KEA Technologies Announces Crashworthiness Project with the Federal Railroad Administration
Independent Testing Lab to Evaluate Modern Locomotive Crashworthiness Performance
Marlborough, MA – September 20, 2021 – KEA Technologies (KEA), a provider of independent testing services, product development, and engineering solutions, announced today a new contract with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). KEA has been a partner to FRA across many projects since 2015.
KEA, along with its partner, the Center for Collision and Analysis at George Mason University, will use state-of-the-art finite element analysis and simulation, along with its collision evaluation criteria, to objectively evaluate the adequacy and potential shortcomings of the modern locomotive crashworthiness requirements. It is envisioned that with this developed and tested technology, it would be possible to enhance freight rail operational efficiency and safety by ensuring improved modern locomotive crashworthiness, as necessary, in the event of freight rail collisions.
“Working with KEA to identify and address crashworthiness is crucial to our safety and the safety of customers’ freight and passengers,” said Dr. Tarek Omar, Ph.D., Federal Railroad Administration. “The team at KEA is professional, experienced, efficient, and knowledgeable and continues to add vital information and insights to our safety efforts. Understanding what could go wrong, how, and why is a never-ending job. KEA is a key partner in this important ongoing work.”
“The FRA is a leading example of putting safety first and we are proud to be a consistent partner in that initiative,” said Dr. Bud Zaouk, KEA Founder & CEO. “We continue to work alongside their team to forge a path in next-generation safety enhancements, policies, and action that meet their strict regulations on safety measures. It’s important, life-changing work that we are grateful to have the opportunity to perform. We are proud of our partners and personnel that make this possible.”
About The FRA
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966. It is one of ten agencies within the U.S. Department of Transportation concerned with intermodal transportation. Learn more at https://railroads.dot.gov/
About KEA Technologies, Inc.
Founded in 2015, KEA is a leader in engineering services, product development, and independent testing services for the transportation and other related industries. In addition to providing a wide array of independent testing out of its lab in Littleton, MA, KEA is a valued product development partner to its clients, helping to identify the root of any testing issues and enable clients to get to market faster, safely. KEA staff have excelled in innovative transportation R&D for the past 25 years and hold extensive subject-matter expertise regarding advanced engineering research, development, testing, and evaluation that has been applied to other industries such as defense and the oil and gas sector. KEA’s team of world-renowned consultants hold expertise in various engineering disciplines and the standards, regulations, specifications, and recommended practices that are pertinent to their fields of expertise. For more information, visit www.keatechinc.com.