Predictive Maintenance employing Non-intrusive Inspection & Data Analysis (PM ‘n’ IDEA) – is a European research project focused on the development of novel inspection and sensor technologies for rail track infrastructure.
It has two drivers:
-To contribute towards the realisation of a 24 x 7 railway by minimising the disruption caused by activities such as inspection, remedial and reactive maintenance, and track renewal
-The introduction of novel sensor and inspection technologies which focus on the monitoring of degradation through the measurement of deviation from an identified “signature tune”
Both of these drivers promote the use of urban transport, which contributes to lowering congestion and the impact on the environment.