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Around the world: track innovations
India
Composite sleepers¹ developed in India could soon be finding home on steel girder bridges² in Europe. Producers see strong export potential for the fibre reinforced plastic³ (FRP) sleepers. The FRP sleeper weighs 54kg, compared with a weight of between 100 and 171kg for a wooden sleeper and 171kg for a steel sleeper. This makes the FRP sleeper easier to transport and handle. Other major advantages are a life of up to 50 years, compared with up to 10 years for wooden sleepers and up to 20 years for steel sleepers as well as zero maintenance because FRP is corrosion free and unaffected by climatic conditions and ultraviolet rays. These factors also give the FRP sleeper the lowest life-cycle cost.
¹ composite sleepers – композитні (складові) шпали
² girder bridges – балочний міст
³ fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) – волокнистий армований пластик


United States
TieTeck is the world’s leading producer of thermoplastic composite railroad sleepers. They are produced from recycled¹ polyolefins and crumbed tyre rubber² – the post-consumer and post-industrial waste. The TieTek composite sleeper is a successful application of technology to create alternative products for the railway industry. Composite sleepers show good physical resistance³, resistance to moisture and electrical conductivity⁴. They will not crack due to poor weather conditions and offer long-term economic benefits not found in other materials. The sleepers have been installed in commercial freight and transit track across the USA and seven other railroad systems.
¹ recycled – повторно використаний
² crumbed tyre rubber – гумова крихта від шин
³ resistance – опір
⁴ conductivity – провідність