Rolling Stock Services

Why is rolling stock testing and certification important?

Testing of railways and components as well as rolling stock certification provides multiple benefits:

• Comply with contractual requirements, as well as any national and international rolling stock regulations to put your product into service

• Discover potential safety and approval-relevant weaknesses early in the development phase, to address them and avoid costly rework and delays

• Ensure safety for passengers and drivers by demonstrating your quality with a globally recognised certification mark

TÜV SÜD is your experienced service provider for the Rail industry

TÜV SÜD has more than 50 years of experience as a rail testing company and partner to the rail industry. Our technical experts have extensive specialist know-how in assessment, testing and inspection for all types of systems and subsystems in the rail transport and rolling stock – from conventional to high-speed as well as metro and light rail.

We are recognised worldwide as a railway safety assessor, have a deep understanding of the rail regulatory requirements and operate our own rail testing facilities covering an area of approximately 35,000 square metres. In addition, we possess proprietary testing tools for rolling stock and railway components to offer the best possible service. Besides thorough evaluations and reports, we also provide TÜV SÜD certification marks after successful assessments, which are globally recognised and synonymous with quality and safety.

TÜV SÜD’S ROLLING STOCK CERTIFICATION AND TESTING SERVICES

Testing

• Testing and modelling of vehicle dynamics; special expertise for wheel-rail contact
• Technical running, brake and derailment tests
• Crash tests on complete vehicles or components
• Strength tests
• Rail impact test for tank containers
• Testing buffers, automatic couplings and draw gear
• Functional tests
• Fire prevention and protection
• Testing of pantograph-catenary interaction including uplift and arc measurement

Independent safety assessment (ISA) and certification

• ISA for electrical, electronic and software-controlled systems, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems, propulsion, and energy supply
• Certification of vehicles and components (including train control monitoring system (TCMS))
• Assessment of refurbished vehicles and networks access conditions
• Assessment of personal protection safety concepts
• Certification of maintenance procedures and workshops (Entities in charge of maintenance (ECM))
• As Notified and Designated Body, we serve as a project-independent and autonomous organisation for testing compliance with national regulations and Notified National Technical Rules (NNTR)

EC verification / conformity assessment

• EC certification in line with Directive 2008/57/EC to place rolling stock into service on the Trans-European Networks (TEN)
• EU assessments for rolling stock vehicle subsystems in line with the Technical Specification for Interoperability (TSI) (PRM, SRT, NOI, HS RST and CR LOC&PAS) and for vehicle control, command and signalling systems as Notified Body (NoBo) for interoperability