Railway Strategies Issue 115 Early Edition

RAILWAY Issue 115 Early

F o r S E N I OR R A I L M A N A G E M E N T

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz S T R A T E G I E S

Resilience planning Interview:

FutureRailway’s Marcus Mayers – building a strong innovation base P6 FOCUS ON

Infrastructure

FOCUS ON

Permanent Way NEWS

FOCUS ON

Stations

New art commissioned for Tottenham Court Road station extension Winner of RICS Infrastructure Photography competition announced Battery powered train carries first passengers

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Chairman Andrew Schofield Managing Director Mike Tulloch Editor Gay Sutton editor@railwaystrategies.co.uk Managing Editor Libbie Hammond Editorial Designer Jon Mee Advertisement Designer David Howard Profile Editor Libbie Hammond Advertisement Sales Dave King Head of Research Philip Monument Editorial Researchers Keith Hope Gavin Watson Tarj Kaur-D’Silva Mark Cowles Administration Tracy Chynoweth

From the Editor

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Public opinion

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uch has been written, over the Christmas and New Year period, about the chaos of engineering overruns, line closures and what the media has dubbed the lack of effective contingency planning.

Engineering has always been a profession of problem solving, and there are times when with the best will in the world engineers will be unable to achieve the expected result in the timescale expected. How to deal with the consequences, however, can make a huge difference to the outcome, and to public opinion. It’s good to see that the industry is to formally review the timing of engineering works, to reduce the impact of overruns.

While the options for managing overruns may be limited, good communication and customer care are absolutely essential. In this issue, we look at customer relationships from several perspectives. Turn to page 27 for a fascinating opinion piece from Amanda Clack of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. She talks about the surprising but basic lack of understanding of the term infrastructure among the general public.

How can rail improvements gain public support if their significance is not fully understood?

Meanwhile, Sam Russell describes some of the ground breaking work London Overground Rail Operations is doing with its local communities, and the impact this is having on passengers and staff. Finally, Richard Parsons explores some of the latest tools for engaging and communicating with the passenger across a wide range of channels.

If you have any comments or opinions on this or any of the topics we cover in the magazine, please do get in touch: editor@railwaystrategies.co.uk

Railway Strategies by email Issue 115 ISSN 1467-0395 Published by

Schofield Publishing Cringleford Business Centre, Intwood Road, Cringleford, Norwich NR4 6AU Email: info@railwaystrategies.co.uk Tel: 01603 274 130 Fax: 01603 274 131

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zzzzzzzzzzzzz Contents Features Interview - Marcus Mayers 6 A radical new freight bogie is being funded by FutureRailways. We hear how it could form the basis of an exciting new rail innovation hub Gay Sutton The art of communicating 12 How communicating through multiple channels can improve the efficiency and quality of rail services Richard Parsons

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Challenging traditional thinking 13 Three important changes that could fundamentally improve safety on the railways Jason Pearce Giving safety the green light 14 The role research, training and best practice can play in improving safety Mary Clarke

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Learning from the airlines 16 Tempting the passenger with offerings in comfort and service they simply can’t refuse Nigel Lawson

Profiles

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vonRoll casting 38 Craig & Derricott 40 Semmco 43 Touax Rail 46 V.S. Rail 50 Zonegreen 54 FP McCann 56 Stadler Rail 62 IDOM 65 ADComms 68 Arriva TrainCare 72 Kier Group 78 Nexus 81 Taylor Woodrow 86

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Industry 4 Infrastructure 10 Stations 21 Rail Alliance 26 Appointments 31 Conferences & Exhibitions 89

11Cover story

Focus on Stations Working with local communities 18 How London Overground Rail Operations works to be a good neighbour to the community – Sam Russell Improving station accessibility 22 Improving disabled access at railway stations, and the types of handrail that are most cost effective – Vernon Barry Entering the jet age 24 The first station installation of a new jet thrust fan system takes place at Birmingham New Street

Focus on Infrastructure Public opinion is crucial 27 Resistance to infrastructure development was a problem even for Brunel. How we can we improve public opinion of infrastructure investment? – Amanda Clack

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Configuring the future 28 The mysteries behind the design, integration and optimisation of modern mass transit networks – Siemens Sound: an infrastructure blind spot? 32 Using sound creatively to improve comfort and behaviour on the railways – Graeme Harrison Mobility = greater resilience 34 Mobile apps – a crucial tool for reducing the risk of disruption this winter – Cathal McGloin

Focus on Permanent way Gearing up for improvement 36 Intelligent electrical switchgear – delivering superior safety, reliability and performance – Mark Beswick

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h 5.8%

The latest Passenger Rail Service Satisfaction data to be published by the ORR show that the rail Batteries Included - the modified Class 379 Electrostar carrying its first passengers

passenger complaint rate has risen by 5.8% in comparison with the same quarter last year.

Train service performance, which includes punctuality, was the leading cause of complaint.

Prototype battery-powered train carries its first passengers

28.3m record

l The first battery-powered train to run on Britain’s rail network in more than half a century has carried its first passengers. This marks an important milestone in the FutureRailway project to demonstrate the viability of an eco-friendly Independently Powered Electric Multiple Unit (IPEMU) for bridging the gaps between electrified parts of the network, and also running on branch lines where it would be too expensive to install overhead electrification.

Successful retrofitting and trials were undertaken last year by Bombardier at test tracks in Derby and Leicestershire. The modified Class 379 Electrostar battery-powered train is now scheduled to run in weekday timetable service for five weeks between Harwich International and Manningtree stations in Essex, operating as part of Abellio Greater Anglia’s fleet.

Network Rail Principal Engineer James Ambrose said: “After months of engineering and testing, the train is running just as we would like it. We’ll be using this five-week period to gather data on how it handles during passenger service – most travellers will recognise how quiet and smooth the ride is compared to a diesel-powered train.”

Any future IPEMU would most likely be designed as a new train and not an adapted unit, to minimise energy consumption, but this project will also provide useful information for retrofit.

Partners working on the IPEMU project are: Network Rail, The Rail Executive arm of the Department for Transport, FutureRailway, Abellio Greater Anglia and Bombardier.

London Underground carried

In the run up to Christmas, the over 28.346 million people in one week. This broke the previous record set during the 2012 London Olympic Games when 28.235m journeys were made.

Passenger numbers have risen by a third in the last ten years.

38% at risk More than a third (38%) of travel and transportation workers put their health at risk by putting off visiting the doctor, according to a survey from the British Heart Foundation.

39% said they had too much work to do to take time off.

96.6% on time National Express train operator c2c has been named the most Hitachi training carriage arrives in the UK

punctual train operator during 2014, according to Network Rail.

Across the year, 96.6% of c2c trains arrived on time.

Meanwhile, the national average was 89.6% punctuality.

Hitachi training carriage arrives in UK via the Port of Tyne l A training carriage for the Hitachi Rail Europe plant in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, has arrived in the Port of Tyne where it will be stored before being delivered to the plant.

The part assembled train carriage, which was built at Hitachi’s factory in Kasado, Japan, will become the plant’s training unit. Hitachi Rail Europe’s manufacturing plant manager Darren Cumner said: “The arrival of the training carriage is a significant step for Hitachi Rail Europe’s plans to train our manufacturing staff. Apprentices, technicians and engineers will use this train carriage to gain in-depth knowledge of how to build trains. Shipping this carriage via the Port of Tyne is testament to our commitment to working with local partners and promoting a strong local supply chain.”

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Is obstruction by Germany and France forcing a 5th Railway Package on Europe to bring its railways rather belatedly into the 21st Century? l From Lord Berkeley, chairman of the Rail Freight Group and a board member of the European Rail Freight Association. The opinions expressed here are his own.

The latest draft of the 4th Railway Package (RP) from the Latvian Presidency makes depressing reading. It is a pale version of what the Commission started with, a blueprint to revitalise Europe’s railways, to introduce competition and efficiencies, better customer choice and private investment.

