburg Port Authority, elaborated on his user ex-perience with level crossing technology in the case of the Hamburg Hafenbahn (Port Railway) in a talk titled “street meets rail.”

Data and facts regarding the port of HamburgThe Port of Hamburg, which covers an area of 73 square kilometers, 43 of which are landmass and 30 are water, is Europe‘s second-busiest contai-ner port. Based on TEU throughput figures in 2008, it is the world’s 11th-largest port! One can cross 147 bridges and use 460 kilometers of track, while crossing 330 level crossings on the 150 km of pub-lic roads in the port! 82 different railway compa-nies let approx. 200 trains, 135 of which are freight trains, roll over the infrastructure of the Port Rail-way on a daily basis; this adds up to about 5,000 freight cars per day.

User experience with level crossing solutionsIn order to solve this problem in the long term and find a solution which would be able to withstand these extreme loads, the HPA tested various pro-

ducts like blacktop, precast concrete products or rubber panels.In the case of highly stressed level crossings, one approach was e.g. to switch from S54 to UIC60 using transition rails and from timber sleepers to B90 concrete sleepers. The panel system used was the “big” 1,200 mm STRAIL inner panel.

Challenge: Accidents involving cyclistsWithin the area of the Kattwyk vertical lift bridge, street and track run parallel and in the same axis. The area where street and rail no longer run par-allel results in the trafficways creating a glancing intersection. Subsequently, it became apparent that the big rail grooves of the concrete panels - a result of the panels‘ design - were to blame for an increase of accidents involving cyclists. Based on this, the road maintenance authority - in co-ordination with the traffic authority - decided to close the Kattwyk Bridge to cyclists. After installing the newly developed system veloSTRAIL, a system which closes the rail groove with a wear part but still permits the wheel flange to compress, the ban on cyclists using the bridge was lifted, as there were no more known accidents since installing the veloSTRAIL solution. Thus, from the perspective of the HPA, a product was designed which is well sui-ted to meet their requirements.

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01 /

01 / Mr. Schönewald (HPA)02 / Title page of the presentation

Wolfgang WeberHead of Team Germany

STRAILastic_KFV in Bremen

The joint compound developed by STRAILastic is characterized by the fact that it contains no hazar-dous or toxic substances whatsoever, exhibits safe fire behavior and can be cured by adding moisture. Unlike many competing products, which expressly cannot and may not be used in rainy conditions, or in conditions with higher levels of humidity, it is even beneficial for our product, if the edges have been wet by rain or if light rain showers occur while applying our product.However, there is one drawback: Nearly all materi-al, which comes into contact with STRAILastic_KFV immediately sticks to due to its extremely strong adhesion properties. As a result, any commercially available pumping technology could only be used for relatively short periods, since cleaning the pumping mechanism onsite would either be very difficult or impossible. Developing a suitable pum-ping system was of course a challenge: We had to meet the requirements of the material, as well as create a simple and robust technology which also

would be suitable for use on construction sites.The pump we developed has a flow rate control; therefore the amount of material can easily be adjusted using an electronic control with remote control.This individual flow rate control was successfully tested in Bremen.

STRAILastic_KFV can be wetted or flooded imme-diately after reaching the desired target fill level in the joint and opened for traffic after a brief curing period.The elasticity of the material remains virtually un-changed over a wide temperature range of -30°C to + 90°C, thereby significantly reducing the well-known problem of lack of adhesion to rail and road connection.The final product is a high-quality, durable elastic joint.

Johannes BartolomäDevelopment

NEW

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STRAIL in India

A Land of (Railway) Superlatives

By 2025 at the latest, India will have replaced Chi-na as the most populous country in the world.

But India is not only a land of superlatives in terms of its population growth rate. Indian Rail-ways, a departmental undertaking of the Indian government, has around 1.4 million (!) employees, making it the world’s largest utility employer. The 65,000 km long railway network carries 5 billion passengers annually. Even the track gauge is a su-perlative: India is one of the few countries to use the 1,676 mm wide “Indian gauge”, the widest gauge used for railways.

