Historical Overview of Railway Vehicle Engineering Education in Dresden

Mechanical engineering higher education has a long tradition in Saxony. One of the most eminent Saxon engineers of the 19th century, Professor Johann Andreas Schubert—designer of the first German locomotive, the Saxonia—taught and conducted research at the Dresden Technical Educational Institute. This teaching and research institution evolved into the Dresden University of Technology in 1890, where for many years design engineers and operations engineers for railway vehicles were educated. In 1961, the Dresden University of Technology was granted the status of a Technical University.

On 1 April 1952, the Dresden University of Transport (Hochschule für Verkehrswesen Dresden, HfV) was founded, and at the same time the Faculty of Transport Sciences of the Dresden University of Technology was dissolved. In 1953, the discipline of railway mechanical engineering assumed responsibility for educating graduate engineers in railway vehicles. The chairs of Carriage Construction and Workshop Facilities, Vehicle Economics, and Locomotive and Railcar Construction were established. In 1963, these three chairs were integrated into the Institute for Rail Vehicles under the leadership of Professor Ziem.

During this period, the traction changeover carried out by the German State Railway (Deutsche Reichsbahn)—that is, the replacement of steam locomotives by diesel locomotives and the electrification of main lines—was significantly supported by the institute through its research activities. In connection with the reforms and restructuring of higher education in 1969, two scientific working groups were formed within the newly established Section of Vehicle Engineering at HfV Dresden from the Institute for Rail Vehicles. In 1973, these were reorganized into the scientific divisions “Propulsion Systems” and “Railway Vehicle Engineering”.

The leadership of the Division of Propulsion Systems (since 1986: Propulsion Systems and Vehicle Services) was assumed by Professor Rose, while Professor Wießner headed the Division of Railway Vehicle Engineering. In November 1990, these two divisions were merged to form the Institute of Railway Vehicle Engineering under the leadership of Professor Wießner.

Between 1954 and 1992, the Dresden University of Transport educated more than 1,500 graduates in railway vehicle engineering, including 141 international students from 19 countries. 

On 30 September 1992, the Dresden University of Transport “Friedrich List” was dissolved. The Institute of Railway Vehicle Engineering, with its core teaching and research areas, found a new scientific home in the Faculty of Transport and Trafffic Sciences "Friedrich List", which was established at TU Dresden on 6 November 1992. Since 1 October 1992, university-level education for railway vehicle engineers has once again been conducted at the Dresden University of Technology at the Institute of Rail Vehicles and Railway Technology.