The CEF railway testing centre is a unique platform that allows railway manufacturers, equipment suppliers, operators and infrastructure managers to test new railway technologies, infrastructure equipment, track or catenary.
Railway test, maintenance and training facility
Located in France, CEF leases its facilities and services to railway and equipment manufacturers and operators to carry out testing, maintenance and training. Testing can be performed without the restriction of commercial networks, benefit from logistics facilities and high-quality technical support, as well as facilities configured to their needs.
CEF’s railway testing centre has more than 20km of dynamic test tracks available. The track has been specially designed for signalling systems, rolling stock and railway systems ranging from urban to conventional to be developed. Infrastructure elements such as track or catenary components can also be tested.
A laboratory and two test platforms are available at the testing centre, CEF1 located near Valenciennes and CEF2, which is situated near Bar-le-Duc.
CEF offers a range of customised services to its customers, including drivers, handling, office space hire, fuelling, and dynamic storage, as well as ballast, freight wagon and test wagon rental.
Urban transport development centre
The CEF1 test track covers an area of 0.5km2 in Petite-Forêt near Valenciennes in the Hauts-de-France region. The track is linked with France’s national railway network.
Urban and suburban rolling stock such as subway, streetcar and tram vehicles equipped with standard 1,435mm bogies, as well as driverless systems can be tested at the track centre.
CEF1 also has installations available for testing wheel tyres and a European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS) track, a weighing bench and a non-derailment testing track.
All types of tension can be supplied, according to 25kV (50Hz/60Hz), 15kV (16Hz⅔), 3,000V, 1,500V and 750V catenary, as well as 750V lateral rail power supplies.
Railway testing centre
The CEF2 railway testing centre located in Trouville en Barrois in the Meuse department is designed for testing conventional rolling stock such as inter-urban, mainline and freight rolling stock.
A 12km-long straight track allows for vehicles to reach speeds of up to160km/h at two types of catenary tension, 25kV (50Hz) and 1,500V. CEF2 is also linked with France’s national railway network.
Accredited testing laboratory
A team of experienced engineers and technicians work at CEF’s testing centre, with internationally recognised accreditation (COFRAC ISO / IEC 17025). The staff and facilities at CEF’s test laboratory are suitable for a variety of research and development programmes.
CEF1’s specialised infrastructure and accreditation allows weighing tests according to NF standard 00-701, as well as non-derailing capacity testing according to EN 14363 method 1 standard to be carried out.
The railway testing centre’s laboratory features high-performance systems that are available for carrying out climatic / aeraulics and acoustic / vibratory tests.
CEF prioritises providing customer satisfaction and the latest technical expertise. This is why the company’s test track operations have been ISO 9001 accredited since 2009, as well as its testing laboratory, which was certified in 2012.
About CEF
Established in 1998 near Valenciennes, CEF was created as an initiative for the development of rolling stock and urban transport automation systems. Since then, the railway testing centre has developed to meet growing customer needs and expanded to a new facility near Bar-le-Duc.
CEF is a limited liability company headquartered in Petite-Forêt with a capital of €240,000.
