Institute of Railway Research (IRR)
Welcome
The Institute of Railway Research (IRR) within the School of Computing and Engineering at The University of Huddersfield is a world-leading centre in the field of railway engineering and safety.
Our research has helped to improve knowledge of the way in which railway vehicles interact with the track including key performance aspects such as suspension performance, wheel-rail contact, traction and braking. In collaboration with industry and academic partners, this work has led to a number of new tools and techniques which are now used to predict deterioration of railway wheels and rails, to optimise the vehicle track interface, to increase safety and reliability levels, reduce cost and improve performance of the railway system.
A large proportion of the IRR’s research is of special relevance to the agendas of safety, sustainability and carbon reduction. For example, new materials, manufacturing technologies and systems of maintenance and condition-monitoring can increase cost-effectiveness for rail operators, and the transition to electrification can be accelerated by research that will make overhead power distribution much more efficient and reliable.
An example of the close collaboration of the institute with industry has been its long term strategic partnership with RSSB. This allowed the Institute to expand its team by 10 full-time staff and develop a new field of research in the application of big data to understanding and predicting rail safety and operational risk.
In 2014 a grant of £4M from the Regional Growth Fund allowed us to set up the ‘Centre for Innovation in Rail’ (CIR), which has supported the development of innovative new products and growing employment in SMEs in the industry supply chain.
The IRR was a founder member of the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN) which is a partnership between the railway industry and the leading academic institutions carrying out railway research. The IRR hosts the UKRRIN Centre of Excellence in Rolling Stock.
In 2019 we were very proud that the IRR was awarded the Queen’s Anniversary prize “for research and development that has brought significant improvements to the railway industry.”
Simon Iwnicki
Director of the IRR
Find out more about the IRR
UKRRIN (the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network) is a new initiative designed to create a powerful collaboration between academia and industry.
The IRR is an internationally recognised centre of excellence in railway research. Read our impact statement to learn more about what we do.
Mission statement
The Institute of Railway Research (IRR) aims to become a world leading centre of railway engineering research
Downloads
Download our Manchester wheel-rail contact benchmark files here
Contact Us
If you would like to know more about our areas of expertise or wish to discuss research opportunities with the Institute of Railway Research then please contact us on the details below:
General enquiries
Institute of Railway Research
University of Huddersfield
Queensgate
Huddersfield
HD1 3DH
Tel: +44 (0)1484 472030
Email: irr.info@hud.ac.uk
Director of the IRR
Where to find us
For directions to the University campus see Campus maps and Directions
On Campus
The Institute of Railway Research is located in corridor T5 of the Technology Building which is in the centre of the below map.
Impact statement
The IRR is an internationally recognised centre of excellence in railway research in the field of the interaction between railway vehicles and track. This has resulted in improved understanding of the wheel rail contact and led to the development of a number of tools and techniques which are being used to predict deterioration of railway wheels and rails. This knowledge allows railway engineers to control and optimise maintenance intervals on wheel and track in order to optimise the life-cycle cost of their assets.
The benefits to the railway industry are reduced track maintenance costs, increased safety levels and resistance to derailment and the putting in place of methods that allow modal shift from road to rail and improved charging methods to promote fairer reallocation of costs between vehicle operators and infrastructure managers.
Work on the interaction between vehicles and novel track systems has resulted in a better understanding of the design alternatives to conventional ballasted track, increasing the scientific knowledge base supporting the choice of track systems for future high speed and suburban railways. Shortcomings and failure of existing track systems and fixing mechanisms have also been demonstrated to help infrastructure owner decide on retrofitting actions or future commissioning design specifications.
The IRR has developed extensive expertise in the field of vehicle dynamics, the wheel-rail interface, switches and crossings and asset management within the light rail and metro sectors. It has supported the HMRI and the Office of Rail Regulation in developing standardised wheel-rail profiles and industry guidelines to enhance the safety of UK systems. It has also supported the development of new light-rail and metro systems within the UK and overseas by providing design assurance for all aspects of the wheel-rail interface. The IRR runs industry short courses for UK operators, to widen the understanding of the fundamentals of derailment risk and asset life optimisation.
Mission statement
The Institute of Railway Research (IRR) aims to become a world leading centre of railway engineering research with the following key values:
- Research Excellence – carrying out research into focused and strategically important railway challenges of the future.
- Industrial Impact – supporting the railway industry through the development of innovative tools and solutions to tackle current and emerging engineering requirements.
- Education – facilitating the education of current and future railway engineers at all stages of their career.
- Visibility – the work of the IRR will be highly visible to stakeholders in the railway industry, in academia and to the wider public. The IRR will have a clear identity within and outside the University both nationally and internationally.
- Financial Sustainability– the IRR will support its activities through external funding from UK and overseas research funders and from Industry partners.
Downloads
Manchester Wheel-Rail Contact Benchmark Files
The UK Rail Research Innovation Network (UKRRIN)
UKRRIN (the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network) is a new initiative designed to create a powerful collaboration between academia and industry aimed to provide a step-change in innovation in the sector and accelerate new technologies and products from research into market applications globally. It has established several new centres of excellence: in Rolling Stock (led by the University of Huddersfield); in Infrastructure (led by the University of Southampton) and in Digital Systems (led by the University of Birmingham). Several other Universities are also linked to these to form the overall research network. Some £92m of total funding has been committed to the centres by the UK Government and industry-leading partners. Industry is also providing a fourth Centre of Excellence in testing including Network Rail and London Underground test facilities.
The main objectives of UKRRIN are to act as a conduit and accelerator for development of new products, services and technologies from across the industry to market; to promote the excellence and capability of the centres and develop an international reputation for delivering innovative solutions to the rail sector; to be a catapult for SMEs to work with partners to deliver to market new technologies, products and services and to support the supply base and rail companies to develop and export products designed and manufactured in the UK to wider worldwide markets
Supported by the UK Government and key industry bodies, including the Rail Supply Group (RSG) and Rail Delivery Group (RDG) UKRRIN is recognised as being critical to the delivery of the rail sector’s industrial strategy for growth and long-term success, enabled through world-class science and innovation. UKRRIN will offer industry access to purpose-built world-leading facilities and skills in a range of areas to support the research and development of new technologies and products. The centres of excellence will be supported with industrial partners to deliver world-leading research from inception to market application for both the UK and global markets. One of the key aims to be provided by centres of excellence will be the ability to deliver new products and technology faster to market using advanced purpose-built simulation and testing facilities. The centres will also help the UK maintain its position as a technology leader in rail on the world stage.