Intermodal Summit: Rail network optimization depends on tech investments

BIO: Jain is group president of Wabtec’s electronics sector. Jain has over 25 years of experience developing companies’ tech and electronics divisions across several industries, including aerospace, defense and rail transportation. 

KEY QUOTES:

“Beyond the capacity constraints, the other big challenge the rail industry and the world is dealing with is the sustainability challenge. More and more it is how do you reduce greenhouse gases and how do you make our transportation methods more efficient when it comes to fuel [that] is very critical. The other element of transportation that is very critical is how do you run a very safe operation?”

“Our flagship product called Trip Optimizer … reduces greenhouse gases and reduces fuel burn by 10%, sometimes as high as 12%.”

“To me when I think about what the future looks like, how do we solve those problems, I think the more efficient the rail network becomes and the more and more rail utilization becomes adopted, you could actually move cargo movements from trucks to trains. That will ensure you free up the roads for passenger transportation.”

“Gone are the days of the oil economy and we know that. With technology developments, with the emergence of new renewable fuels like biofuels or even batteries of the future, these are great technologies and Wabtec continues to invest in those technologies.”