Twice as Many Trains per Night

Deutsche Bahn wants to get better. It has to. That is why it is pursuing its ambitious “strong rail” strategy: more customers in local transport. Twice as many passengers in long-distance trains. More goods on the railways. More trains on the tracks. And trains running at 30-minute intervals between the major German cities. With more material deployed more often, it needs to be serviced, repaired and cleaned more often and more quickly in the nine maintenance facilities. Without compromising safety and quality. And while keeping costs contained.

The maintenance facility in Cologne is now reminiscent of a pit stop in motor racing. Every task on the high-speed trains is tightly coordinated. Because the maintenance sequence for all trains is defined a year-and-a-half in advance. Because boards make the processes visible to all team members. Because transparency and an open culture of dialog motivate staff. Because the employees undergo intensive training. Because the teams get every appropriate form of digital support.

“We can now maintain eight instead of four trains per night shift. Everyone on the team is working in lockstep,” says Sonja Askew, Head of Provisioning and Maintenance at the Cologne facility. The team works so flexibly that even damage on late-arriving trains can be repaired immediately. As soon as one ICE is finished, it clears the track for the next. Because space and time are so precious at Deutsche Bahn’s Cologne facility.