Technology & Product Solutions


Technology and Product Solutions for Rail Infrastructure,
Signalling and Rolling Stock

Our technology and services will help you maintain and improve the performance of your rail systems and assets with innovation, manufacturing, overhaul and repair solutions.

From new parts manufactured in house, to the servicing and overhaul of rail equipment, to third party products supplied and serviced alongside our supply chain partners, we have all you need to maintain and improve your assets. Trusted the world over we already supply many of the world’s leading rail companies and are the preferred route to market for the best known names in rail equipment.

Less a question of whether we can help – more a question of how.

Manufacturing

Asset Management

Innovation

What We Offer

High quality, industry compliant products delivered where you need them, when you need them, and in the format required.  Products that help you get the job done punctually, professionally and profitably.  Products and parts backed by our safety and quality assurance processes, technical support and warranty, and supply chain services. 

Optimised Delivery of materials – the products you need, when you need them, where you need them, in the format you need them. Off-site buffer stocks and accurate demand forecasting deliver products as required. Format planning means they’re delivered as required including pre assembled, modular, plug and play and kit options.

Safety and Incident Management – a turnkey Safety & Incident Management service means that we can quickly identifying parts and supply chain failure to manage risk and handle challenging technical issues. The sooner they’re identified, the sooner they can be resolved.

Engineering Product Support – perfectly placed between supplier and client we offer enormous value in thorough and ongoing technical support, project management and product improvement services. Support that boosts product reliability, quality, and quickly identifies innovative product improvements.

Product Innovation – we work with academic and industrial partners to bring new innovation to the rail sector. Commercially viable technology and processes all designed to deliver against the four Cs – customers, cost, carbon and capacity.

Warranty and Reliability Management – efficient warranty and reliability processes that save money, increase availability and improve your network performance.

Quality and Risk Management  essential engineering change and control systems for high-risk products and services. Using proven systems and risk reduction activities we apply a complete process for determining and resolving quality concerns.

 

Asset Management – not only can we provide rail products our Condition Based Maintenance, Overhaul and Repair, Obsolescence Management and Asset Recovery significantly improves asset lifecycle management.

Why work with Unipart Rail?

The Unipart Rail mission is to become the number one products and performance improvement partner in rail. We support governments, network operators and supply chain partners to deliver the modal shift towards efficient and sustainable rail transport. Our team’s expertise extends from deep engineering product knowledge through to the application of leading-edge digital solutions, combined with first class logistics to keep rail moving.
 

Perhaps it’s the fact that we’ve invested and continue to invest so heavily in people, in systems and infrastructure, the service centres and customer and supplier distribution networks to keep you, efficient and effective.

Maybe it’s because of our deep and broad rail sector knowledge. Or that we have an intimate understanding of railway equipment, of compliance, of railway standards and the necessary legal and safety requirements.

It could be because we understand the regulatory environment, the importance of high industry safety standards and can help you deliver to your customers with absolute confidence.

In reality though, it’s a combination of all these important, industry essential factors.

Non-negotiables that see us work in close collaboration with suppliers and customers to deliver the quality and consistency you deserve.

Every component specified correctly. Every component to standard. Every component supported. Every asset performing at its optimum.


Manufacturing

Unipart Rail develops and manufactures an unrivalled range of replacement railway equipment.

Innovative, high quality, high performance equipment designed to help deliver and sustain the world’s best rail operations. Underpinned by the Unipart Way we supply electronic, mechanical and optical rail products for rail companies the world over.

Our Manufacturing services cover:

Specialist component and systems manufacture – single items, key large system components and entire complex system manufacture and supply. If you need a system improved or need a system design sourced, built, packaged and distributed then speak to us.

Offsite factory – rail infrastructure projects are costly….especially if the project overruns. Our ‘offsite factory’ concept makes the process as simple and cost effective as possible. Completing as much system wiring, pre-assembly and testing before dispatch reduces both track-side complexity and commissioning times.