All in all, very persuasive reasons for STRAIL to have a closer look at this market, which promises to hold much potential with its approx. 37,000 level crossings.

However, staying power was necessary in order for us to have our first modest successes. Our partners needed about two years to receive approval for a STRAIL test installation. Another year passed until the technical documents had been drawn up, the appropriate level crossings had been selected and an order placed with us.

After a comparatively short three-month delay we were finally able to carry out the initial installa-tion.

At last, everything was ready to go in mid-Ju-ne 2011. Two test crossings were installed in the Northern Railway Zone - 250 km north-west of Delhi - and are currently undergoing an evalu-ation period.

Northern Railways is expected to decide on whether or not STRAIL products will continue to be installed in India after six months.

Willy MolterExport Manager

01 / Manual labor still plays a major role in India02 / The first STRAIL level crossing in India!03 / The second STRAIL level crossing piques the

interest of passersby04 / Completed STRAIL level crossing installation05 / Installation supervisor Jürgen Dehner

(middle) and the installation crew

01 / 02 / 03 /


New avenues for a successful future

Restructuring the STRAIL Sales Organization in Italy

Since the mid-80s, so for about 25 years, we have been active in the Italian market with our level crossing products. For the most of this time, we very successfully worked together with a dealer who acted as our sales partner. The constantly changing conditions for our customers, as well as personnel changes at our former sales partner per-suaded us to take the initiative and reorganize our sales structure.

Fast, direct market access was our motto, so it quickly became clear that we did not want to look for a new sales partner. Instead, it was our goal to approach the customer directly with our own sales representative, in order to meet our objectives in a sales region very important to us. We were suc-cessful rather quickly and found a suitable person

in Tommaso Savi, a former employee of our pre-vious sales partner. Together with the help of Dr. Mario Casoni, who - despite being retired - will act as a consultant to us for a period of two years, we now personally take care of our customers in Italy. So far successfully, especially judging by the positive customer feedback we receive.

Our particular thanks go to our partner of many years, Thermit Italiana Srl, for the successful time we had together. We wish our colleague Tommaso much success as a member of our team and much joy in his job.

01 /Tommaso Savi & Dr. Mario Casoni

STRAIL

17 Excellent Reasons to Choose STRAIL

Every now and again you are asked to justify your purchase of a STRAIL level crossing system.To save you some time and make it easier for you, we have briefly summarized the product benefits of our STRAIL system compared to other systems below:

1. Handling: Low weight, can be handled manu-ally – especially when tamping the track (Exception: innoSTRAIL and 1,200 mm STRAIL inner panels).

2. Anti-skid surface with corundum.3. Fully pre-tensioned level crossing, no indivi-

dual panels, no “rattling”.4. No “failure” of panels at level crossings in

transition bends, due to the elasticity of the rubber material.

5. No risk of sudden failure (“sudden death”) due to the elasticity of the rubber material.

6. Robust panels, e.g. during transport, installa-tion.

7. Smallest rail groove (45 mm) of all systems, due to the rubber material; with veloSTRAIL we almost close the groove entirely. Especially important: Our rail groove is also the easiest to clean (minimal maintenance).

8. No permanent ice formation on surface or within area of rail groove thanks to elasticity of the rubber. Best possible protection against derailments.

9. Unchanged track superstructure in front of, on and behind level crossing.

10. Price/performance: We offer a suitable product for every application (e.g.: pedeSTRAIL system for pedestrians/cyclists or STRAIL 1,200 mm inner panels and pontiSTRAIL outer panels for maximum loads). By combining the systems (e.g. STRAIL with pedeSTRAIL) we are able to offer very econo-mical solutions.

11. Electrical insulation12. Flexible solutions for switches and radii13. Maintenance-free (no wear parts)

STRAIL Road Marking - Now Available in Spray Cans!

