Bombardier launches innovation in predictive maintenance

André Navarri, president of Bombardier Transportation, announced the official international launch of Bombardier ORBITA, a new capability which is designed to redefine predictive maintenance in the rail sector.

Bombardier ORBITA, which is being heralded as "The Future of Maintenance", has been developed by Bombardier with the aim of helping operators to increase fleet utilisation, improve reliability and availability, reduce in-service failures, and ultimately improve the passengers’ overall journey experience.

Navarri launched the product at Bombardier’s official press conference at Innotrans on September 20 in Berlin, stating: “This game-changing technology developed by Bombardier Transportation demonstrates our ongoing commitment to service innovation and delivering added value to our customers. For the development of ORBITA, we have brought in experts from the aerospace industry with specific relevant experience to help us to implement a leading edge approach to predicting maintenance requirements”.

Advancements in on-board systems and global communications technology have paved the way for ORBITA, as they enable rolling stock to provide ‘real time’ performance-related information directly from the vehicle to the operator or maintainer.

However, as Navarri explained, “Bombardier has taken this capability a stage further with ORBITA, which utilises teams of Control Centre based system experts who interrogate the data, liaise with the depots and cross-reference information from Bombardier’s extensive global fleet database to establish patterns of equipment performance. This enables them to diagnose and identify potential issues before they occur, as well as respond quickly and knowledgeably to in-service faults”.

With Bombardier ORBITA, maintenance activities can be planned and managed proactively, reducing "crisis" responses, improving maintenance scheduling and optimising spares planning. Bombardier will be offering ORBITA as a technical support service for its maintenance contracts, whether for full fleet management, or materials contracts. Typical systems which can be monitored include HVAC, doors, brakes, CCTV, propulsion and electrical equipment. Furthermore, ORBITA can be used to pinpoint issues relating to energy consumption and passenger loading.

Bombardier ORBITA is being actively used in a groundbreaking contract with First ScotRail in the United Kingdom.

Andy Mellors, engineering director of First ScotRail, said, “We awarded Bombardier a contract to supply technical support and materials for our fleet of Class 170 diesel multiple units (DMUs), and are optimistic that it will deliver improvements in reliability, together with reduced maintenance costs. We were impressed by the value proposition introduced through Bombardier’s ORBITA capability, and are pleased to be involved in this exciting technological development.”

Bombardier Transportation has its global headquarters in Berlin, Germany, with a presence in more than 60 countries. It has an installed base of approximately 97,000 vehicles worldwide. The company offers the broadest product portfolio and is recognized as the leader in the global rail sector.

About Bombardier
A world-leading manufacturer of innovative transportation solutions, from regional aircraft and business jets to rail transportation equipment, Bombardier Inc. is a global corporation headquartered in Canada. Its revenues for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2006, were $14.7 billion US.