Since then, Angela Merkel summoned the then Commission President Barroso to Berlin and told him to alter the 4th RP to allow the German structure, full of allegations of unfair subsidies and competition issue, to continue. He capitulated and introduced a second best solution of a ‘Chinese wall’ to prevent such abuses.

Now France, losing passenger and freight traffic at an alarming rate because of poor service quality and higher charges, is reintegrating track and train to further obstruct the Commission, and is joining Germany in opposing any attempt to introduce competition and bring some efficiencies into Europe’s creaking railway system. According to a recent article in les Echos, there will soon be little of a rail network left in France apart from regional services around major cities and the still loss making TGV lines.

Both DB and SNCF are also suffering from competition from new long distance coach services, whose staff do not get the benefits of SNCF drivers who retire at the age of 50 on a pension of their final salary. France’s solution to Europe’s rail problems is to try to get all rail workers across Europe to have the same benefits as its own featherbedded ‘cheminots’; this is indeed an odd way of beating the road or air competition. Germany does not want competition for passenger services, and refused to allow competitors to sell tickets in DB booking offices or machines, and neither operator will consider selling or leasing unused passenger trains to competitors.

Italy, in urgent need to finance its inefficient rail system, may float part of it on the stock exchange but will this inefficient monopoly provide the low risk dividends that investors will expect without falling foul of state aid or competition law?

Does all this matter? Is it important for Europe to have a thriving rail network capable of delivering faster, more reliable and cheaper services to customers?

The Commission thought it did; that is why it developed the 4th Railway Package to try to break the monopolies of the incumbents as well as introducing common standards and interoperability.

Germany and France are killing it, by requiring the dilution of legislation on fair competition, so that their monopolies can be preserved in

perpetuity. No sensible investor will risk putting money into services in competition with these and other incumbents who obstruct, obfuscate, deny fair access to the network, and try to hide the unfair and secret subsidies that they arrange with their paymasters or owners.

Why don’t other member states object? One might expect the UK to lead this, but the UK Government’s uncertain approach to Europe does not add to its credibility. How many other member states are free from German pressure on their budgets, or French pressure on social issue?

So I fear that the Latvian Presidency will be browbeaten into accepting whatever Germany and France dictate, and the next Presidency, Luxembourg, sandwiched geographically between Germany and France, is rather unlikely to lead the campaign for liberalisation.

Will the European Parliament save the 4th RP? It is new, and there are some strong supporters of liberalisation there. However, it can be much easier to accept the story that all is fine with the railway – and one can always go by road or air. MEPs should remember that monopolies are self-perpetuating, provide bad service and high costs to their governments, and lose more and more money, but have unlimited resources for fighting off or buying up any competition whilst at the same time having their begging bowl out for more and more state subsidy.

Nobody gains from this, neither the passenger or freight customer, not in the end the featherbedded workers who, in the end, will lose their jobs, as the more efficient road or air transport takes the business. It does not have to be like this but, at the present rate of progress, it will be, to the serious detriment of Europe’s’ business and quality of life.

If you don’t want such monopolies, then you need fair and open competition, separation of infrastructure from train operation, strong and comprehensive regulation, and the will to make it all work fairly; that is the only way to encourage investment that Europe’s railway so desperately needs.

With an increasing number of press articles predicting the slow death of many railways, is the 4th Railway Package the last train to a competitive market, now departing almost empty of passengers, freight – and hope for the future!

Roll on the 5th Railway Package, supported by a strong political will to bring the single market, competition and investment to this rail sector which, with few exceptions, instead of looking forward, clings to a starry-eyed version of history!

Hong Kong’s new metro extension goes into operation l The extension to the MTR Island Line in Hong Kong was officially opened on 28 December 2014. Running for 3.3km westwards, the West Island Line connects Sheung Wan station to the three newly-built stations of Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong University (HKU) and Kennedy Town. It now takes only about seven minutes to travel the length of the extension compared with the 30 minutes it used to take by bus. This will help ease road congestion in the western district.

Mott MacDonald, which has been involved in the project since 2009, provided detailed design work for the Gammon-Nishimatsu joint venture including the construction sequences for the caverns and the associated running tunnels, as well as the overrun tunnels at Kennedy Town Station along with associated slope works for MTR.

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INTERVIEW I Marcus Mayers

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A radical step?

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Marcus Mayers talks to Gay Sutton about progress in developing an innovative new radial freight bogie, and the prospects for building a strong bogie innovation hub in the UK

he UK rail industry has a proud history of innovation.

Although this has been through a period of stagnation, that trend is being reversed. An essential element in this is the FutureRailway initiative, a collaboration between Network Rail and RSSB working with the rail industry and the supply chain to accelerate research and development.

While it has been many years since bogie design and development has flourished in the UK, a new knowledge-base of engineers and facilities is being drawn together to test and develop a radical new concept in bogie design – currently known as the radial freight bogie.

In the beginning....

Like so many radical new concepts, the radial bogie began life as an idea that was batted around among engineers – people whose lives revolve around problem solving. In many such situations, the enormous costs and risks of developing an untried idea means it has very little chance of progressing into a concept stage let alone through the

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Innovations are being sought to improve ticketing and gatelines

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz It was at the Leicester Space Centre that the freight bogie’s designers linked up with Huddersfield University which has expertise in vehicle dynamics and the wheel rail interface, and a forward thinking export, sales and marketing organisation, Holdtrade UK. “And this is where the radial freight bogie is distinct. Holdtrade UK had a number of customers including South Africa’s Transnet who had expressed a pain,” he continued. They were all experiencing similar capacity and track damage issues, but there were no solutions for it in the marketplace. “Holdtrade UK’s thinking was that if they could support the development of a new solution to deliver more profitable freight movement then they could sell it into the market.”

The radial freight bogie had the potential to fulfil that need, by reducing damage to the track when carrying freight, and increasing the capacity that could be carried per wagon. Not only could this work very well on the lower quality heavy haul freight track in South Africa, it could have other applications such as super heavy haul in Australia.

As a result of that event, the original design team formed a partnership with Holdtrade UK and Transnet, along with Huddersfield University and the project went on to became one of six to win funding and support from FutureRailway. By the end of 2013, following a technical review that indicated that the proposal could work, the complex contracts between the partners had been thrashed out and signed.

Building the knowledge base

Marcus Mayers, programme & portfolio manager, FutureRailway

demonstration stage to a fully fledged marketable product. And this is where FutureRailway plays a significant part in bridging this gap.

In February 2013, FutureRailway launched a new initiative called the Radical Train Competition. “The idea behind this competition,” explained Marcus Mayers, programme & portfolio manager, FutureRailway, “was to ask suppliers to bring us any ideas that could improve the quality of rolling stock or enhance the UK’s capability in rolling stock.”

The radial freight bogie, a new idea in track friendly bogies, was just one of 57 concepts to be proposed.

Moving forward To progress these ideas to the point where winners could be chosen for funding, FutureRailway organised a collaboration day, bringing together those who would like to enter the competition with a wide range of universities, entrepreneurs, SMEs and large companies who could potentially partner with them to support and part finance that aim.

The first three months of 2014 were spent recruiting a full complement of skills to build a strong design team based in Wales, a team that could form the foundation for a bogie design hub for future innovation in the UK. That time seems to have been well spent. The bogie design is currently at Huddersfield University being iteratively modelled, tested and refined.

“A key lesson we’ve learned from this,” Marcus said, “is that innovation projects can take longer to set up than traditional projects, due to the risks and level of understanding.” The next step is to manufacture the bogies here in the UK and begin non-destructive testing on them. Once all parties are happy with the results, the bogies will be sent to South Africa where they’ll be fitted to wagons built specifically for the project

by Transnet, and then tested on a 1067mm narrow gauge manganese freight line, to an extent we simply could not achieve here in the UK. “South Africa has the largest narrow gauge freight railway in the world, stretching some 27,000 km,” Marcus said. “They have huge manufacturing capability, and an approvals process that is simpler than anything in Europe. The question they will be asking is: does the radial freight bogie move more freight more efficiently than current bogies and will it be financially worth buying?”