Our new STRAIL road marking - patent pending - is able to withstand even harshest conditions, e.g. continuous traffic. The two-part system con-sists of a special primer, as well as abrasion-proof paint. STRAIL road marking is characterized by its ease of use. It is simple to apply using a hand rol-ler, an airless sprayer or (for smaller marking jobs) a convenient spray can.

Optional glass beads can be sprinkled into the freshly applied road to create good night visibility (reflection effect).Full trial tests have confirmed the excellent labo-ratory results with regard to adhesion and dura-bility.

NEW

Four Different STRAIL Systems Combined in one Level Crossing (Austria)

The superb compatibility of the individual STRAIL systems enables us to offer our customers an excellent value for money.

Our project planning department was given the opportunity to demonstrate our technical capabi-lities at an ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways) level crossing in Eferding (Upper Austria).

Length of level crossing: 42.6 m / crossing angle: 100° >Requirements High traffic load:

STRAIL solution: Installation of our reinforced 1,200 mm STRAIL inner panels, in combination with pontiSTRAIL outer panels.

Safety in the pedestrian area: STRAIL solution: veloSTRAIL inner panel with closed rail groove together with pedeSTRAIL outer panels > the cost-effective solution.

Of course, all of our products were fully pre-ten-sioned with the help of our proven locking sys-tem. In this case, the locking connection between a pontiSTRAIL and a pedeSTRAIL outer panel was new. We were able to easily lock the systems in place and install them by adding an additional hole on the pedeSTRAIL outer panel and making minor adjustments to the T-curbs on site.

Walter GruberArea Sales Manager 01 / Installed level crossing in Eferding / Austria

Durable, even in case of heavy traffic Weatherproof and elastic Easy to repair/correct with a new coating

04 /

05 /

14. Much cheaper freight costs, due to the low weight of the rubber parts.

15. Free return of used panels (framework agree-ment). You merely need to pay the transport costs for the STRAIL panels from your site to our plant in Tittmoning.

16. STRAIL is a “recycled product”. Old panels are “shredded” and reused in a complex manu-facturing process.

17. The last point I would like to highlight is our service. We are constantly available and ready to serve you, deliver promptly and work hard to fulfill your requirements and wishes.

These are the advantages, which have made us and our products to what we are today: Specialists for level crossings.

Rainer HendlmayrSTRAIL Southern Germany

All roads available (e.g. white and yellow)

Luise HerderHead of Communication


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STRAILastic_F - Zeebrugge

Installation of Filling Elements in Rail Channels With Crane Rails

01 / 02 / 03 /


STRAILastic_A - Test installation in Switzerland

Can Rail Dampers be Effective Under Optimum Track Conditions?

The Swiss „Federal Office for the Environment“ (FOEN) wanted to test in a field test which was carried out near Neuchâtel (Switzerland) whether or not rail damping systems show any effect under optimum conditions. This meant: Freshly ground rail / new sleepers / new rail bedding and well-compacted ballast.

Installation of the systems over a length of approx. 80 m was carried out Tuesday night. Sound mea-surement evaluation was performed Wednesday / Thursday and the systems were then removed the following Monday night.Installation, as well as removal of the systems, was carried out in the presence of the rail operator (technical officer) and a representative of the FOEN (Swiss Federal Office for the Environment). The representatives were present to draw conclu-sions about the expected LCC (Live Cycle Cost), in order to receive a comprehensive picture of the future costs for each system in case of rail replace-ments, broken rails or other extensive track cons-truction work.

Our STRAILastic_A system already faced its acid test during installation, since weather conditions were far from optimal. At times we had strong wind, most of the time much rain and all this at tem-peratures just above freezing and with limited site lighting by the rail operator. And yet our system was able to shine with its high level of adaptabili-

ty: using machinery, as well as manual installation tools we were able to achieve laydown rates of up to 180 m/hour (depending on manpower levels).

