A safe and available railway track means exquisite maintenance. And when necessary, renovation or new construction will also take place. Which results in the release of a lot railway materials. Our goal is to decrease the ecological footprint in the rail infrastructure market and thereby contribute to a circular economy. So how can we work together in creating circular railways worldwide?
When you take a moment to dive into the world of circular economy, you will find some shocking statistics. For example, did you know that in 2018 the world population produced an annual of 3.4 billion tons of waste? That is equivalent to approximately 34 million stuffed garbage trucks per year! In addition, only 8.6% of the world economy is allowed to call itself ‘circular’. As part of the railway industry, we feel it is our responsibility to contribute to greener tracks and thus a greener world. That is why we developed a complete concept in collaboration with our railway partners for the maximum re-use and recycling of track components, with a minimal environmental impact.
In close collaboration with our contractors, we search within railway related projects for assets that become available and whether or not they can be reapplied in a new project. Our turnout components turn out to be a great example of that. We managed to build a complete turnout that is composed of nearly all refurbished materials. Naturally, our quality inspectors kept a close eye on this project to make sure that these turnouts are of almost of the equal quality as the new ones.
Although we would like to see all railway parts find a second life within the tracks, sometimes new ideas are born outside of the railway infra market. The Circular Design Challenge is an annual contest in which startups and inventors are challenged to search for new ways of using old railway parts. We have welcomed these startups and inventors to our Reused and Recycling premises in Hilversum, the Netherlands.
A circular railway cannot be achieved by oneself. Only by close collaboration of all shareholders are we able to utilize the existing possibilities and create real change. By offering true transparency, trust is created. And with that trust, we want to create an optimal collaboration between client, contractor, subcontractor, and supplier. Together, we become strong as steel and create green tracks.
Our mission is intertwined with the 2030 goal of ProRail by creating the most sustainable and circular railway possible:
“In order to get sustainability ingrained into the fabric of our organization, and to make it part of ‘business as usual’, we have to co-operate. This is exactly what we do with our suppliers and other stakeholders. We share real-life experiences and work jointly towards sustainable solutions and innovations.” Source: Global Railway Review
These coming years, we focus on regaining as many reusable raw materials from the railway chain in order to reuse these, where possible. And that completes the circle. We see a lot of opportunities and possibilities. Focus manager Reuse & Recycling, Akkie Stomphorst:
It is very important to think about circular adaptations of existing railway parts and thereby contribute to a circular economy. It would be great if we are able to do this on a much broader scale these coming years.
We have a wide range of reusable railway materials available online. Whether you are looking to create a sofa or are in need of a frog, from rails to sleepers or even concrete railway crossings. You have come to the right place at voestalpine Railpro. Contact our Focus manager Reuse & Recycling, Akkie Stomphorst for more information.
