Rail Logistics

To ensure future-proof infrastructure, key routes within Germany’s high-performance rail network are currently undergoing rehabilitation. The first step was taken in 2024 with the comprehensive rehabilitation of the Riedbahn line in the Frankfurt-Mannheim corridor. According to the Frankfurt “Rail Summit” held with representatives from the construction and rail industries, 39 additional rail segments are scheduled to follow – enabling the creation of a roughly 9,000-kilometer high-performance network by 2035, following the comprehensive rehabilitation of 4,000 kilometers of track.

When it comes to supplying construction sites on schedule using rail-bound logistics, Vossloh is an important and reliable partner for network operators and construction companies alike. Whether rails or switches, Vossloh relies on interlocking just-in-time solutions that take into account the requirements of sensitive goods, customer requirements, and infrastructure limitations.

Our portfolio

Rail transport system STS

STS long rail transport units with special superstructures have loading thresholds and rail mountings that eliminate the need for loading timbers and fasteners.

Loading and unloading wagon AAW

Combined with STS or standard flat cars, the AAW is used to load and/or unload long rails up to 180 m in length. This is significantly more effective than using excavators.

Rail unloading system SAS

This flexible and cost-effective system unloads long rails from STS units or standard flat cars onto the center of the track or directly onto sleeper heads. The SAS is delivered by truck and is quickly ready for use.

At a glance

Robel transport units

Rail loading wagon SLW

The crane portal wagon SLW runs on rails laid along the length of the Robel transport unit. Thanks to its hydraulic articulated cranes, SLW is the fastest and most efficient solution for installing and removing long rails.

The foundation for success: good planning

Every project is different, and every construction site has specific requirements. Preparations typically begin about a year in advance – starting with transport from the rail supplier to the welding plants, followed by long rail production and site-specific pre-configuration including custom-fit lengths, through to the scheduling of long rail transport units and the rental of work train locomotives and, if necessary, cranes for on-time delivery to the construction site. During peak periods, around 35 employees, including commercial dispatchers, are responsible for coordinating changes in requirements on a daily basis. Daily coordination with the site management helps to adapt capacities to changing working hours on the construction site very flexibly.

About six months before the project starts, the shifts for the priority assignments of the conversion trains are planned and laid down in the construction schedule. Throughout the project, close cooperation and daily comparisons of the target and actual status with the site management serve to identify obstacles at an early stage and remedy them in a targeted manner. Delays, for example when a turnout is "run through" and forcibly shifted by the train, are always possible in a tight schedule; staffing shortages and equipment failures can also occur when capacity utilization is high. Team spirit and a willingness to help out colleagues on the spot often make a qualitative difference. Thanks to an integrated workflow, even parallel shifts requested at short notice are carried out smoothly, ensuring deadlines are met.

Integrated workflow with Europe's largest fleet of rail-bound special transport systems

The long rails are loaded onto special vehicles at the factory. Vossloh has a comprehensive fleet of its own long-rail transport units that can load rails up to 360 meters in length: 231 Robel-type wagons and 268 STS wagons, including the necessary unloading systems. With these rail-bound special transport systems, the railway technology company ensures sustainable rail transport with reduced CO₂ emissions. Deliveries can be tracked via a web-based tracking portal while en route. The management of rail transport includes transport and circulation planning, coordination of unloading times, and the return of empty wagons. The coordination of work train locomotives, work train drivers, and cranes, including crane operators, is also part of the portfolio.

Another area involves planning the deployment of vehicles, machinery, and personnel for long rail loading and replacement, as well as mobile welding. Depending on the project, Vossloh also handles new layer processing using various machines, depending on the amount of material removal required. The same applies to turnouts, which are machined using a milling truck to speed up construction progress. With the Flexis system, only final work is carried out on the turnout frogs and point blades.

Special product features of the Vossloh rail transport fleet:

Smart fastening systems for securing rails or turnouts eliminate the need for additional loading aids such as wood or wire, which would have to be disposed of afterwards.
Our own GPS tracking system ensures that the vehicle fleet can always be tracked accurately and arrives on time for installation—as do the necessary unloading systems. The location data is visualized and evaluated in the rail logistics portal using specially developed software. In addition, software-supported vehicle scheduling optimizes routes and avoids empty runs.
Special transport wagons are equipped with LL brake blocks. LL stands for low noise – low friction.

Thanks to these capacities, numerous large DB projects were completed on schedule:

Extension and new line Nuremberg–Berlin VDE 8

SFS 1733 Hanover–Würzburg in four stages between 2019 and 2024

SFS 4080 Mannheim–Stuttgart 2020

SFS 6100 Hamburg–Berlin 2021 and section 6185 between Oebisfelde and Berlin-Spandau

Vossloh was once again a reliable partner for its clients during the extensive modernization of the DB high-speed line between Hamburg and Berlin (SFS 6100). Under the multi-year framework agreement, Vossloh supplied all pre-assembled long rails with a total length of around 400,000 m from its Rail Centers in Hamburg and Nuremberg. Before delivery, the rails underwent stationary milling to prepare the new layers. At the same time, we were fully responsible for just-in-time rail logistics with 34 long rail transport units. In addition to unloading the 180 m long rails using various loading and unloading systems, we also removed the old rails from the track.

All services were performed in parallel with other trades within tight construction schedules. To this end, the 193 km long main line was completely closed for varying lengths of time – depending on the section, for a weekend or over several weeks. This required not only forward-looking organization and planning, but also flexible deployment teams capable of executing even short-notice parallel shifts smoothly.

Despite extremely tight deadlines and enormous quantities of material, we met all delivery deadlines and thus contributed significantly to the successful and on-schedule completion of the line modernization. With maximum flexibility, expertise, and a strong team spirit, we ensured that the handover took place on time.

Simple increase in fleet capacity: the Railtainer

The Railtainer is the innovative answer to avoiding a shortage of rail cars. The unique yet straightforward aspect of this solution lies in the use of standard container flatcars as a base, onto which Vossloh’s rail transport frames are simply mounted. Suitable for transporting, unloading, and loading rails, the Railtainer increases the loading capacity to 42 rails (60 E1) or 48 rails (49 E1) with a length of 120 m, while still requiring no loading timbers or other aids to secure the rails on the transport unit. For customers, this increases both availability and flexibility, enabling them to continue implementing rail replacement projects reliably and on schedule.