If the testing is successful, there will be a significant market for the product in South Africa with Transnet, but there have already been some tentative approaches from other African countries.

A radical idea?

So is the new freight bogie really a radical idea? For obvious reason, Marcus could not describe the bogie in any great detail. It is still going through the patent protection process. However he was able to say: “We believe it’s a really excellent idea, one that is likely make a significant difference in the world of freight. And if it’s successful in South Africa, then the second or third iteration will be for standard gauge, and could make a significant impact here in the UK. It’s a concept that could also be applied to passenger vehicles in due course, but of course that market is very different to the freight bogie market.”

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INTERVIEW I Marcus Mayers

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A Transnet freight train in South Africa

Why promoting innovation is important “This entire project will cost upwards of £1 million,” Marcus explained.

“If the original design team had had to finance this, the project would never have got off the ground. Demonstrators are expensive, and there are always significant risks involved.” However by sharing the costs and risks, and ultimately sharing the benefits and rewards, there is a much higher likelihood that innovation can be followed through to market.

In this instance, FutureRailway is contributing 45 per cent towards the total cost. Transnet will fund around 25 per cent of the cost, the majority of which will go into constructing the wagon that will be fitted with the new bogie and then testing it extensively on South Africa’s heavy railways. The remaining contributions to the project will be made by the design team and Holdtrade UK. Meanwhile, in line with EU regulations, Huddersfield University will be able to recoup some 80 per cent of their expenses from partnership and fund the remaining 20 per cent of their costs themselves.

Benefits to each partner Each of the project partners has signed up to an agreement that defines the terms and conditions, deliverables and benefits. One of the conditions is that the innovation must be delivered to the market. “So we’re tying them to the yoke of commerciality,” Marcus said. Holdtrade is currently building its business model for marketing the end product.

And as a company with no manufacturing base, it has two options for marketing the product: selling the third party manufactured bogies around the world, or selling interested companies the unique constituent components and the licence to manufacture the bogies.

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“That’s where the money will be,” Marcus said. “And then the profits will feed back into what will become a new bogie R&D business based here in the UK.” From FutureRailway’s perspective, the aim is to bring innovative products to market. “We take IP very seriously, but we don’t want to own it.” The ownership of the IP is defined in the initial contract, and FutureRailway merely asks for a percentage royalty which is then reinvested into further projects. The aim ultimately is to build a strong R&D base here in the UK which can continue to innovate, delivering new and exciting products to the rail network, and bringing financial rewards to the economy. The bogie design team is just one element of that. “We want to see innovators succeed as individuals and organisations, and go on to spread their wings and do great things.”

Revelations...the innovation DNA As an enabler to innovation, Marcus had some interesting observations to make, and a plea for everyone to start questioning. “Innovation in the rail market is only as good as the ideas people come to us with, and ideas that people are willing to buy,” he commented. “We exist by the good grace of the supply chain and the people who operate railways.

Without their engagement and involvement there is no place for a FutureRailway in the railway industry.”

Looking at this project individually, it’s all too easy to think of innovation as a one off idea. It’s not. “Innovation is about DNA. It’s about waking up in the morning and thinking about what you do, asking is this really the right way to do it, or is there a better way? Very often it’s identifying a pain people don’t realise they have. That’s where this radial freight bogie is a very good example. It’s a different type of thinking which I would encourage people in the railway industry to adopt.” zz

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NEWS I Infrastructure

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The winning photograph, Double Travel

Rail image chosen to improve public perception of infrastructure l A stunning photograph of rail tracks, taken from The Shard, has won The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ inaugural RICS Infrastructure Photography Competition. Launched to champion the importance of major infrastructure projects to British society, the competition was won

by Rita Tesa with her photograph, Double Travel. The photo beat nearly 300 other submissions.

Of the winning image, associate director at WSP and chair of the judging panel, Roma Agrawal FRICS, commented: “This photo is what infrastructure is all about - providing transport on top of a busy city. We just loved the dynamic nature of this image, captured at the perfect time as the trains pass each other.” See page 27 for comment on the competition.

The timing of engineering work to be reviewed l The rail industry is to undertake a review to establish the best time for carrying out major improvement works on the network. The move comes following the significant service disruptions into and out of London on 27 and 28 December 2014, primarily caused by overrunning engineering works.

It will be independently led by a team of senior industry figures, and overseen by the Rail Delivery Group (RDG).

The review will look at: l Lessons learned from the Christmas disruption and other major work programmes l Factors affecting the impact of improvement work on services at different times of year l How major work can best be managed, to limit the impact on passenger and freight services l The industry’s existing performance incentive structure l Best practice and experience in other countries including Japan, Germany, Italy and Sweden In the aftermath of the disruption, Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne said: “The events over the Christmas period highlighted the unacceptable impact on the travelling public when plans go wrong. I therefore propose ... a broader, industry-wide review, into the timing of our major works programmes and the passenger contingency arrangements for such works. Our railway now carries more passengers than ever before in history.

Passengers rely on the railway. We have an obligation to manage the essential safety maintenance and renewal activity that is required and we need to do this in a manner that minimises the overall impact on society at large.”

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l Product Innovation Ltd has developed a product that measures the movement of a rail or sleeper in real time.

Network Rail were looking for a Void Meter to fit in with their new Intelligent Infrastructure system and approached Product Innovation having seen an old design on the company’s website. Once alerted to this interest Product Innovation reviewed the design and decided to produce a completely new one using the latest technology.

The new Void Meter was developed and a prototype built before the first meeting with Network Rail. They were impressed by the design and ordered prototype samples, the first of which was installed at Witham in July 2014. Since then six more samples have been supplied.

Peter Frank, the CEO of Product Innovation says: “The new concept is beautifully simple and uses modern electronics in a way that was not possible in the past. The sensing of position uses a Hall Effect microchip that allows us to totally encapsulate the electronics. We believe this is a significant technological development and have applied for patents.”

Phase complete l At 07:16 on Monday 15 December, Siemens Rail Automation successfully completed Phase Two of the Great Northern Great Eastern (GNGE) programme, with the Auckley and Beech level crossings being signed into use. This work represented the final delivery stage of the GNGE project for Siemens and the conclusion of the two year programme.

Bringing a significant upgrade to this doubletracked line, the GNGE programme is an integral part of the East Coast Main Line (ECML) Capacity Relief Project. The programme enables freight trains to achieve the equivalent average journey times using GNGE rather than the ECML, such that it will become the primary daytime route for freight traffic. By diverting traffic from the ECML to GNGE, a significant number of paths can be released for additional passenger services.

Rob Cairns, Siemens’ Delivery Director for the Central East region, noted: “With 37 new level crossings, the demolition of 25 signal boxes and the renewal of seven interlockings, this has been a technically complex and logistically challenging programme.”

Network Rail

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NEWS I Infrastructure

Winter weather on the railway

How the industry plans to increase resilience to bad weather this winter l The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) has published a 10 point plan setting out how the industry will be making track and trains more resilient to adverse weather conditions this winter, and ensuring passengers are better informed during disruption.

Operators and Network Rail have learned a considerable amount from the extreme weather of last few years, and have developed a set of measures to improve the network’s resilience to snow, ice and flooding, and to improve customer care.

Trains: l Fitting some trains with snow ploughs, hot-air blowers, steam jets, brushes, scrapers and jets for heated anti-freeze and compressed air to de-ice tracks. Heated skirts for trains running in colder parts of the country l Thorough checks of standard train features, including coupler heaters, door seal grease, fuel tank heaters and horn heaters Tracks: l Empty trains will run through the night in key areas as temperatures fall, to help keep tracks clear. Freight proving trains will run in the mornings following adverse conditions to ensure routes are clear l Network Rail has expanded its winter fleet to include 14 snow ploughs, 10 snow and ice treatment trains, two snow blowers, 25 locomotives fitted with mini snow ploughs (10 more than last year) and 24 multi-purpose vehicles (14 more than last year) with de-icing capability

l Anti-icing fluid and heating strips are used on live conductor rails to stop ice building up.

