ZTR aims for “intelligent, connected locomotives”
Written by Nebraska Digital, administrator
ZTR Control Systems, a supplier of monitoring and control systems for the railway and industrial off-road equipment markets since 1987, is focusing its R&D and product development efforts on digital solutions.
“Intelligent and connected locomotives are imperative for the future,” ZTR Control Systems Railway Division Vice President and General Manager Matthew Scott told Railway Age. “One of our 2017 strategies is to help railway leaders understand digital strategy and how to implement that strategy with minimal business interruption to begin seeing return on investment immediately.”
Scott said that in early 2016, ZTR significantly increased investment in R&D, specifically its Railway IoT (Internet of Things) solutions. He noted that the company believes digital strategy “will become crucial in a plethora of industrial industries,” and that ZTR “wants to be leading the charge for the railway [industry]. With an existing Industrial IoT division at ZTR that monitors more than 180,000 assets worldwide, we are uniquely positioned to leverage our innovative technologies and solutions to drive new operational performance for our railway customers.”
Scott said that ZTR “plans to disrupt the railway industry yet again. Looking forward into 2017 and beyond, by leveraging LESA (Locomotive Electronic Systems Architecture) standards and avoiding data silos, we can offer seamless integration with existing enterprise software or maintenance solutions. Not only do our solutions work with our own ZTR NEXSYS™ control system but they also integrate independently across all OEM locomotive platforms. That integration element is key and this will make a significant difference for railways planning on implementing IoT solutions and maintaining the availability of their locomotives.”
“Locomotive availability, reliability and safety are all key drivers for the ZTR locomotive data platform,” Scott concluded. “By connecting locomotives and delivering powerful information to the right people, at the right time, we are enhancing the customer’s ability to improve service, productivity and safety.”