FOEN had commissioned an independent engi-neering office to conduct the sound measurement tests, on the basis of DIN and EU standards.In particular, standardized rail-testing trains with extremely clean axes and different braking systems were tested, in order to be able to filter out pos-sibly varying effects of each competitor’s product. After the measurements had been concluded, we were able to complete the removal of the test track the fastest (of all products) and without any criti-cisms whatsoever.

The subsequent evaluation showed that even un-der these ideal conditions and depending on the type of vehicle, STRAILastic_A was able to reduce the level of air-borne noise by up to 3.2 dB(A) based on the average sound level.

STRAILastic_A‘s results from the TDR (Track Decay Rate) measurements, which were also performed, were particularly convincing. This measurement describes the rail’s vibration characteristics and the reductions achieved in dB/meter. Looking at the entire frequency spectrum, the results clear-ly showed that the broadband design of our rail damping system has no weaknesses. The arithme-tic mean of the damping values measured was

4.2 dB(A)/ meters horizontally and 4.4 dB(A)/ me-ters vertically, in the vibration-relevant frequency range of 100 – 5,000 Hz.

Thus, the opening question of whether or not rail dampers can also be effective under perfect track conditions can be answered with an emphatic „YES“. These results also mean that in practice one can expect even higher level difference values in less than ideal track conditions.


01 / Completely installed STRAILastic_A system02 / STRAILastic_A removal tools03 / Competing product by Vossloh04 / Competing product by Corus / Tata

04 / 07 /

APM TERMINALS, an independent division within the Maersk Group, operates cargo-handling equipment for container ships in the Belgian con-tainer port of Zeebrugge. A total of seven “Super-Post Panamax” gantry cranes, as well as other cra-ne types, are in use.(The link for anyone interested in more details: http://www.apmterminals.com)

The gantry cranes move on a pair of crane rails, which run in a concrete duct. This open duct po-ses a safety hazard particularly for the so-called “straddle carriers”, since any unevenness in the road surface increases in intensity with height. Our partner in Belgium received an inquiry, whether it would be possible to close this concrete duct using a STRAILastic / KRAIBURG system.

In order to ensure not only the safety of these are-as, but also the ability to drive over them, it was necessary to fill the remaining space in the rail channels with a stable material. The operator also wanted to be able to remove the entire system. The materials used should not be washed away

in case of flooding, be resistant to corrosion and have a non-slip surface.

The special features of the STRAILastic_F “Zee-brugge” system at a glance:

Solidly built elements with high load capacity Specific weight is higher than water Anti-skid surface Corrosion resistant, since made entirely of rub-

ber Resistant to UV light Hard-wearing Preventive protection against damage to the

rail body Removable

The solution, newly developed by KRAIBURG, consisted of using the filling elements from our STRAILastic product range and adapting them to the rail profile. The elements are solid and only have recesses in the area of the track fastenings. The shaped rail groove is very tightly dimensioned

to achieve maximum stability. A specially designed structure makes the surfaces slip-resistant.

The space between rail wall and element which, in practice, varies in width was filled using our own in-house plastic material. This not only en-sures proper sealing, but also flexible support of the elements in the channel. Furthermore, the elements are mechanically connected with each other using clamps.

The system now permits safely navigating the cra-ne rail areas. It dampens occurring vibrations and also decreases the rolling motion of forklift trucks.

Thorsten UtermöhlenSTRAILastic / STRAIL France

You can download the relevant project report from www.strailastic.de.

05 / 06 /

01 / View of the Super-Post Panamax cranes of APM TERMINALS at Zeebrugge in Belgium

02 / The elements have been inserted into the rail chamber and fixed

03 / Handover of the first section of the system to APM in March 2010

04 / Straddle carrier05 / The bottom of the elements with recesses

for track fastenings and connection clamps06 / Sealing the edge joints with STRAILastic_KFV07 / In-process inspection of clearance and rail

groove by APM

03 /

04 /01 / 02 /

STRAILastic - Ballast Clearing Equipment

The basic idea is to remove the ballast as needed (high ballast fill), i.e. to remove as little as pos-sible when clearing the space below the rail base required for installation.