Heating strips in key locations have reduced ice-related incidents by up to 80 per cent l Flood defence systems are on standby, including inflatable barriers to protect tracks and vital equipment from flood water l Heaters and NASA grade insulation have been attached to critical points to prevent ice l Protective covers have been added to 4,000 points and 2,500 points motors, to keep snow out and prevent damage by ice falling from trains l Remote temperature monitoring is in place, and a helicopter fitted with thermal imaging cameras is on standby to identify points heaters that are not working effectively Stations and depots: l Ensuring depots and stations have enough salt, shovels and de-icer supplies l Preparing specialist equipment such as hot air blowers and steam jets at depots Staff: l In times of severe disruption, staff will be based at strategic places to provide rail users with information and advice, and ensure full depot staffing, even where some staff are unable to get to work l Thousands of staff will patrol the network round the clock in times of extreme weather, clearing snow and ice from junctions and tunnels l When flood warnings are received from the Environment Agency, staff and equipment will

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be sent to at risk areas so preventative and mitigation measures can be put in place Information at stations: l A multimillion pound project is underway to display consistent information at stations, on websites and on apps. Around a third of the country’s stations are now connected to the same single real time information feed Early information about changes: l Revised timetable information can now be fed into customer information systems more quickly. New timetables can be in place the evening before enabling passengers to plan their journeys for the following day Utilising social media: l Operators, Network Rail and NRE are increasingly using social media to keep passengers informed, including answering real-time queries, publicising updated travel plans and travel information, sharing images of what has caused a delay, and showing progress in efforts to get people moving again Explaining delays: l The industry has developed explanations of common causes of delays, which are now publicised at stations, on websites and social media, especially during times of disruption Information on compensation: l Train companies are doing more to remind delayed passengers how to claim compensation including: more train announcements; posters at stations with smartphone barcodes; information on platform screens; handing out claim forms on delayed trains; tweeting links to claim forms; making information more prominent on websites during disruption; and sending email reminders to passengers.

Michael Roberts, director general of the RDG, said: “The industry

has learnt valuable lessons from recent winters about where we need to concentrate our efforts to improve how we respond to extreme conditions. When severe weather hits, we will focus on ensuring that the railway can continue to run as many services as is safely possible, and that passengers get up-to-date and consistent information.”

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Customer Relationship Management

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The art of communicating RICHARD PARSONS discusses how the efficiency and quality of rail services can be improved, and customer demand further increased, by communicating through multiple channels

A Richard Parsons is commercial director at Experience Assist

ccording to the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), there are a million more trains and half a billion more passengers each year compared to a decade ago. The ATOC’s most recent data report from its LENNON database showed over 140,000 more journeys were made in the six months to September this year than during the same period in 2013. The company forecasts that by 2020, an additional 400 million journeys will be made by rail.

And it’s not just the growth of passenger numbers that has seen the railway industry experience such consistent and significant growth – the freight industry contributes £870 million to the UK economy alone and supports an output of £5.9 billion.

Responding to growing demand is an exciting challenge for the rail industry, but innovation is key.

Punctuality, performance, efficiency and safety – all crucial deliverables – have to be reviewed alongside capacity levels. A process that worked a year ago may no longer be the most effective way to maintain quality of service.

Making those vital improvements Improving infrastructure is an important step – for example Network Rail is spending an average of £27 million a day on improving services to create increased capacity to carry extra passengers. It hopes that by 2018, 2,000 more carriages will be available, generating almost a third more peak time places into major cities and 20 per cent more commutes in and out of London by the end of the decade. These changes will allow passengers more flexibility with travel times and reduce crowding in carriages, allowing Network Rail to improve service levels.

Providing a good experience is crucial alongside comfortable and convenient travel, but there are also other elements to consider when reviewing ways to engage and retain customers.

Whether it’s providing offers, live service information or online surveys, drawing in passengers through digital platforms can help to engage customers and generate increased revenue. For instance, the convenience of being able to book advanced train tickets through online booking apps and websites is an attractive prospect for passengers who may

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be time poor. KPMG found discounted fares now account for almost half of consumer sales, an increase of 36 per cent since 2004.

Driving customers to websites is beneficial for rail companies who use customer relationship management (CRM) systems. This tool allows companies to glean data from customers at every stage of connection – from areas of the website they have visited, to previous telephone conversations with business representatives. For rail businesses, this includes promoting offers – such as discounted tickets – to regular customers to encourage further travel and loyalty.

Where information gathering already works well The use of CRM systems can also improve safety and efficiency for both staff and customers in the rail industry. For example, there are some 6,500 level crossings across Britain – many in rural areas on private land where users must operate the crossings themselves.

As a key safety measure, users must register with Network Rail and contact them before using crossings for the first time. The company has a vital database of authorised users and must regularly communicate with them by SMS, phone and email in order to keep registered users informed of safety issues, maintenance work and much more.

To manage this, developers at Experience Assist have configured a sophisticated new CRM system for Network Rail, allowing the company to keep track of all of its outbound communications.

Similarly, Cross Country Trains has improved business performance through the use of CRM. Introducing new platforms such as the use of tailored screens and automation for telephone inbound enquiries has reduced staff overheads by 25 per cent and helped to deliver a more personalised service whilst increasing capacity levels.

As the industry continues to develop and grow, it is vital rail companies sustain customer engagement and continue to improve health and safety efficiency levels through the use of the most efficient and collaborative tools available. zz

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Health & Safety

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Challenging traditional thinking JASON PEARCE, managing director of rail telecoms specialist Alan Dick Communications, believes contractors need to challenge their thinking as part of the key role they have in improving rail safety

S Jason Pearce

ince Mark Carne took over as Network Rail’s CEO in February 2014, he’s not pulled any punches where safety is concerned. Describing the level of health and safety incidents among staff and contractors over the last five years as ‘unacceptable’, he has sent a very clear message to everyone within the rail sector.

The Government’s commitment to funding £38 billion in rail over the next five years will bring inevitable health and safety risks. While this is one of the most exciting periods of growth in the UK’s rail infrastructure, the industry needs a properly educated and disciplined workforce to cope with the unprecedented demands and pressures to deliver projects on time and within budget.

Putting safety first The statistics do not make good reading: rail workforce fatalities have risen consistently since 2010/11. Mark Carne must be supported for his radical plans to ban staff who aren’t directly employed by Network Rail from holding safety managerial roles. It’s a strategy more of the industry needs to follow and one we are driving within our business.

Building strong relationships with our supply chain and avoiding transient subcontractors, minimises delivery and safety risk. Within our business model we seek to ensure teams work closely together and build a level of trust with one another. We have a very high proportion of directly employed staff who in my view are more engaged within the company culture and values.

That’s not to say there isn’t a significant challenge with a policy like this: the industry is increasingly people challenged, and typically has long gestation periods between orders when it may be carrying a heavier fixed employment cost.

Fundamental changes to the way the controller of site safety (COSS) role will operate, supported by massive training commitments from Network Rail must be actively supported by everyone. 30,000 days of delegate training completed this autumn by Network Rail and briefings for 200 contractors, are a major step in the right direction.

Network Rail has set a clear direction for safety on the railways. The challenge facing contractors is how to respond and act accordingly. Alongside Network Rail’s initiatives, I believe there are three other areas where rail contractors can focus efforts to actively support our industry to achieve world-class levels of safety.

The important trio Firstly, we need to recognise the impact that mental health can have on people’s performance. Secondly, we need to build more collaboration amongst contractors to ensure that best safety practice is always shared. Lastly, we need to embrace technology even more to keep our people safe, especially lone workers.

In June 2014 the ORR published a paper on stress in the rail industry, and this recognised that one in four people in the UK are now affected by mental health problems. The risks associated with unwell individuals working in a high safety risk environment are significant.

The ORR’s proposed management approach is to be applauded. The very fact that the problem has been openly recognised marks a watershed in the industry.

Mental health issues in the workplace are real. As all industries seek more businesses, we need to work smarter and introduce the environment, systems and methodologies that actively support individuals.

