What is BS EN 15594 - Vignoles rail restoration with arc welding about?
Restoration of rails by electric arc welding involves the coordination of welding and grinding activities to establish confidence and reliability of the weld deposit and safety of the line. BS EN 15594 is a European Standard that discusses railway track applications.
BS EN 15594 specifies restoration by electric arc welding and is limited to the head of the rails only. BS EN 15594 to plain rail and switches and crossings manufactured from new Vignoles railway rails R200, R220, R260, R260Mn, R260Cr, and R350HT grade rails of 46 kg/m and above as contained in EN 13674-1 and EN 13674-2.
BS EN 15594 may be applied in situ, on a line side, or at out-of-track locations. The flash welded legends of austenitic manganese steel crossings are included in BS EN 15594, except when located within 500 mm of manganese crossings.
Who is BS EN 15594 - Vignoles rail restoration with arc welding for?
BS EN 15594 on Vignoles rail restoration with arc welding is useful for:
- Relevant railway authorities / Train operating companies (TOCs)
- Owners and managers of the rail transport networks
- Contractors / welders / welding supervisors
- Infrastructure managers
- Project managers
- Manufacturers and suppliers of rail components
- Product design engineers
- Railway engineers
- Quality control and testing authorities
- Railway infrastructure regulatory bodies
Why should you use BS EN 15594 - Vignoles rail restoration with arc welding?
For railway tracks, controls must be in place from the design phase through to inspection. Incorrect selection of materials, consumables, or procedures may result in serious track welding failure. The correct application of the approved processes and the types of repairs permitted to be carried out on various rail components are described in BS EN 15594. For effective execution, BS EN 15594 recommends that the tasks and responsibilities of personnel involved in restoration e.g., planning, executing, supervising, and inspection need to be clearly defined.
The purpose of BS EN 15594 is to unify the restoration of rail electric arc welding across Europe. BS EN 15594 provides control systems for the approval and qualification of welding processes, welding procedures, welding consumables, contractors, and welders for the successful delivery of welds into the track.
BS EN 15594 describes the approval systems for consumables and procedures used in a manual metal arc and flux-cored metal deposit rail repair welding. BS EN 15594 includes quality-related tasks and responsibilities of personnel involved in the electric arc repair welding of rails.
The permitted welding processes are limited to Electric Arc (EA) in accordance with EN ISO 4063 and are by description Process No 111: MMA (Manual Metal Arc) and Process No 114: FCAW (Flux Cored Arc Welding).
Complying with the standardized design requirements recommended by BS EN 15594, you can ensure safety and reliability in the operational efficiency of the overall railway infrastructure while improving the service life for track systems. BS EN 15594 contributes towards mitigating hazards and keeping commuters safe.