Indian Railways is one of the major consumer of electricity in the country with consumption ranging from powering electric locos to lighting of stations. Signals that are operated round the clock account much to the power consumption.
While the Railways continue to use traditional signals made of incandescent lights which consume more electricity, the Signals and Telecommunication (S & T) Workshop of Southern Railways at Podanur here has developed LED signals which will reduce the power consumption and ensure better visibility of signals to loco pilots.
According to P.V. Murali Krishna, chief workshop manager of the S & T Workshop, LED signals developed at the Centre is currently waiting for a certification from European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (CENELEC) for use in railway signalling system.
“The LED signals developed at the workshop are currently used for road traffic control. They will be used by the Railways in mainline signals after getting the CENELEC certification which is under process. Compared to the conventional signals, LED signals consume less power. They have better life and visibility too,” said Mr. Krishna to The Hindu on the sidelines of an MSME conclave here recently.
The LED signals were designed and developed based on a draft specification by the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) which functions under the Ministry of Railways in Lucknow. The Railways is expected to give a green signal for large scale manufacture of the LED signals post obtaining CENELEC certification.
One of the major manufacturer of railway signalling and telecommunication products in the country, S&T Workshop manufactured products worth ₹ 92.34 crore up to February end in the current financial year compared to products worth ₹ 62.38 crore recorded during the same period in last fiscal. With more than 20 days left for the fiscal year end, S&T Workshop is aiming to cross the ₹ 100 crore mark.
Mr. Krishna said that Single Section Digital Axle Counter, a devise used to check the presence of train on tracks between two stations, developed by the S & T Workshop was also waiting for the validation from RDSO. The validation process is expected to be completed in three months.