Culture within organisations usually cascades from the boardroom, and contractors of every size must ensure that occupational safety, including mental health safety, is part of their DNA. Sharing best practice is another big challenge for an industry that has tended to operate in silos. That mindset simply has to change. Sectors such as the airlines and defence have shown that collaboration delivers significant benefit, including driving improved safety.

Network Rail are leading on collaboration, but the rest of us must now adopt more open dialogue, sharing health and safety best practice.

Finally, technology has a huge role to play in making trackside working safer, dramatically cutting down on paperwork and manual errors that can lead to incidents.

IPS has adopted the use of iPads when working on London Underground projects, streamlining safety procedures and making arduous paper exercises far more efficient. The use of this popular technology means worker adoption has been high, which is especially useful for lone workers operating out of hours.

The ORR has taken a firm stance on recent health and safety failures among contractors. And this robust approach will quite rightly remain in place for some time to come. We all have an important job to do to bring the UK Rail industry to best in class, but putting safety anywhere else but the top of the agenda just won’t work. zz

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Giving safety the green light MARY CLARKE examines how research, training and best practice can help rail companies keep their employees and customers safe in the face of growing pressures on the network

B Mary Clarke, CEO, Cognisco

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ritain’s railways are among the safest in the world.

Indeed, last month it was reported that a British team will help China to develop a health and safety culture after a series of fatal accidents.

However, a series of impending challenges look likely to test our ability to maintain that enviable reputation.

The rise in passengers is putting huge pressure on the network. Overall numbers rose by 5.7 per cent to more than 1.5 billion passenger journeys in 2013-14.

Meanwhile, the Office of Rail Regulation’s (ORR) latest safety report highlighted the challenges of managing record passenger levels and called for better infrastructure management. While Britain’s railways continue to have one of the best safety records in Europe, the report showed that workforce safety remains a significant challenge.

The report outlined the growing trend in track workers being injured. It reached its highest level in seven years, with 79 workers suffering serious injuries and 1,641 reporting minor injuries. There were also three rail workers deaths in the past year. An increase in the number of signals passed at danger (SPADs) is another worry for the industry.

A recent report by the Rail Standards and Safety Board (RSSB) found that the number of SPADs rose by

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17 per cent during 2013-14, with 293 reported incidents, compared with 250 in 2012-13. At the end of the 2013-14 the estimated level of risk from SPADs was 73 per cent of the September 2006 baseline, compared with 60 per cent at the end of 2012-13.

The Office of Rail Regulation has approved more than £250 million in funding to improve protection and warning systems for track workers. But what can rail companies do to improve health and safety?

Improving standards as rail travel rises Look into the future and Britain’s railways will become busier and busier, with unprecedented growth expected in both passenger numbers and freight. Network Rail plans to spend £37.5 billion on running and expanding the railways over the five years to 2019. If approved, this investment in new infrastructure will make a real difference by boosting capacity at pinch points on the network and providing 170,000 extra commuter seats at peak times by 2019.

Statistically, the risk of having more accidents is likely to increase. Rail companies need to do more now to ensure they can maintain and improve their health and safety record to cope with this growth. One accident is one too many, and one signal passed at danger is another disaster waiting to happen. And incidents like this have the potential

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz their workers’ skills. Such systems identify currently qualified staff regardless of location and can rapidly build and deploy new teams with the right skills and experience.

These systems also flag up forthcoming assessments or licensing requirements. That is essential to ensure the organisation is compliant with industry regulations.

Developing a health and safety culture

Safe practice in action

to cause crashes and derailments that could lead to serious injuries and deaths. Human error is most often the cause.

Helping change behaviour One of the things rail companies can do is spend more on research into why human error occurs and adopt a safety culture that minimises these risks. They should also improve employee competency and ensure staff comply with regulations at all times. It’s not as simple as just holding a record of employee certificates and licences.

Managers need to be confident that their staff fully understand their role and the latest safety procedures and work within the expected safety guidelines.

Passing a red light is likely to be down to human error.

Rail companies need to understand why a driver made the wrong decision – what made the driver make this decision. It could be an error of judgement, a lack of knowledge or a lapse in concentration. There is also the chance that it was intentional – as can happen on the roads when a driver takes a risk when the traffic lights are changing. Maintaining a consistently competent workforce is crucial to reducing exposure to risk.

All rail companies must have formal competency management systems in place to maintain and assess

Rail companies can also develop a health and safety culture that all employees follow and respect.

Organisational culture not only drives how people behave, but also their attitude towards taking risks. A driver who thinks they have just enough time to get through a red signal may reconsider if they understand the consequences.

Companies must first identify why drivers may be taking dangerous risks and then provide tailored training and targeted intervention to educate drivers, and discourage risky behaviour. Leaving things like this unchecked and not clearly understanding the human behaviour behind the statistics is unlikely to help reverse the trend of passing signals at danger.

A critical part of creating the right culture at work lies in being able to identify and document how people behave in their roles, and their engagement and understanding of the embedded processes. Managers need to understand employees’ likely behaviour, current knowledge and competence, understanding and confidence.

Every employee must be clear about what the company expects from them – how they should behave at work, how they should treat customers and the kind of actions that are acceptable. Companies need to measure this regularly to understand what employees are thinking and how they are acting at work. By measuring people’s level of understanding of their jobs, their likely behaviour in different work scenarios and how confident they are in making decisions, it will soon be clear if there are any gaps.

Using this knowledge, companies can offer more targeted interventions to close the skills gaps and help people to change for the better. It’s about offering encouragement, setting out the right way to do things at work and taking steps to ensure it happens.

New processes alone aren’t enough to improve safety, however. Rail companies also need to know how well employees understand the processes and if they will follow them. Companies must have tools that will measure and assess employee behaviour and risk. Without these tools, it’s difficult to make lasting health and safety improvements.

The only way rail companies can improve their safety record is to adopt a best practice approach to employee assessment, invest in tools which provide transparency and visibility around what individuals know and understand, therefore ensuring staff are competent and unlikely to take unnecessary health and safety risks. Taking these steps will help Britain to meet the safety challenges posed by the increasing popularity of its railways and pre-empt any arising safety issues. zz

Historic light on go.

Some of these lights are still operational on the network

Track workers 2013/14 l

3 rail fatalities

l 79 major injuries – a seven

year high l 1,641 minor injuries l 17 per cent increase in SPADs l Risk of SPADs 73 per cent

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The Etihad Business Studio – with paired reclining seats and flexible privacy screens

Learning from the airlines

I Nigel Lawson, director, Acumen Design Associate

The railways have a way to go if they are truly to compete with the air travel.

NIGEL LAWSON reveals how the airlines have perfected the art of tempting the passenger with offerings in comfort and service they can’t refuse

n October 2014, staff of airline Flybe were questioned by police for leafleting at Exeter St David’s train station in the South West. The airline had recently launched a route to London City airport from Exeter and staff were promoting this at the railway station. This small scale spat exemplifies a wider issue. Where once air and train travel were seen as complementary, they are now also competitive. And shortly, with the development of Crossrail, HS2 and the announcement of HS3, alongside the growth in regional airports across the UK, this trend is likely to continue.

The Airlines’ strength: monetising passengers Airlines have traditionally been very strong at monetising the space in an aircraft. While the majority of the space is allocated to economy travellers, airlines have been very successful at upselling passengers, using the benefit of extra space and enhanced facilities to significantly increase the revenue that they can command from a customer.

Airlines have traditionally offered at least three classes of travel – effectively branding the same product (travel from A to B) with different values to attract different groups of people. More recently many airlines have also bridged the gap between economy class and business with Premium or upgraded economy, offering additional choice to customers and upselling the proposition.

This is something that the rail industry is poor at. Despite the fact that airlines and railways are competing head to head on an increasing number of journeys, railway

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operators have simply not embraced the concept of offering incremental benefits for additional services on the same journey.

First class: limited interest In the rail industry the choice for passengers is first class or standard class. Unsurprisingly, most passengers choose the standard option. In a survey conducted by The Daily Telegraph in 2013, only East Coast railways were prepared to disclose the proportion of first class seats sold: an average of 40 per cent.

