SPOTLIGHT Rail Awards 2023 Winners Programme

Foreword

Firstly, I want to welcome you to our first SPOTLIGHT Rail Awards , we are here to celebrate the achievements of individuals and organisations in the rail industry. The Covid pandemic reduced global passenger numbers by an average of 70 per cent, according to the International Union of Railways. In 2022, the industry finally got back on track.

From CP7 to the Core Valley Lines and ScotRail being brought into public ownership, rail has an important role to play in delivering an efficient, effective and modern railway. Whilst there are undoubtedly some tough challenges ahead, projects all over the UK will help the rail sector deliver on the ambitious targets.

2022/23 has been a great year for the delivery of rail projects, with work being continued on the crucial areas of sustainability, innovations, collaboration, investment, skills, safety, and reliability. At the same time, the industry is remaining flexible and adapting to the changing needs of its passengers.

The SPOT LIGHT Rail Awards is here to celebrate this and recognise the hard work and dedication of those who have made a significant impact on the rail industry. I would like to extend my thanks to all the judges for their hard work in determining our shortlist and winners of the awards.

Martin Taylor, Director, Peloton

Why SPOTLIGHT Rail Awards?

In April 2023, Peloton Events were delighted to host the inaugural SPOTLIGHT rail awards, which took place at the Royal Lancaster Hotel. It was a night full of celebration, both for our winners and also for the acknowledgement of the progress being made across the sector.

Just as is true in the rail sector, Peloton strived to do things differently, too. We were delighted to bring a brand new format for our SPOTLIGHT rail awards, shining a spotlight on all shortlisted entries through our two-week virtual event series in the run-up to our awards night.

Additionally, we approached a small number of well-respected figures across the regions of the UK we covered through our original SPOT LIGHT series to be part of our judging panel, who gave their expert views as to which entries deserved to win our prestigious award.

Following the announcement of the shortlist in November, we embarked on our webinar series, which took the format of 90-minute sessions and

included video content, PowerPoint presentations and panel discussions from the shortlist. It gave a platform to dissect the category and projects in more detail. These webinars, broadcast to a national audience through our platform, elevated each entry and gave the exposure it truly deserved.

Our categories were chosen to reflect the vision of the future, some of which included decarbonisation, improving efficiency, delivering for the customer and diversity and inclusion. All entries were free of charge, and each entry could be submitted into any relevant category.

Taking into consideration the challenges faced by the sector over the last two years, it was a great way for all organisations that attended to reflect and celebrate the wins the sector has had along the way.

We are excited to continue the SPOT LIGHT journey in 2024, highlighting the continuing success in the sector and showcasing best practice in next year’s event.

Thank you to our Sponsors

2023 Winners

Net Zero Pioneer HS2

After going through the nominees and their projects, it was announced that HS2 were the first winners of the evening. HS2 were recognised for their pioneering engineering techniques while delivering HS2’s green vision to build the most sustainable high-speed rail network in the world.

HS2 explained that to deliver their Net Zero Carbon Plan, they need to: “Power the HS2 network using zero-carbon electricity, eliminate or offset the carbon emissions from construction and operation from 2035 while aiming for all HS2 construction sites to be diesel-free by 2029, with the first one achieved in 2022.”

To turn ambition into action, HS2 Ltd supported teams across all areas of the business to develop carbon action plans outlining how their part of the business will contribute to the delivery of HS2’s Net Zero Carbon Plan objectives.

WINNER

Acting as One Team West Midlands Rail Executive

Despite tough competition, it was announced that West Midlands Rail Executive won through their work behind the West Midlands Rail Programme.

Expanding on this in greater detail, the West Midlands Rail Programme is a £210m investment programme led by Transport for West Midlands and West Midlands Rail Executive, bringing together over ten industry-leading organisations, delivering seven new or significantly upgraded stations.

The core programme team includes West Midlands Rail Executive, SLCAECOM joint venture, Transport for West Midlands, Network Rail, West Midlands Trains, and Principal Contractors for each project.

WMRE understood they needed to move beyond the typical approach and build a genuinely collaborative partnership to create a successful programme.

2023 Winners

Best Use of Technology LNER

LNER came out on top through its ‘Love the Journey’ Initiative and ensuring technology is at the heart of improving the onboard passenger experience.

The judges felt that LNERs approach and reactiveness to changing customer expectations, continuously speaking to customers via customer panels and other channels to understand what they enjoy and opportunities for improvement were of particular note.

One area that this approach identified as having lots of opportunities was improving the digital experience. The digital team set about completely transforming this area of the customer journey, launching 62 new digital services and tools designed to address customer pain points

From LNER Assistant, providing proactive and real-time personalised journey messages to customers, to our first for rail, Let’s Eat At Seat service, the overall customer experience has been drastically improved through technological innovations.

