IN2DREAMS · Project

Smart Data Platform That Cuts Railway Energy Costs and Predicts Asset Failures

transportTestedTRL 5

Imagine running a railway network where you can't see how much energy each train, station, or track section actually uses — and you only find out something's broken after it fails. IN2DREAMS built a cloud-based platform that collects energy and equipment data from across the entire railway system, then uses smart algorithms to spot waste and predict problems before they happen. Think of it like a fitness tracker for railway infrastructure — it monitors everything in real time and tells operators exactly where to save energy and when to fix things. They even tested blockchain-style smart contracts to automate maintenance decisions and payments between railway companies.

By the numbers

consortium partners from industry and academia

European countries represented

53%

industry participation ratio in the consortium

SMEs involved in development

EUR 2,195,715

EU investment in development

total deliverables produced

2050

target year for railway transport growth predictions

The business problem

What needed solving

Railway operators across Europe face two expensive blind spots: they cannot accurately track where energy is consumed across their networks (trains, stations, power grid), and they rely on reactive maintenance that only catches equipment failures after they happen. With railway traffic expected to grow dramatically by 2050, these inefficiencies will only get worse — driving up operating costs and increasing the risk of service disruptions.

The solution

What was built

The project delivered a modular cloud-based open data management platform for railway energy and asset monitoring, a working proof of concept for blockchain smart contracts in railway operations (with documented business logic and legal analysis), a rule-based and visual analytics demonstrator for knowledge extraction from asset data, and an open-source analytics platform with machine learning algorithms for energy optimization and asset performance assessment — 13 deliverables in total.

Audience

Who needs this

National and regional railway operators looking to cut energy costsRail infrastructure managers moving from reactive to predictive maintenanceRailway IT solution providers and system integratorsEnergy management consultants serving the transport sectorRolling stock manufacturers adding digital monitoring services

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Railway Operations

enterprise

Target: National or regional railway operators

If you are a railway operator dealing with rising energy bills and no clear visibility into where power is consumed across your network — this project developed a cloud-based open data management platform with energy metering services that monitors the entire railway system including power grid, stations, and rolling stock. The platform uses signal processing and machine learning to optimize energy use on the fly, built and tested by a consortium of 15 partners including 8 industry players.

Rail Infrastructure Maintenance

mid-size

Target: Infrastructure managers and maintenance service providers

If you are an infrastructure manager struggling with reactive maintenance and unplanned downtime — this project built a rule-based and visual analytics system for railway asset management that extracts actionable knowledge from equipment data. The demonstrator was developed with input from 5 universities and validated through proof-of-concept testing, helping you shift from fix-when-broken to predict-and-prevent maintenance.

Rail Technology & Digital Services

SME

Target: Railway IT solution vendors and system integrators

If you are a technology provider looking to offer digital services to rail operators — this project created an open-source analytics platform and a working proof of concept for smart contracts in railway ecosystems, addressing legal and regulatory implications. With 6 SMEs in the consortium and 53% industry participation, the tools are designed for real commercial integration, not just academic exercises.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement this platform?

The project received EUR 2,195,715 in EU funding to develop and demonstrate the platform across 15 partners. Actual deployment costs would depend on network size, but the open-source analytics platform component suggests lower licensing barriers. Contact the coordinator for pricing of specific modules.

Can this scale to a national railway network?

The platform was designed to scale with railway operators' needs, using cloud-based architecture and dynamically reconfigurable energy metering. It handles data from power grids, stations, rolling stock, and infrastructure simultaneously. However, full national-scale deployment was not demonstrated within the project's 2017-2019 timeframe.

Who owns the IP and how can I license it?

The consortium of 15 partners across 7 countries shares the intellectual property. The analytics platform deliverable was released as open source. For proprietary components like the smart contract system and signal processing algorithms, licensing would need to be negotiated with the coordinator UNIFE and relevant partners.

Is the smart contract system legally compliant for railway use?

The project specifically addressed legal and regulatory implications of smart contracts in railway ecosystems as part of their work. A working proof of concept was delivered with documented business logic and requirements. However, regulatory approval for production use would still need to be obtained in each country.

How long would deployment take?

The project ran for 25 months (September 2017 to October 2019) to develop and demonstrate the full platform. Based on available project data, the modular architecture means individual components like energy metering or asset analytics could be deployed independently, potentially shortening time-to-value.

Does this integrate with existing railway IT systems?

The platform was built as a modular, open data management system designed to be non-intrusive and complement existing infrastructure. It uses heterogeneous telecommunication technologies including both wireless and wireline, and the analytics platform was built as open source specifically to ease integration.

Consortium

Who built it

The IN2DREAMS consortium is strongly industry-oriented with 8 out of 15 partners coming from industry (53% ratio), which is a solid indicator that the results were shaped by real commercial needs rather than purely academic interests. The 6 SMEs in the mix suggest agile technology companies that could bring components to market faster than large corporations. Coordinated by UNIFE — the European Rail Industry Association based in Belgium — the project had direct access to the railway industry's decision-makers across 7 countries (BE, DE, EL, FR, IT, SI, UK). The 5 university partners provided the research muscle for the analytics and signal processing algorithms, while the balanced consortium structure means the technology was developed with both scientific rigor and practical deployment in mind.

UNION DES INDUSTRIES FERROVIAIRES EUROPEENNES - UNIFECoordinator · BE
DOTVISIONparticipant · FR
RETE FERROVIARIA ITALIANAparticipant · IT
RINA CONSULTINGthirdparty · BE
INSTITUTE OF ACCELERATING SYSTEMS AND APPLICATIONSparticipant · EL
CEFRIEL SOCIETA CONSORTILE A RESPONSABILITA LIMITATA SOCIETA BENEFITparticipant · IT
RINA CONSULTING SPAparticipant · IT
PURELIFI LIMITEDparticipant · UK
UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOLparticipant · UK
UNIVERSITAT KONSTANZparticipant · DE
UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI GENOVAparticipant · IT
KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVENparticipant · BE

How to reach the team

UNIFE (Union des Industries Ferroviaires Européennes) in Belgium coordinated this project. As the European rail industry association, they can connect you to the right technical partner for your specific need.

Order a report on this consortium See UNION DES INDUSTRIES FERROVIAIRES EUROPEENNES - UNIFE profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how IN2DREAMS technology could reduce your railway energy costs or improve asset management? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the development team and help you evaluate fit for your operations.

Order a report on this topic More in Transport & Mobility