Monitoring the wear of the wheel profiles on rolling stock

The wheels of the derailed locomotive were approaching their wear limit. The conicity of the wheels was low, which weakened the manoeuvrability of the wheelset in turns and, together with the large lateral forces of the rolling stock, increased the risk of derailment. In addition, a curve had formed on the wheel flange, which had a significant impact on the derailment. The impact of the shape and wear of the flange tip of rolling stock on the performance of rolling stock has not been identified and it has not been generally discussed in the rolling stock maintenance instructions.
Anticipating wear on the wheels between maintenance occasions and identifying wear patterns is a prerequisite for the safe operation of rolling stock, especially when the wheels are worn.

Railway operators and rolling stock maintenance operators draw up instructions for inspecting the shape of the wheel flange and include a guided inspection as part of the maintenance of wheelsets. In addition, a procedure must be introduced for monitoring the wear of rolling stock wheelsets to identify and anticipate wear on the wheels between maintenance.

Rolling stock-specific special features must always be taken into account in the maintenance of wheelsets. For example, the standard SFS-EN 15313 can be applied to determine the maintenance limits for brush wear on the flange tip.

As regards Fenniarail, the implementation of the recommendation is still partly ongoing. Fenniarail is updating its guidelines for wheel profile inspections to better observe inspecting the shape of the wheel flange. With regard to wheel wear, operations are being developed more in the direction of locomotive-specific monitoring.
According to North Rail, the wear of wheel flanges is monitored by regular measurements. The measurement results are documented in the Railcube system. In addition, the drivers have been instructed to observe any visible faults during the commissioning inspection. In 2025–2026, new wheelsets have been installed on locomotives and it has changed the situation so that it has been possible to start counting with a clean slate. The company’s operations are already in line with the recommendation, but North Rail will investigate methods that could be employed to develop the anticipation of wheel wear using a simple calculation model.