WINNER

Training Excellence QTS Group

QTS Group came out on top with the QTS Rail Skills Academy.

QTS Group has been developing a range of programmes, including apprenticeships, traineeships, graduate development and Kickstart programmes to encourage young people to join the industry and progress their careers.

Peloton heard: “The engagement that we have with education and young people has made it evident that the majority are completely unaware of the employment, and wide range of career opportunities, offered by our industry.”

The QTS Rail Skills Academy programme was created to bring a direct opportunity for a diverse range of young people to be introduced to the railway industry and to gain the qualifications, competencies and initial experience to allow them to progress through a career in the industry.

2023 Winners

Delivering for the Customer GoMedia

The Visor project from GoMedia, which aims to provide independence to the blind or visually impaired people won this category. Their design philosophy that a good solution isn’t designed for a specific group of people, but a good solution which benefits us all, stood out.

Speaking after the event, Sven Koster explained: “Passengers simply hold up their smartphone, which automatically recognises any BIDI codes in view and displays locationand context-specific directions in accessible formats, helping passengers navigate transport environments –both at stations and onboard vehicles – independently and with confidence through the entire user journey.”

WINNER

Corporate Social Responsibility MTR

The CCAT team of nine is responsible for developing, enhancing and maintaining relationships with the communities in which they are based and operate effectively to the everyday service user (and many who are not); these Ambassadors are the face of MTREL.

Additionally, the role also includes developing and building relationships with partner organisations to ensure a cohesive working relationship and the resulting improvements in service and safety for customers and communities.

The CCAT target customers that can be summarised as schools & youth engagement, accessible communities, local and industry partners, safety & security partners, and Local Authorities.

WINNER

2023 Winners

Rolling Stock Excellence Stadler

Both the METRO trains for the Liverpool City Region and FLIRT DMUs for Transport for Wales were introduced into passenger service. The first METRO trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro arrived in Newcastle in February, and the first CITYLINK for Transport for Wales has been transported to Cardiff. The first trimode locomotive for Rail Operations (UK) is scheduled to arrive in the UK soon.

Accepting the award, Peloton spoke to Stadler about the role of innovation in rail and heard: “Innovation is the cornerstone of the Stadler business and key to our success. We are leading the transformation from diesel-powered trains to zero-emission rolling stock, using electric power from batteries on non-electrified networks. We are also keen to build electric trains that access power from overhead catenaries, which is the most environmentally-friendly way of operating trains.”

WINNER

Product of the Year One Big Circle

One Big Circle scooped up the award through the innovative AIVR product, which uses up-to-date data and intelligence captured and transmitted from onboard in-service and measurement trains. It has been used by thousands of users from multiple disciplines to remotely monitor conditions and assets. AIVR helps reduce Boots on Ballast and keeps people safer every day.

Building on the success of the event, Emily Kent explained: “Success in the future for us is knowing people are safer because they have used AIVR, and by continuing to work with others in the world of remote condition monitoring, performance improves and passengers and freight get to where they need to.”

Furthermore: “Success for AIVR means more integration and collaboration - bringing together the data that people need when and where they need it and being open about how that can be accessed, analysed and shared appropriately.”

WINNER

2023 Winners

Service of the Year GoMedia

Visor’s aim is to provide independence to the blind or visually impaired people, but with the design philosophy that a good solution isn’t designed for a specific group of people but a good solution benefits us all.

So even though Visor has been an approved solution by the Royal National Institute of Blind People, it benefits everyone, from tourists to commuters, who just quickly want to access train times.

Providing a solution for everyone approved by the blind and visually impaired community will not only positively impact accessibility at stations but also improves the image of disabilities. Solutions for these groups don’t get hidden, and only they will make use of it.

Visor needs to provide: personalised, contextual, real-time, accessible wayfinding around the public transport network. For operators, it is important that this is a cost-effective solution but also provides flexibility.

WINNER

Operator of the Year LNER

Claiming their second award of the evening, LNER was named operator of the year through their East Coast Partnership.

Through this partnership, LNER and Network Rail are working together to put passengers first by improving the performance of the route - improving the reliability of our services, reducing cancellations and minimising the number of trains running with reduced coaches.

In their entry, LNER explained: “We’ve undertaken over 20 performance improvement schemes in partnership with Network Rail as well as joint initiatives with Hitachi, which maintains our fleet.”

For example, on driving, they have undertaken a detailed piece of work on acceleration away from stations utilising the performance characteristics of the Azuma fleet. This can save up to nine seconds per station call, which helps to improve performance further.

