Sometimes, a new railroad product that’s a bit different from “business as usual” will encounter resistance. Here’s how one supplier stayed the course and earned acceptance.
Roller bearing failures are the third-largest cause of derailments on U.S. railways, following only broken rails and track irregularities. According to a 2012 University of Illinois study, bearing failures caused 257 U.S. derailments between 2001 and 2010, with more than 1,700 cars coming off the rails.
“This leads to millions of dollars in Loss & Damage claims and cleanup and track repair costs, plus the cost of repairing and replacing wheelsets and other running gear—not to mention the injuries or loss of life that sometimes result from a derailment,” according to Stage 8 Locking Fasteners Inc. Director and Executive Vice President Robert J. Ahern. Such derailments frequently happen because roller bearing end-cap screws, which maintain proper compression in the bearing, vibrate loose after tens of thousands of miles of service.
