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On the basis of its G 6 vehicle platform homologated accord-ing to the requirements of the Interoperability of the Trans-European Rail System, Vossloh Locomotives derives a variety of locomotive configurations that match individual custom needs and, depending on the type of work, have very low fuel consumption. The focal point is electric power transmission made possible by the combination of various drive modules. Thanks to this strategy, technologies used in the automotive industry can be resorted to in rail vehicle design nowadays as well as very soon, future innovations in driveline technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Besides the permanent task to obtain profitability, rail freight traffic in Europe is today determined by liberalisation, interoperability and striving for competitiveness on different national networks. This generates additional requirements for locomotive builders in order to optimize products and services with a strong focus on these market needs and the business success of the rail freight operators. Bombardier has created the platform solution TRAXX, which allows to fulfill the different requirements using identical technology and standardized components, which leads to higher economies of scale and thus a reduction in costs for production and maintenance. Further developments with the goal of additional reductions of maintenance costs and energy consumption, in particular for diesel locomotives, are described. Future developments using new technologies with the perspective for further system optimisation are mentioned. An important message is given: all stakeholders such as the industry, railways, infrastructure owners as well as authorities must work closely together in order to optimize the complex rail freight system and to further increase the market share of rail freight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]