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Rail News Home Railroading Supplier Spotlight

10/9/2017



Rail News: Railroading Supplier Spotlight

Siemens acquires minority stake in Wi-Tronix


Shown left to right are Duane Hong, Wi-Tronix vice president customer success; Larry Jordan, Wi-Tronix president and chief technology officer; Johannes Emmelheinz, chief executive officer of customer services at Siemens Mobility Division; Mike Heilmann, Wi-Tronix executive vice president; and Lisa Matta, Wi-Tronix vice president product development.
Photo – Wi-Tronix

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Siemens and Wi-Tronix are launching a partnership to expand digital predictive maintenance for rail services. 

As part of the deal, Siemens has made a "significant equity investment" in Wi-Tronix, the companies announced today in separate press releases. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Based in Bolingbrook, Illinois, Wi-Tronix provides remote monitoring, video analysis and predictive diagnostic systems for rolling stock and rail infrastructure, making critical data available to operators in real time through its "Software as a Service" (SaaS) solution.

Siemens will have a minority stake in Wi-Tronix, as well as a seat on the firm's board. 

"Wi-Tronix will continue to operate as an independent legal entity under the control and leadership of our founders," Wi-Tronix officials said in their press release.

Having access to Siemens global reach and resources, Wi-Tronix will accelerate development of its products to serve customers across platforms around the world, said Larry Jordan, president and chief technology officer of Wi-Tronix. 

"Siemens shares our commitment to improving the world by making the transportation of people and goods safer, more reliable, and more efficient," Jordan said. "This requires rail operators to have access to critical data which supports both real-time decisions and predictive maintenance."

About 12,000 locomotives — primarily in North America and Australia — are equipped with Wi-Tronix technology.

"The company [Wi-Tronix] has profound expertise in key technologies such as video analysis, providing unique information for both real-time and predictive applications," said Johannes Emmelheinz, chief executive officer of customer services at Siemens Mobility Division. "Partnering with developers of exceptional technologies is a key part of our strategy to deliver expansive digital services for predictive maintenance."