This suggests that not only is the railway industry going about the way in which it offers different seats ineffectively, but that resources are being wasted at exactly the same time as overcrowding is blighting standard class carriages.

To resolve this, railway operators need to rethink the experiences that they are offering passengers.

A pathway to upgrade One thing that the airline industry has done effectively is to offer passengers simple ways to spend more. Very broadly a premium economy flight costs around double an economy flight. This, combined with loyalty points that can be used for upgrades, enables airlines to make upgrading to the next class affordable and a treat. Whilst train travel takes a similar approach to the differential in cost, the difference in experience is nothing like as marked as within an airline.

If the railway industry is serious about improving its ability to offer different experiences within the same journey it

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz would do well to consider how the airline industry has achieved this.

First, by providing multiple classes, the airline industry is able to encourage almost any passenger to look at the next most expensive experience. Additionally, the airlines make these experiences desirable. The airlines have taken on board new developments in air travel experience. For example, Acumen worked with BA in the mid-1990s on the development of fully flat beds. Since then these have been rolled out to more and more classes over time.

Thus an experience that used to be exclusive to first class passengers is now commonly incorporated into business class, driving achievable aspiration for passengers.

The challenge for rail operators is to achieve a similar environment: one where there is a genuine reason to upgrade and one that encourages people to take the next step.

The next development for rail operators is to provide modular carriage layouts for different classes of travel.

For example, there may be a first class layout for high net worth individuals, a business class layout for those that wish to get work done. Because, particularly in school holidays, so many families travel, it makes sense to develop family friendly carriages.

The key to this approach is flexibility. Airlines can add additional business class rows in certain aircraft and the rail industry needs to think along the same lines – having the flexibility to change the configuration of a train quickly and easily to suit different times of day and different audiences.

Smart use of space Airlines are incredibly savvy at using space in the most efficient and effective way. They recognise that providing people with more personal space and privacy on a journey has value that can be monetised. Rail operators need to become much more focused on this area. Simple changes, such as clustering two reclining chairs together enable passengers travelling together to enjoy a more private and personal journey.

Flexible privacy screens enable passengers to control their intimacy with others when the suites are shared by strangers. By using techniques common in the airline industry it is possible to generate more paying spaces on a train yet also provide more personal space to each passenger.

Creating an experience Airlines recognise that, while their job is to safely transport their passengers from one place to another, a large number of small but important non essentials make up the customer experience – from the quality of the coffee to the ease of booking. Airlines work incredibly hard on these experiences to build brand loyalty.

Despite an increasing number of long journeys taken on railways, facilities are still generally quite limited in advance of the journey and on-board. Staples of the airline experience (such as reclining seating, at seat refreshments,

Below: Delta’s Cirrus on the 747 – illustrating how angled layout can provide both inherent privacy for outboard passengers and a social-yet-flexible arrangement across centre seats

dedicated lounges, luggage storage and dining options) are all limited, and more recent developments in air travel such as dedicated check in and complimentary travel to and from departure are non-existent. Rail operators are missing opportunities to engage with their customers and deliver an experience rather than a mundane journey.

Even supermarkets are embracing complimentary hot drinks for loyalty programme customers – recognising that anything that makes the experience of shopping more pleasant will drive loyalty and engagement. Rail operators need to be thinking in the same way – is there less value in selling someone a £1.95 cup of coffee rather than giving it away as part of the experience.

Conclusion Rail operators could monetise their space far more effectively by learning the lessons from the airline industry’s cut throat competitive space. Rail operators need to give passengers more choice – from family friendly carriages to luxurious first class suites, through business lounges and beyond. Designing carriages so that they can quickly transform from one need to another is critical here. Details matter: from the complimentary newspaper or coffee to fully reclining seats, the airline industry knows the importance of the experiential journey. Finally never forget the critical non essentials: whilst an airline knows that success constitutes everyone arriving in one piece, it never forgets the importance of the experience in the sky. zz

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m d in Bloo vergroun O l, a tr n Acton Ce

The station garden at Norwood Junction

Working with local communities Sam Russell, stakeholder & community manager at London Overground Rail Operations talks about the challenges, rewards and importance of working closely with the railway’s local communities

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he London Overground links 21 of London’s 33 boroughs and provides an orbital service around the capital, carrying over 455,000 passengers on a typical week day. However it is the reach and variety of these community stakeholders that makes engagement with them not only rewarding but also particularly challenging.

LOROL’s response to this challenge has been to create a community focused strategy that links up staff-led initiatives and existing methods of engagement with our wider corporate social responsibility agenda. This means that as an organisation we have been able to make significant progress in establishing long-term links with the communities that are linked to and interested in the Overground.

Within LOROL, the overall responsibility for external stakeholder engagement sits with the concession director.

But within this directorate, the specific role of stakeholder & community manager enables the business to lead on promoting and developing engagement with our community,

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something that includes LOROL’s direct neighbours, the communities that use or live alongside railway operations, and key groups in the communities we serve such as schools and local societies.

A strategic view of community engagement As an organisation, we are moving towards creating a strategic view of our impact on society and attempting to define the benefit that we bring to our community stakeholders.

Under our Concession Agreement with Transport for London, we are contractually obligated to engage with our community via a Passenger Group – with which we meet every three or four months. Our Passenger Group brings together individuals and rail user groups from across the network to discuss the latest news about LOROL, with a particular emphasis on forthcoming project work and an acknowledgement and discussion about performance issues.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz However, as a business we have always striven to do more. LOROL’s company vision is ‘Developing our railway together, proudly connecting communities around London’, and we are constantly seeking to identify, map and engage with community and rail user groups, as well establishing a pathway to other groups and individuals who also have an interest in the work that we do.

We often identify these other groups through our existing stakeholders, or through events at which LOROL is represented. Once these links are established, we provide these new groups with the opportunity to speak to us about their needs, both informally and through attendance at formal meetings.

A particularly successful approach is to then ask these groups ‘who next?’. Asking this question helps to achieve our ambition of widening our service by using the expertise of these groups to engage at the next level – that includes potential service users who would not otherwise have considered travelling on our services and who will not have heard from us before.

By increasing our body of stakeholders in this way, we are able to gather even more enhanced and accurate information via annual surveying, as well as valuable informal feedback as we speak to people on a day to day basis.

Establishing community links There are a number of specific initiatives across the Overground network where LOROL has established strong community links.

At Forest Hill, the Forest Hill Society has been established by local residents to work in partnership with the station on its garden and to organise a monthly food market. Once every month the station car park is closed and it becomes a produce market.

Here, a key driver has been to position the station firmly at the heart of the community and, according to Quetta Kaye, chair of the Forest Hill Society’s environment committee, it’s certainly achieving this objective: “The gardening project at Forest Hill

The womens project at City Gateway

has certainly added value to the community. Whenever we are working either on the platform planters or in the forecourt, people stop to compliment us and say what a difference it makes to their experience of the train station and their journey, being greeted by such a cheery scene as they pass through.”

And at Acton Central, the station team has partnered with passengers and members of the community to develop a lending library, a book swap system where passengers can borrow books. This scheme has really helped to strengthen links with passengers and is complemented by other initiatives, such as the station Christmas tree which local passengers have helped to decorate, and this includes using their own decorations.

Our staff reaching out to communities Another way that LOROL has been able to actively develop its support for its community is through the creation of the LOROL Charitable Donations Fund. This initiative enables LOROL’s 1100 plus employees to apply for a share of a fund that has recently been extended to £10,000 to support their chosen cause or charity.

To receive a LOROL award from this fund, it is vital that charities and good causes are nominated by employees to demonstrate their personal connection or involvement.

Many of the awards over the last year have gone to local groups and organisations, including hospices, theatre groups, sports teams and children’s clubs with whom staff have developed personal links. A key measure of success for LOROL is the added value that our staff bring to their community.

