Already more than 100 leading rail operators, manufacturers and solution providers are on track to implement GS1 in Rail Application standards to improve various business processes.
Enabling timely condition-based maintenance
Providing improved analytics and incident investigation
Providing the foundation for safety-relevant information exchange
Identifying serious faults more easily
Enabling more effective recall management
Enabling Track & Trace of rolling stock
GS1 US
For further information, contact your national GS1 Member Organisation
Standards in use
With GS1 standards, parts and components; as well as rolling stock can be uniquely identified and appropriate information exchanged. This makes it possible to track the life cycle of safety-relevant systems, assemblies and components, starting from manufacture, through the entire supply chain, operation, maintenance and scrapping.
Identification
With GS1 identification keys you can identify parts, components, plants, rolling stock, locations and many other objects in a unique and unmistakable way. The following examples show you when each identification key is used:
GTIN for parts and components of a product type
SGTIN for serialised parts and components for a single product. Usually assigned by the manufacturer
GIAI for objects already on the market that are not yet marked by the manufacturer
GLN for e.g., regions, production sites, warehouses
SSCC in logistics for e.g., cartons or pallets
Capture
To ensure the traceability of objects that are used worldwide, it must be possible to identify them uniquely. This is why each object is assigned a unique GS1 identification key in addition to the description in the master data. The identification is then encoded in a data carrier and used as the access key for the data pertaining to each object.
The following data carriers are used in rail for the identification of objects:
GS1 DataMatrix
2D barcode that can be applied directly or indirectly to products. Direct Part Marking (DPM) allows a GS1 DataMatrix code to be permanently engraved so that products can be identified for decades
EPC/RFID
In contrast to optical data carriers, with RFID, the code can be captured via radio waves over several metres and without direct visual contact
GS1-128
The one-dimensional barcode is mainly used for encoding SSCCs in logistics
Share
With GS1 standards as a common language, business partners can share end-to-end information to support data synchronisation and the exchange of transactional, master and event data across the supply chain.
EPCIS for a transparent life cycle
The Electronic Product Code Information Service (EPCIS) makes it possible to capture, exchange and evaluate all events in the life cycle of an object. This makes cross-company life cycle management of (safety) relevant products possible. The data can also be used for the analysis and optimisation of components and processes along the life cycle.
GDSN for sharing master data
In rail, there is still no standard for collecting the master data of rail industry products and sharing these with other market stakeholders using structured formats. For this reason, the Australasian Railway Association launched the project iTRACE material master data initiative in 2019.
Videos
GS1 standards keep rail companies on track
Vision GS1 @ Siemens Mobility
How Schaeffler uses GS1 DataMatrix in their processes
GS1 & Rail
Questions and answers
The FAQs are designed to help the rail community find answers to typical questions in an efficient way.
Tools
Three decision support tools available to help companies implement the standard: