JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #117 - November/December 2017 - 49

lntegrated urban solutions are the core driver of user-oriented ad-hoc mobility

More information: www.siemens.com

Feature Land Transportation

/ jec composites magazine

The Siemens Avenio tram for Doha, in the Emirate of Qatar, was honoured with the prestigious Red Dot Award for Product Design 2017. The interior's bright and
airy ambiance, subtly styled seat upholstery and elegantly designed grab poles underscore the tram's modern character (Copyright Siemens)

ducts, or honeycomb panels and foam
cores in the floors of our high-speed
trains. 3D-printed parts where we can
integrate different materials and fibre
types are also very interesting for new
developments.
What are the major advantages of
these materials? What makes them so
unique in these applications?

J. H.: Above all, it is the weight-sav-

ing aspect that makes them so unique
and in most cases, we can save installation space. They help us cope with our
customers' high demands. Cabin space
for passengers should be ample and allow a flexible design, while we consistently have less space available for our
components.
The great benefit of composite materials is their hybrid character. The focused blend of different properties and
features is extremely interesting for us.
We can replace traditional materials
like aluminium and steel, or wood panels, with new hybrid materials. The upside is that they fulfil our mechanical,
thermal, and acoustic requirements

in an excellent way, so that we do not
need additional insulation or cladding.
This is particularly important for our
high-speed trains. Extremely interesting are opportunities with new composites using foamed materials such as
PIR (polyisocyanurate) and PE (polyethylene), which offer additional benefits for heating insulation. They show
outstanding positive effects when applied to glass-fibre reinforced materials as well as aluminium. Such materials allow us to save overall weight and
costs.
Which trends or new requirements do
you foresee for the years to come?

J. H.: Health, safety, and environmen-

tal protection are becoming more and
more important. At the same time, we
need to save weight. The option to reduce weight is extremely promising,
but still very expensive. When we look
at the different means of transportation, the ranking begins of course with
aviation, followed by automotive, and
then flows down to trains and other
modes of public transportation. The

most expensive materials can only be
economically applied in aviation. Currently, they are also very important in
our high-speed trains, however we still
need to balance costs with benefits. It
is the same with carbon fibres. We only
use them for special purposes.
Do you have a message for composite
producers as far as the development of
new materials is concerned? Where you
are looking for new solutions?

J. H.: I would like to summarize with
the statement: affordable lightweight
construction. Since cost pressure is
steadily increasing and we are facing
more global competition, we need materials that are within our cost/benefit
margins. Our good reputation is based
on a good track record and quality
products, which our customers recognize (we even won a contract when
faced with predatory pricing), but this
will change in the future. In the long
run, we need to strive for cost reduction while maintaining our high level
of quality.

N°117 November - December 2017

http://www.siemens.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #117 - November/December 2017