Railway crossing points — the metal pieces that let trains switch tracks — take a brutal beating every time a wheel rolls over them. Tiny cracks form inside the metal where nobody can see them, and if they go undetected, trains can derail. This project built an ultrasonic scanning device that can see inside these metal parts for the first time, mapping the entire volume rather than just the surface. Think of it like giving railway maintenance crews an MRI machine instead of relying on a stethoscope.
Railway crossing points (frogs) suffer hidden internal fatigue cracking from repeated train impacts, but current inspection methods cannot see inside the full volume of these manganese steel components. This forces operators to either replace frogs prematurely at massive cost or risk undetected cracks leading to derailments — with penalties reaching €87.5M across Europe.
The project built commercialized prototypes of an ultrasonic inspection system based on Synthetic Aperture Focussing Technique (SAFT) that performs full volumetric scanning of railway crossing frogs, paired with a big data platform for tracking crack evolution over time. The systems were fully manufactured and configured for standard inspection operations.
If you are a railway maintenance company spending days inspecting crossing points manually — this project developed an ultrasonic inspection device that reduces total inspection time by 85% and cuts labour costs by 94%. It performs full volumetric scanning of railway frogs, catching cracks early before they become safety hazards.
If you are a rail operator replacing crossing frogs as a precaution because you cannot verify their internal condition — this project developed a system that eliminates unnecessary replacements, saving around €1.89M per year. It monitors crack evolution over time using a big data platform, letting you replace parts only when actually needed.
If you are a manufacturer of railway crossing components and want to guarantee 100% quality on every unit shipped — this project developed a pre-service inspection system that achieves full volume inspection without special infrastructure or skilled operators. It lets you certify every frog before delivery rather than relying on sampling.
The project does not disclose unit pricing for the SAFTInspect device. However, the objective states in-service use delivers 94% savings on labour costs and eliminates unnecessary frog replacements worth around €1.89M per year. The total EU contribution was €993,518 under the SME Instrument Phase 2.
The project produced commercialized prototypes that are fully manufactured and configured for standard inspection operations. The system is designed for both pre-service (factory QC) and in-service (field inspection) use across railway networks, with no special infrastructure required.
The IP is held by the consortium led by AIRTREN, S.L., a Spanish SME. As an SME Instrument Phase 2 project, the technology was developed for commercial exploitation by the consortium partners. Licensing or purchase inquiries should be directed to the coordinator.
The system is designed to reinforce railway safety by detecting fatigue cracks in manganese steel crossings at critical locations. Based on available project data, the in-service inspection achieves 90% effectiveness on full volumetric inspection. Specific regulatory certifications are not detailed in the project data.
The project states the system reduces total inspection time by 85% compared to current methods. No absolute time per inspection is provided in the project data, but the reduction is substantial enough to transform maintenance scheduling.
The system requires no special infrastructure and no special skills from the operator for pre-service use. It includes a big data platform that monitors crack evolution over time, which can feed into existing maintenance planning and asset management systems.
This is a lean, industry-only consortium of 2 Spanish SME partners with no universities or research institutes — a strong signal that the project was commercially driven from day one. The 100% industry ratio and SME Instrument Phase 2 funding (€993,518) confirm this was about bringing a product to market, not conducting basic research. The coordinator AIRTREN, S.L. is a private company, and the project website (crossinspect.com) suggests a dedicated commercial brand was established for the technology.
Contact AIRTREN, S.L. (Spain) — the coordinator and IP holder. Use SciTransfer's matchmaking service for a facilitated introduction.
Want to see if SAFTInspect fits your railway maintenance operations? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the development team and provide a detailed technology brief.
