The UIC on behalf of the Common Components Group (CCG), today signed in Paris a 3,2 million Euro development contract to implement the first phase of the Technical Specification for Interoperability - Telematics Applications for Freight (TAF-TSI). The TAF-TSI promises significant gains in the areas of transit time reliability and shipment visibility.
The CCG and the UIC today granted the development contract to ELOG AB of Sweden for the first phase of the TAF-TSI. The Common Components provide for the secure communication of operational data between Infrastructure Managers and Operators in order to implement the functions of the TAF-TSI – leading to revitalisation of European Rail Freight. The project includes the development of the Common System Components as well as the hosting, operations and management functions for a period of 6 years.
As stated in the TAF-TSI Framework Plan, “Positive changes in productivity can lead to advances of market share for the rail freight sector. As a benchmark, the impact of this market shift is enormous in that 1% market share loss by the Railways results in 6.4 million additional lorry trips per annum and an annual revenue loss to the European Railway of approximately 1.1 billion Euros.”
Implementing the TAF TSI is about enabling messaging and local systems to communicate data between rail freight industry stakeholders to improve transit time reliability and shipment information allowing process change to achieve results.
The efficient operation of freight transport on the European rail network requires an automated exchange of operating data in unified formats between railway undertakings, infrastructure managers, wagon keepers and other groups of service providers. The quality of rail freight transport services and maintaining a competitive cost structure of rail freight in Europe are codetermined by the efficiency of a data exchange solution. The Common Components will assure that this requirement is met.
ELOG is a leading solution provider for the freight and rail markets based in Stockholm, Sweden, and has been providing rail companies with state-of-the-art IT solutions since 1999. ELOG’s technological approach, product roadmap and corporate strategy have helped position ELOG as an industry visionary and helped it to pioneer the introduction of services such as pan-European wagon optimization, automated tracking & tracing and advanced fleet management to the rail market.
Mr. Liran Lotker, Managing Director of ELOG, says: “The Common Component project is an important milestone for the European Rail Industry and the European Rail Freight market. With this revolutionary system in place the European rail stakeholders and related interested parties will be able to share and receive information using cutting-edge technology, providing the first important technological stepping stone for the new liberalized European Rail Market.”
Mr. Rainer Wilke, Chairman of the CCG General Assembly, represents the 50 member-Stakeholders who financed and will manage the IT development. He added “We are proud to be Frontrunners in the development of the TAF-TSI.”
