As of the end of June 2023, Elcowire has delivered more than 6,000 kilometers of Valthermo products (contact-wires and catenary-wires) since we first developed this innovative material in 2012. According to a CO₂ study, by using VALTHERMO with a 70-year lifespan instead of pure copper with only 25 years, the corresponding lifetime CO₂ savings is as much as the emissions for one year in a European city with around 21,000 inhabitants.

A recent investigation was carried out in cooperation with DB Netz and Technische Universität Dresden, starting in 2020. The aim of this project was to gather more statistical information on the wear behaviour of VALTHERMO across the whole length of the contact wires. DB Netz provided the results of a so-called “F5-inspection” done with special train equipment. The University (Professur für Elektrische Bahnen”) developed a dedicated program to determine the statistical evaluation of the inspection results.

Elcowire published the new findings together with partners DB Netz and Technische Universität Dresden, making them available to the public (see: Tobias Bregulla, Fritjof Aufschläger, Arnd Stephan, Dresden; Frank Pupke, Hettstedt; Thomas Nickel, Frankfurt: Statistische Verschleißauswertung von Fahrdrahtwerkstoffen. In: Elektrische Bahnen 119 (2021), Nr. 7-8, S. 282-290).

This will give other active VALTHERMO users, as well as new potential users of our innovative material, an opportunity to explore the data for themselves and make an informed decision about the future sustainability of their networks.