Another Fo has been rest Hill initiativ e a music festival

harity hildren c ailway C R e th r e fo A chequ

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zz Stations zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Furthermore, as part of our developing strategy, we are looking to support local community schemes and events by organising opportunities for staff, particularly those based at Head Office, to spend some time assisting in the community.

LOROL is also very supportive of staff who volunteer outside of work, and policies are currently under development to allow for some time to be set aside to allow this volunteering to take place.

Creating a positive station environment Of course, a key way that LOROL has been able to make a positive impact on the communities it serves is by creating a positive, safe, secure and welcoming station environment.

There is a rolling programme of works across the network to improve and enhance stations. And according to the results from Transport for London’s latest Customer Satisfaction Survey – where LOROL scored 84 per cent – passengers seem to agree.

A key initiative that ensures LOROL creates and maintains a positive station environment is the annual Overground in Bloom competition which encourages station teams to develop floral displays and gardens, and helps to enhance and showcase station environments.

At Norwood Junction, the station team, in partnership with passengers and local residents, has created a garden at the station. Funding for the project has been secured from a number of sources including LOROL, Network Rail, the British Transport Police and the local council and schools, and groups take part in weekly gardening and planting activities. In fact, the project has grown to become an extremely positive link between a broad range of community groups.

Norwood Junction resident, Alan Oakley, who designs and manages the gardens at this station in partnership with British Transport Police officers, said: “The garden

d Investigation

has clearly improved links between the BTP and the local community. Primary school children have met the police and learned about their role. It’s also been a great opportunity to educate them about railway safety while at the same time giving them the chance to sow seeds, cultivate plants and study the various wildlife habitats found in the garden, as well as paint murals for display on the garden wall.”

Assessing the impact of our work As our community work becomes more established, it is important that we are able to demonstrate a clear methodology behind the work that we do, and show a measurable impact.

To achieve this, the LOROL Executive has developed a very clear view on how society is defined within the context of the service we provide. All community engagement within LOROL is now expected to contribute to the improvement of society through five key outcomes: l Empowering our staff to benefit the wider community l Encouraging economic growth l Behaving and procuring in an ethical and environmentally sound way l Being a good neighbour to our local residents l And working with industry colleagues to deliver a popular, reliable and accessible train service Each of these outcomes has a range of measures attached, and individual directors within LOROL are responsible for their success. This approach will enable us to demonstrate our commitments and priorities now, while also allowing us to review our progress against clear criteria in the future.

The future for community engagement at LOROL LOROL has undergone a huge journey in the past seven years. As passenger numbers and the Overground network continue to grow, it is important we continue to establish and formalise our community links. With a framework in which to do this and a dedicated internal resource to ensure that stakeholders and the wider community can be reached, this is sure to continue and drive levels of partnership and engagement. zz

London Overground Rail Operations Limited

The station garden at Norwood Junction

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l In November 2007 LOROL was awarded a seven year concession to operate the London Overground network l Today over 455,000 people travel on the Overground daily a five-fold increase from November 2007 l The concession has since been extended for another two-years to 2016 l More recently LOROL was selected to operate the West Anglia inner suburban network operating out of Liverpool Street station from May 2015

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Downpipe columns before and after relining The heritage roof at Farringdon station showing the downpipe columns

Drain problem is solved at Farringdon’s heritage station l Opened in 1863, Farringdon Station was originally the eastern terminus of the world’s first underground railway which ran to Paddington Station four miles away. At one time it was even dubbed Farringdon 30 Buckets because of the number of leaks in the roof when it rained.

Today, the site is undergoing extensive construction and refurbishment as it prepares for the 2018 opening of the £15 billion east-west Crossrail line. When the line is running, Farringdon will be one of the busiest underground stations in the world, and London’s largest interchange – linking, Crossrail, London Underground services and Thameslink.

One of the challenges of the project has been to preserve the original look of the Grade II listed heritage station while

updating and future proofing it.

The original station roof, still showing signs of pollution damage caused by smoke and steam from the original steam locomotives, has been extensively refurbished. Engineers were keen to continue using the Victorian cast iron roof supports as rainwater downpipes, to avoid having to install a different system that might conflict with heritage preservation requirements.

Putting theory into practice Inspection of the columns by a CCTV drain camera team from Lanes showed the pipes had no inner liner and had been corroded by the millions of gallons of rainwater that had flowed down them over 150 years. However, they were still structurally sound, and could continue do their job as downpipes carrying

Exciting new art is commissioned for the Tottenham Court Road station extension l Turner Prize-winning artists Douglas Gordon and Richard Wright have been commissioned to create large-scale artworks in the new Tottenham Court Road Crossrail station.

Douglas Gordon’s commission will be installed in the station’s western ticket hall in Dean Street, Soho. A series of three video screens will display images of people to evoke the history, culture and character of Soho. These images collectively form human compositions in a concept known as Exquisite Corpse.

Richard Wright’s commission will see gold-leaf hand-gilded on the vast ceiling above the eastern ticket hall, next to the existing Tottenham Court Road London Underground station. It draws on the lightness and colour of the ticket hall architecture and the rapidly improving public areas around the station. The pattern, which echoes the tile patterns of historic underground stations, will appear to change, fading in and out, depending on the light and viewpoint.

The commissions are lead-funded by Almacantar and the City of London Corporation and co-funded by Derwent London. Both artists are from Glasgow and their proposals were selected by the Crossrail Art Advisory Board in consultation with Gagosian Gallery, station architects Hawkins/Brown and the funders.

rainwater to the below ground drainage systems if they were relined.

Commissioned to reline the roof supports using a technique called cure in place pipe (CIPP) Lanes identified the columns that would form part of the new drainage system.

Working from a scaffold crash deck installed high above the station, they installed a specially designed hopper over the top of each column being relined. A 12m-long liner, impregnated with resin and 4mm thick to give extra strength, was then be attached to the hopper and inverted into the pillar.

The liner was inflated with water, pushing it against the column while the resin was left to cure, or harden. Each of the 12 pillars now houses a tough, smooth, waterproof inner wall which will extend the life of the roof drainage system by 120 years.

Liverpool Lime Street’s £2.4m platform improvement scheme is completed l Liverpool Lime Street station is fully operational again follow a programme of platform improvements undertaken by Murphy & Sons. The £2.4 million project involved resurfacing platforms 1 to 5 with new paving flags, and installing tactile warning flags and platform edge copers to improve passenger safety and modernise the overall platform environment.

The concourse linking the ends of platforms 1 to 6 was also reconstructed.

Solar powered power pods have been installed to reduce the site’s carbon footprint and environmental impact, while a new system of pre-sealing paving stones was used to save time over the traditional drying and grouting methods.

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The installations at Staines station, Middlesex

Improving station accessibility VERNON BARRY takes a look at the handrail options for improving disabled access at train stations

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Vernon Barry is product manager at Kee Safety

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nsuring optimum safety for passengers at train stations is extremely important. With over 11 million people in Great Britain classed as disabled and around a fifth of them reporting difficulties accessing transport (ONS Opinions Survey 2011), the industry is taking steps to improve accessibility at train stations. This is supported by the Equality Act 2010 which states that measures should be put in place to ‘not discriminate against disabled people’, and the Building Regulations which recommend an outside diameter tube size for handrail installations of between 40mm and 45mm.

Recent years have seen the launch of several initiatives aimed at improving access for disabled people. In 2006, the Railways for All strategy was launched and the Access For All funding is being utilised at 150 previously inaccessible stations. £35 million per year of government funding has been allocated through until 2015 to improve access at main line stations with a further £100 million added to the budget enabling the programme to extend to 2019 and work be carried out on even more stations than originally planned.

Safety is, of course, the foremost concern and a correctly installed handrail provides optimum safety for all passengers. There are a number of possible handrailing solutions on the market which satisfy the requirements outlined in the Equality Act 2010, Building Regulations Part M and British Standard BS 8300.

The two main options available are fabricated systems and

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tubular structures, which are assembled using standard tube and fittings. Notably, ease and speed of installation, versatility and abiding to the Equality Act 2010 should all figure and be assessed as part of the strategy and specification process.

