General Enquiry
Quick-contact form for general enquiries.
Make Enquiry
Request a Quote
Have a specific part or problem in mind? We’d like to hear about it!
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Request 3D Scanning
Book a scanning half or full day for obsolete parts and we’ll be in touch with our availability.
Request a Scan
General Enquiry
Quick-contact form for general enquiries.
Make Enquiry
Request a Quote
Have a specific part or problem in mind? We’d like to hear about it!
Get a Quote
Request 3D Scanning
Book a scanning half or full day for obsolete parts and we’ll be in touch with our availability.
Request a Scan

Maintain, Upgrade and Improve your Rail Vehicles

Digital manufacturing allows complete freedom of production; re-engineering parts you’re struggling to source, adding design improvements or creating new components from scratch.

3DB ESG - Our Digital Manufacturing Journey

The Story so Far

DB ESG has extensive experience in rolling stock engineering. Formed in 1995 and a 60+ strong engineering consultancy in its own right, our journey in Digital Manufacturing started in 2018 in response to obsolescence issues our customers were facing.

Rail vehicles have a typical service life of 30 – 35 years. This means that a lot of the parts that make up our railway fleets are no longer readily available; companies who made these parts do not exist anymore, the original drawings have been lost or the method of production itself is obsolete.

Procurement pressures such as large minimum order quantities, long lead times and global price rises further compound the issue. So even if you can find somewhere to get the part – your vehicle is still out of service for longer. Technology also moves on; the average rail vehicle is 18 years old and the methods we relied on 18 years ago have fading relevance to modern manufacturing techniques.

Our solution isn’t limited to merely replacing obsolete parts, we can also create complete bespoke engineering solutions from scratch.

Browse our Catalogue

A Complete Solution

Technology deep-dive

Quicker and Cheaper – Digital manufacturing eliminates the requirement for manual measurements and 2D drawings allowing a quicker end-to-end process and rapid prototyping ensures quick validation of designs. Being based in Derby, with an extensive UK supply network, there’s also the speed gained through localisation and with no minimum order quantities; you only pay for what you need.

Replace and Improve – Design improvements allow parts to be optimized rather than directly replaced; resulting in failure rates being significantly reduced. A wide range of digital manufacturing technologies allow parts to be designed to meet their specific functional requirements, not to meet the limitations of a specific manufacturing method.

Never Worry About Obsolescence Again – 3D scanning allows the quick digitization of old parts which have no or limited drawings. The 3D model produced using CAD is then used as the master file for manufacture and production. This also allows future design alterations to be implemented easily.

Better For The Environment – The additive manufacturing process creates less waste and less CO2 emissions vs traditional manufacturing methods as well as less energy consumed in the production process. We also use recycled and recyclable materials wherever possible.

Bespoke Solutions to fit your needs

Browse our Catalogue

 

Our catalogue showcases the range of obsolescence solutions we’ve already provided to our customers but we’re always looking for new problems to solve.

Whether you have an obsolete part, a problem within your supply chain or a specific engineering requirement; we specialise in getting your vehicle back into service and keeping it there.

The first company to introduce a fully approved 3D printed part to a UK rail vehicle

All our parts meet the relevant railway industry and European standards

From one-off production runs to large-scale supply

Research and Development

Research and Development

3DB ESG are leading the charge in additive manufacturing R&D. We are heavily invested in constantly pursuing innovation, new technologies and new materials. 3D printing is an emerging technology, and we aim to carry the torch for the rail industry.

We have led the RAILiability working group in ‘Mobility goes Additive’ for the last two years. RAILiability is a group of European railway operators working together to advance additive manufacturing within rail, sharing their best practice and collaborating on resolving the core challenges.

MobilityGoesAdditive

“DB ESG have been supporting Angel customers and fleets for several years now; helping to solve obsolescence and to reduce lead times. They are able to provide rail-approved, re-engineered parts and components quickly – getting vehicles back in service quicker and keeping maintenance and overhaul programmes on track”

Nick Miljkovic – Systems Engineer – Angel Trains

"Our OEM cab handsets were failing due to weak clips on their cradles, resulting in the handsets being easily dislodged and damaged. It was also difficult to source replacement parts quickly. DB ESG were able to produce a more robust handset and cradle by modifying the design to remove the common failure mode, making it stronger and better suited for the environment with simple to replace parts. The end result was an improvement in the design of our asset, reduced cost and improved maintenance and replacement lead times."

Steve Venables – Engineering Manager – Transport for London

Our Catalogue

Try searching for a part, component or vehicle fleet…

Simple ordering processes are vital to our customers’ ability to respond quickly. A lot of the parts and solutions we have created are available for production runs. Our catalogue allows you to order these and serves as a demonstration of our capabilities.

Browse our catalogue of parts and components

Can’t find the parts you need?

We can help.

Request a Quote