On August 6, a smart locomotive jointly developed by China Railway Science and Industry Institute under the China Railway Hi-Tech Industry Co., Ltd. and China Railway No.1 Engineering Group automatically installed rail fastening on the ballast track in Xishuangbanna along the Yuxi-Mohan railway in Yunnan Province. It symbolized a successful industrial testing of the smart locomotive, and a primary success in the research and development of China’s first rail-fastening-installing locomotive, which filled a void in China’s railway equipment manufacturing. 

Featuring unmanned driving, the locomotive integrates intelligent installing technology, outdoor visual positioning technology, and laser scan positioning technology. It is capable of data exchange and logic control, performing tasks of combining, installing and fastening different trail parts like a production line. The locomotive is faster and more accurate in installing rail fastening. An operation only needs three or four workers, saving 90 percent of labor inputs compared with traditional procedure and drastically lowering workers'labor intensity.