We’ve already delivered a range offsite factories including facilities for Level Crossings and Overhead Line.

How can we help you save time and save money too?

 

Legacy manufacturing – sometimes suppliers go out of business. Or parts stop being economically viable to produce. If you’re struggling to source a product or want to transfer a current manufactured part – talk to us. Not only do we manufacture discontinued parts…we improve them.


Asset Management

Our performance-improving asset management solutions give our customers complete ongoing support to better manage assets through their full lifecycle Including:

Our condition based asset management solutions offer customers complete traceability of assets in operation and throughout the supply chain  –  delivering improved asset performance. Our refurbishment and obsolescence management solutions help our customers get more from their existing assets – extending product lifecycles, mitigating risks and reducing costs.

Condition Based Maintenance (CBM) – we work closely with suppliers and customers to not only deliver the many benefits of condition based maintenance but to extend both the concept and benefits across the condition based supply chain.

Obsolescence management  we collaborate with customers and suppliers to manage obsolescence as part of whole-life monitoring or bespoke assessment.

A proactive approach that:

  • Identifies risk products and mitigates current and future risks of failure in service
  • Reduces through-life support costs by optimising reliability and availability
  • Avoids expensive reactive obsolescence resolutions through early customer collaboration to identify risks and solutions
  • Where replacement parts are required, we can reverse engineer products as well as develop and supply new and improved products, in fact we’ve resolved issues for over 500 obsolete parts

Asset recovery  equipment recycling specialists we review, audit, assess, manage and store any surplus to requirements materials, whether trackside, depot store or end of project.

Repair and Overhaul – our overhaul capabilities breathe new life into a wide range of materials. Equipment serviced, repaired, refurbished and overhauled as new – warrantied and industry compliant. 

From damaged, broken, life-expired or ‘heavy maintenance stage’ systems, assemblies and parts, to electrical, electronic, hydraulic and mechanical equipment, ‘repaired and returned’ or ‘service exchanged’.

Because we understand railway equipment it means we know exactly what it takes to service, refurbish and overhaul it safely. Compliance, railway standards and essential legal and safety requirements too.

Examples of Unipart Rail's asset management capabilities:

Asset monitoring solutions for precision measurement in extreme environments

Specialists in life extension and enhancement solutions

Lifecycle extension for ageing point machines


Innovation

Innovation, whether for ourselves or for the wider benefit of the rail sector, lies at the
heart of our business.

From developing and trialling new products, improving existing assets, resolving obsolescence issues or responding to regulatory changes, Unipart Rail delivers industry leading and performance-improving rail innovation.

New rail sector efficiencies focused on the four Cs – customer satisfaction, capacity increase, cost reduction and carbon reduction.

Unipart Rail Innovation

  • Close customer collaboration that fosters innovative new ways to help address technical and business challenges
  • A long term view for investment in research and development to develop future solutions
  • Work across commerce and academia to nurture innovations from conception to commercialisation

Unipart Rail – where innovation meets the market.
Why partner with us?

  • International routes to market
  • Extensive knowledge of railway systems and operation
  • A key understanding global market issues
  • Access to R&D resource and funding streams
  • Reduced costs of participation in research projects
  • Access to an extensive global supply chain network to offer
  • competitive manufacture and supply
  • Active members of all leading industry associations
  • Product design and analysis using state of the art CAD systems
  • Production of manufacturing drawings and supporting documentation
  • Rapid prototyping to develop concepts into functional models
  • Testing and commissioning of products and systems
  • Full compliance approvals and certification management service
  • Project management from concept to implementation
  • Commercial frameworks underwritten with major customers
 
  • A proud member of The UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN). The key collaborative UK Rail industry initiative between academia and industry
  • Through our involvement with UKRRIN we are creating an innovation hub to help SMEs bring new products and technologies to market

We also offer a comprehensive range of product innovations for Traction & Rolling Stock, Signalling & Traffic Management and Infrastructure.