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As the world continues to shrink, governments are faced with the complex challenge of trying to move more people and freight while reducing energy consumption, pollution and traffic. Delivering sustainable solutions that address 21st century mobility needs is a major goal for urban developers and transportation companies, including Alstom Transport.
Ecologically and economically efficient solutions
Alstom Transport places environmental preservation at the core of its development strategy. Through technological innovation, Alstom Transport delivers solutions that satisfy its customers’ profitability, ecological, and sustainability objectives. “Sustainable mobility is a major requirement in today’s world,” says Jean-Louis Ricaud, chief operating officer, Alstom Transport. “Because they run on electricity and do not emit carbon dioxide, trains are one of the most environmentally friendly means of transportation today.”
Alstom Transport makes great efforts to ensure the flawless integration of its trains into urban and rural landscapes, using Dassault Systèmes’ PLM solutions to demonstrate digitally during the preliminary phases of a project the way its products will fit into the environment. “Through 3D simulation, our customers can experience the way our trains will blend in with their surroundings,” says Mama Sougoufara, director, Method and Tools and IS, Alstom Transport. “It is an innovative and powerful way to convince them that the result will meet their objectives in terms of mobility and at the same time preserve their cities’ architectural heritage.”
The age of regulatory compliance
To achieve sustainable mobility, Alstom integrates environmental parameters early in the design stages of its products – a practice called eco-design. Environmental and recycling specifications are defined and managed in ENOVIA Version 6.
Metropolis metros and Citadis tramways are now at least 85% recyclable and this can rise to as high as 98% for the Coradia Nordic regional train in Stockholm.
“All the norms our products have to comply with are managed with ENOVIA, such as ELV (End-of-Life Vehicles), RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) and REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals),” Ricaud says.
Alstom Transport controls and reduces the impact its products have on the environment throughout their lifecycles, from design to manufacturing and through to recycling. The results are products that are more economical to operate, consume less energy, present lower decommissioning costs, and are less detrimental to the environment and human health.
“We strive to minimize the use of materials that can be harmful to man and the environment,” Ricaud explains. “For example, our Coradia Nordic regional train is 98% recyclable, thus reducing its carbon footprint to a minimum.”
Phased implementation
Alstom Transport has deployed ENOVIA Version 6 at its different sites so that all stakeholders, wherever they are, can work together on customer projects and share their expertise. Through the single Version 6 platform, project teams access the latest and most up-to-date product data. “ENOVIA is the backbone on which we base engineering and manufacturing collaboration, as well as sourcing throughout the product development cycle, both within the company as well as with our suppliers and partners,” Sougoufara says.
The company also will migrate from CATIA Version 5 to CATIA Version 6 to leverage all 3D mechanical design, resulting in a fully coherent system for all its activities. “With Version 6 we will enhance the level of 3D design collaboration between our different engineering centers,” Sougoufara comments. “It will enable us to streamline our design-to-manufacturing processes and deliver quality products to market faster.”
With Version 6, Alstom is moving full speed ahead toward fully sustainable product design and process efficiency, and helping to shape the future of rail transport.
Designing efficient and sustainable mobility
World leader on the rail market, Alstom has for 20 years placed environmental preservation at the heart of its development strategy and is creating the necessary conditions for the emergence of real sustainable mobility. Alstom Transport manages all transport systems, from rolling stock to signaling, maintenance and infrastructure, as well as turnkey solutions. Alstom anticipates energy performance and material recovery at the different stages of a product’s lifetime. The environmental impact of most products on air, water and ground pollution, the consumption of raw materials, the production of greenhouse gases, the destruction of the ozone layer and the production of hazardous waste are assessed, even before the product is designed, by the Environmental Information and Management Explorer (EIME), which Alstom has been helping the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (Ademe) to develop since 1987.
Images courtesy of Alstom Transport
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