Railway applications - Wheelsets and bogies - Wheels - Product requirements

Scope

Specifies product requirements for solid forged and rolled monobloc railway wheels, defining the ER6-ER9 steel grades and acceptance criteria for mechanical properties, residual stresses, internal integrity and geometry. It is the reference procurement and approval standard for wheels, used by wheel manufacturers, ECMs, operators and notified bodies in interoperability conformity assessment.

EN 13262 specifies the product requirements for solid, forged and rolled monobloc railway wheels, defining the permitted ER6 to ER9 steel grades and the acceptance criteria covering mechanical properties, permissible residual stresses, internal material integrity and dimensional geometry. Wheel manufacturers must demonstrate compliance with these requirements through the type testing and quality control procedures the standard specifies before a wheel design can be placed on the market for use on European railway vehicles. It serves as the reference procurement and approval standard used by wheel manufacturers, entities in charge of maintenance, railway undertakings and notified bodies performing interoperability conformity assessment of rolling stock running gear. Because wheel integrity is safety-critical, the standard's residual stress and internal defect criteria are central to preventing in-service wheel failures, and its steel grade classification determines allowable operating conditions such as maximum permitted braking energy. The current edition in force is EN 13262:2020.