Frauscher Sensor Technology
Frauscher Sensor Technology is an Austrian manufacturer of inductive wheel sensors and axle counting systems, headquartered in St. Marienkirchen and supplying railway operators and system integrators in more than 100 countries.
Frauscher was founded in 1987 and employs more than 700 people across 15 countries. The company was expected to generate revenue of approximately EUR 145 million in 2025, according to projections published in connection with its acquisition.
Since 1 December 2025, Frauscher has been part of Wabtec Corporation, the US-listed rail technology group. Wabtec acquired the company from the French Delachaux Group and Frauscher’s management for an enterprise value of EUR 675 million.
Products and technology
Frauscher’s core products are inductive wheel sensors, including the RSR110, RSR123, RSR180, RSR310 and RSR360, which detect passing wheel flanges as trains traverse the track. The RSR180 and RSR123 form the trackside basis for vital wheel and axle monitoring in the company’s axle counting systems, while the RSR110 is used for non-safety operational functions such as positioning, speed indication and triggering of wayside equipment.
Evaluation of the sensor signals is handled by the company’s axle counting systems, led by the Frauscher Advanced Counter FAdC, which is certified to Safety Integrity Level 4 (SIL 4) for track vacancy status and direction, and which also derives axle counts, speed and wheel diameter. The sensors are IP68-rated and mounted with rail claws, without drilling into the rail.
Beyond track vacancy detection, the RSR110 is used to trigger wayside monitoring installations such as hot box detection systems, placing Frauscher’s sensors across both the vital and operational layers of the sensors and measurement domain.
Market position
Frauscher’s systems are installed in over 100 countries, with installations concentrated in Europe and India. Customers span infrastructure managers, metro and tram operators, and signalling integrators.
The product range covers applications from track vacancy detection and level crossing protection to communications-based train control (CBTC) fallback and switch point protection. The Frauscher Diagnostic System FDS and the cloud-based Frauscher Insights platform add condition data and diagnostics on top of the sensor layer.
Current activity
Mayank Tripathi took over as Vice President & General Manager with effect from 1 January 2026, after Michael Thiel’s 15-year tenure as CEO ended at the close of 2025. Frauscher announced the leadership change in January 2026.
Frauscher opened its first dedicated Experience and Learning Centre in Schärding, Austria, in November 2025, with further international locations, including India, planned to follow. The company exhibited at Rail Live UK 2026 in June, presenting the FAdC, the Wheel Sensor RSR123 and the Insights diagnostics platform.