Impressively, LNER was the first operator to return to running 100 per cent of its timetable, a very welcome move following two years of uncertainty for customers as a result of the pandemic.

WINNER

2023 Winners

Contractor of the Year Kier Infrastructure

Through their Empower Programme, they nurture emerging talent and create opportunities for groups underrepresented in the construction industry. “We also demonstrated our commitment to being a Real Living Wage employer with an agile working programme that complements modern family life,” it was revealed as they won the award.

Embracing innovation in the rail industry is crucial to improve safety, drive progress, enhance efficiency and reduce costs. Kier uses a multidisciplinary approach harnessing collaboration, creativity and a culture of continuous improvement. Innovation is a mindset that is integrated into every aspect of their work, ensuring teams remain best-in-class, competitive and sustainable.

The future is bright for Contractor of the Year, Kier, as they remain focused on their unwavering commitment to safety, sustainability and innovation, helping to drive success for clients and projects across the rail sector.

WINNER

Outstanding Projects Under £20m

Arup and Transport for Wales

It was announced that Arup and TfW won through their work on the WRCP. The Welsh Railways Change Programme saw an Arup-led programme management and technical team support the Welsh Government and TfW through a complex programme to mobilise and transition the rail operator from private to public ownership. Delivered against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, the successful delivery approach, leadership and culture of knowledge sharing secured continuity of critical services from day one and left a legacy of organisational stability, collaborative cultures and an upskilled workforce to deliver Welsh Government’s

WINNER

ambitions for an accessible transport system that supports sustainable travel and benefits Wales’ people, places, and economy.

A core part of this transfer of the operator from private to public ownership was that it should be seamless. However, the programme was not only focused on the success of the Day 1 transfer; it was also about enabling TfW to put customers, communities and sustainability at the forefront of investment, including the decarbonisation of the network and supporting a multimodal approach to transport delivery.

2023 Winners

Outstanding Project Over £20m SPL Powerlines

SPL Powerlines picked up the award, with their work from London to Corby (L2C) part of a £1b Midland Main Line (MML) Upgrade Programme from Network Rail.

Speaking after the event, SPL explained that: “Innovation can be very hard in the rail industry, particularly around regulation, PADS approvals and design & group standards. However, Innovation can be pushed in many ways as part of our day jobs.”

Continuing, Peloton heard: “Using digital tools such to track quality assurance and performance metrics on site is a “one step back two forward” approach. In design and assurance, looking at workflow and the principles of the Network Rail SPEED initiative also yields time/cost/program benefits.”

WINNER

Employer of the Year SYSTRA

SYSTRA were the final winners of the evening as they collected the ‘Employer of the Year’ award. SYSTRA has been involved in many initiatives throughout the year to support the well-being of its employees. These include: Wellness SYSTRA - to support employees’ health and wellbeing, SYSTRA has launched mini health checks, which have been designed to provide positive, caring support that promotes mental and physical wellbeing.

Appointed 34 wellness champions across the business - Wellness Champions are key enablers in shaping and delivering actions and initiatives that support the wellness objectives of businesses and their colleagues.

WINNER

Additionally, they launched stress awareness month in April, SYSTRA launched ‘Your Way’ focusing on learning and development programmes for colleagues at different stages of their careers. This includes specific programmes for managers, apprentices, graduates, and mentoring leadership development.

SYSTRA are also proud of their ‘Everyone on Board’ programme. This initiative is very important to long-term objectives and are currently developing an EDI Action plan focusing on everyone has a voice, everyone is recognised, they can attract diverse talent, monitoring their performance, and giving back.

Royal Lancaster Hotel, London 21 March 2024

We are delighted to announce our SPOTLIGHT Rail Awards will take place at the Royal Lancaster Hotel on 21 March 2024. Moving into the second year, we will once again run our webinar series, shining a spotlight on all the shortlisted entries.

Our categories have been chosen to reflect the vision of the future, some of which include decarbonisation, improving efficiency, delivering for the customer and diversity and inclusion. All entries are free of charge and each entry can be submitted into any relevant category.

Taking into consideration the challenges faced by the sector over the last two years, it’s a great way for your organisation to elevate your position within the sector, and to gain a competitive advantage.

Submit your entry by the 29 September 2023 and make the most of this incredible opportunity.

CATEGORIES

Corporate Social Responsibility

Net Zero Pioneer

Acting As One Team

Digital Technology

Best Use of On-Track Technology

Training Excellence

Innovative Rolling Stock

Product of the Year

Operator of the Year

Outstanding Project (over £20m)

Outstanding Project (under £20m)

Asset Management Excellence

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Commitment to Safety

Principal Contractor of the Year

Sub-contractor of the Year

Plant Excellence

Track Renewals & Upgrades

Delivering for the Customer