The freight rail industry has been receiving investments to digitise operations. According to global technology intelligence firm ABI Research, revenues for rail car IoT in freight rail will surpass US$20 billion by 2032.
“The global railcar telematics market is driven by the increasing demand for efficient, safe and cost-effective transportation systems. This expansion can be attributed to advancements in digitalization and the integration of IoT technologies due to heightened emphasis on real-time data analytics enabling preventive maintenance,” said Adhish Luitel, the principal analyst at ABI Research.
Vendors like Amsted Digital, Wabtec, Nexxiot and ZTR are some of the emerging players in this space within North America. In addition to this, RailPulse, a coalition created by leading railcar owners in North America, including Class 1 and 2 railroads, lessors and rail-car-owning shippers, with the goal of pushing rail digitisation is also driving the adoption of digital solutions.
Unlike Europe, the North American market is underpenetrated when it comes to IoT-based visibility. North America presents a large Total Addressable Market (TAM) of nearly 2 million railcars. So far, machine vision and sensor-based inspection devices mounted on the side of the tracks, usually at rail-grade crossings, have been at the forefront.
“Rail braking inspections are critical to ensure safety and compliance in the industry. These checks verify that the air brake system is functioning properly across the entire train, which can span over a mile in length. However, the process can be time-consuming as manual inspection for each car requires constant coordination between the train crew and the control centre. This is when IoT technologies can provide efficiency gains,” concludes Luitel.
These findings are from ABI Research’s Rail Freight Data market data report. This report is part of the company’s Supply Chain Management and Logistics research service, which includes research, data and ABI Insights. Market Data spreadsheets are composed of deep data, market share analysis and highly segmented, service-specific forecasts to provide detailed insight into where opportunities lie.
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