Since there was no device / machine worldwi-de that met these requirements, we got down to work.Result of our construction: An extension for a road/rail excavator, robustly designed with a SMP quick-change holder.

A hydraulic system controls two blades with hardened edges, which run opposite while clearing approx. 35 mm below the rail base (re-quired space to install the fixing clamps).

Minimal disruption of compacted ballast. Clearing capacity per hour approx. 260 m /track

with a sleeper spacing of 60 cm.


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STRAIL & STRAILastic - The Latest From The Team

01 / Andreas GÖSCHL / Area Sales Manager - since 01 January 2011

02 / Daniela GAUDINO BARONELLO / Sales Administration – since 01 Jan. 2011

03 / Johannes ECKHART / Technical Support - since 01 March 2011

04 / Franz PREMS / Dispatch & Logistics - since 17 March 2011

05 / Richard JÄGER / Commercial Manager - since 01 April 2011

06 / Karl-Richard ANFANG / Technical Support - since 18 May 2011

07 / Thomas SCHÖNWETTER / Area Sales Manager - since 01 June 2011

08 / Martin LIENER / Sales Administration - since 01 August 2011

02 / 04 /03 /01 / 05 /

Welcome!

20 years with STRAIL / STRAILastic

Andreas HERDER Managing DirectorAt our Christmas party 2010, Sabine Surer read a poem out loud about our boss. His personal background, quirks, hobbies (motorcycle / sports > mowing the lawn!), family, values ... which didn’t leave out much!A small excerpt:„... And you value your beloved Kawasaki Z 1300 so much, that you even drove it to the famous “Büchsen-schütz” all the way to Fulda. ...“„... We also need to add profound thinking to your personal characteristics > since your Tibetan exercises help you recover your mental balance. ...“Our managing director was very touched and “unbelievably pleased” about the poem!Photo: Our managing partners congratulating Mr. Andreas Herder to his 20th anniversary with the company.

Thank you, for 20 years with STRAIL / STRAILastic.

30 years with STRAIL / STRAILastic

Gerhard LUNGLHOFER Dispatch / LogisticsGerhard started working for KRAIBURG as a member of the shift working the #7 press.Driving a forklift is one of his “great passions”, which is why he received a “special” present from our ma-naging director: he was given an original Mini Linde forklift (exactly the same model he drives every day at work). “I’ll need to show this to my grandchild first thing tomorrow”, Gerhard remarked happily - a very proud grandfather, who of course very much enjoys the time he spends with his grandchild.Gerhard is a very reliable employee and always in a good mood!

We wish you all the best, Gerhard, especially happiness and good health for the years to come.

Thank you, for 30 years with STRAIL / STRAILastic.

06 /

STRAIL level crossing systems & STRAILastic track damping systems / Gummiwerk KRAIBURG Elastik GmbH / D-84529 Tittmoning / Goellstr. 8phone +49|8683|701-0 / fax -126 / [email protected] / www.strail.com / www.strailastic.com

CREDITS Publisher ¬ STRAIL & STRAILastic / Articles ¬ Staff & STRAIL / STRAILastic Partner / Editors ¬ Andreas Herder, Luise HerderLayout ¬ Pahlke Media GmbH & Luise Herder / Print ¬ F&W Mediencenter STRAIL & STRAILastic are brands of the group.

08 /07 /

CREATIVE & ORIGINAL!WANTEDPHOTO COMPETITIONSend us your greatest STRAIL or STRAILastic photo > the best entries will be entered in a raffle to win attractive prices. For more information visit www.strail.de.We are looking forward to your photo(s)!


edition 2011 - contents... edition 2011 - contents:for customers, employees and friends. let’s...

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