Fabricated structures A big difference between the two options is that fabrication involves a lot of preparation. Detailed site surveys are required to enable construction drawings to be prepared.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Once this is completed, sections of the structure are fabricated off-site, before being transported to location and assembled by a skilled installer where further welding is required.

On-site welding is also problematic. Cutting holes breaches the metal’s anti-corrosion properties, which are then further compromised by welding. Corrosion properties can be restored by applying zinc rich paint, however it is likely that this will merely protect the external welded area, while the tube will remain unprotected internally and will corrode over time. This is a major issue, as the corrosion will not be evident until it is too late.

Any repair to a fabricated barrier installation involves cutting out damaged sections and welding in a new one.

The new section will need to be prefabricated off-site, again taking up a lot of unnecessary time.

Tubular Structures In comparison, installing barriers using fittings is much more flexible. At the planning stage, all that is required is a simple layout drawing showing where to place the uprights. With fittings, there are more design options, as they can easily accommodate changes in level or direction, and meet virtually any design requirement.

When it comes to ease and speed of installation, then handrails constructed using standard tubes and fittings are proven to be less expensive than fabricated structures. These structures are installed with a hex tool and tube cutters, and are therefore easily assembled without specialised workers or equipment, saving both time and money. This eliminates the need for any special work permits. No cutting, welding, threading or bolting is required, speeding up the installation process drastically and ensuring the integrity of all coatings is left intact.

These fittings are incredibly versatile and are an ideal retrofit solution. With the range including an add-on offset fitting, a new handrail can to be added onto an existing structure of an appropriate size. With a tubular structure, the challenges of retrofitting a project are kept to a minimum, as once again, no special tools are needed. All that is required is a hex tool and tube cutter, to amend the end of the handrail and then install the add-on fitting to extend the system.

These add-on components also allow a non-compliant system to be upgraded and be in line with the regulations.

To satisfy the ‘not cold to the touch’ and visibility requirements set out in BS 8200: 2005, these galvanised fittings are available with the additional option of powder coating in all RAL colours.

Features and benefits of tube and fitting structures: l Conforms to the regulatory requirements of Building Regulations Part M l Made of galvanised cast iron to BS EN ISO 1461 l Combining 42.4mm handrail with 48.3mm uprights ensures a rigid, sturdy installation l Meets specified loadings up to 1500 N/m l Colour coating ensures a ‘not cold to touch’ finish

Handrails installed at Hayle station in Cornwall l Add-on components allow non-compliant systems to be upgraded l Fitted with KEE KOAT corrosion protected grub screws and THREDKOAT recess protection l Cost effective to install – no welding, threading or bolting required l A flexible system that can accommodate on site variations

Products in practice Kee Access® handrails have been installed in various locations throughout the UK, including London Bridge, Keighley in Yorkshire and Hayle station in Cornwall, to provide access to either the station entrance or the platforms.

Staines railway station in Middlesex also benefitted from the Kee Access range during installation of a new handrail system. Helping to meet the necessary requirements, the new system has been fitted alongside a new access ramp at the entrance to ensure safe and easy access for all passengers using the station.

Installation of the handrail system was part of a renovation programme at the station, which also included an upgrade of the ticket hall with wide automatic doors and step-free access to both platforms. Working together with railway engineering contractor GRAMM Interlink Rail, project architects BPR and Southwest Trains, Kee Safety supplied over 100 metres of safety handrailing alongside the newly installed ramp to ensure improved station access for travellers of all ages and abilities.

Safety remains the driver behind the specification of handrailing and guardrailing. Given the requirements of The Equality Act, all railway stations should aim to have a handrail system installed from which children, the elderly, the disabled and even able-bodied adults can benefit. The challenge is how to meet these needs in a cost-effective way. zz

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Stations

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Entering the jet age The first station installation of a new jet thrust fan system is nearing completion at Birmingham New Street. Railway Strategies reveals the challenges and aims of the project

An artist’s impression of Birmingham New Street station redevelopment

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ver 140,000 passengers use Birmingham New Street station every day, more than double the number it was designed to accommodate when it was built in the 1960s.

The ÂŁ750 million Gateway Project will see the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street station, transforming the experience for passengers and improving links to and through the city centre. It will create a concourse with three and a half times more space for passengers, more accessibility, with brighter and clearer platforms, and a new station exterior.

Before the project started the station was dark, unwelcoming and overcrowded with poor access for passengers. The first section of the new station concourse opened in April 2013 and now work on the old station is nearing completion.

The challenges of smoke clearance As part of the project, engineers at NG Bailey were commissioned to design and install the first jet thrust fan

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system in a UK railway station for Network Rail. The automatic, bespoke 98-jet thrust fan system is designed to aid public escape in the case of a fire, acting as a smoke clearance system, whilst improving air quality and assisting firefighters. This application has never before been used in a UK railway station, but is more commonly employed in underground car parks to reduce CO2 fumes.

The automatic system reduces smoke density and delivers greater control during the event of a fire than any other type of ventilation used in a railway station.

It also performs as a manual smoke clearance once the fire has been extinguished and provides greater control of the airflow across the 12 platforms, which are largely underground, with little ventilation.

The fans have been designed to operate in line with wind direction and are fully integrated and automatic, in line with the fire alarm via the Vesda aspiration system and station call points.

The station staff can use the master control panel located within the station control room to monitor and

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz process. This mock-up allowed NG Bailey to deliver safer and more efficient working, to confirm programme constraints and ensure it met Network Rail’s design criteria. Every night the mechanical plant and fan assemblies were transported on an engineering train, which consisted of open carriages.

The installation is part of a three-year project for NG Bailey that is due to be completed in February 2015, when the final three fans will be installed.

It has consisted of two key phases. Phase 1 focused on pollution control and was completed August 2012. The works started in March and had to be completed tested and commission by June, to enable the existing system to be stripped out and construction works to progress on the new concourse, we also had the added challenge that the Olympic embargo limited our installation opportunity.

For phase 2, NG Bailey continued the installation of the remaining fans and also added fourteen VESDA (aspirated) detection units wired directly to their respective platform fire alarm panels. This section of work is due to be completed in February 2015, with the opening for New Street station and Grand Central Shopping centre planned for September 2015. zz

control the output of the impulse fans.

The system was developed through NG Bailey’s own research and in-depth CFD modelling work. A detailed CFD model was created, supported by velocity studies modelling potential fire/heat and the smoke generated, and presented to various statutory authorities for approval.

One of the main challenges was identifying the best way to suspend the heavy fans from the 1950s concrete block high above the tracks. Due to their age and construction, it was paramount the team did not drill into the beams, so instead they designed a bespoke clamp system.

Installation Given the limited amount of time the engineers have had to install the fans, and the need to minimise the installation costs on the project, the team carried out the majority of its work (including assembly) offsite, at nearby Bordesley sidings.

A life-size mock-up enabled the team to not only test its approach beforehand, but to rehearse and fine-tune the

The NG Bailey Impulse Fan

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Rail Alliance

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Recent new members of the Rail Alliance Advanced Building Composites Ltd Specialist supplier of structural access chamber systems including duct access chambers, drawpits, UTX chambers, cable chambers, jointing chambers and valve/ hydrant and meter chambers.

Tel: 01952 670 087 Email: sales@abc-uk.com Web: www.abc-uk.com

AT Source QX Ltd t/a Protect Hear Supplier of personally moulded earplugs either vented with a 29SNR or solid with a 31SNR. Approved by Network Rail Health & Safety Department for use with all equipment that triggers the 80dB(A) activation level.

Tel: 01507 604 322 Email: enquiries@sourceqx.com Web: www.protecthear.co.uk

CSX Transportation Class 1 North American Rail Road Company.

Tel: (001) 877 835 5279 Web: www.csx.com

Fairways Business Services Ltd Consultancy with over 27 years’ expert experience in the UK electricity supply industry.

Tel: 07891 101 928 Email: fairways.servicesltd@gmail.com Web: www.fairwaysservicesltd.wix.com/ electricalconsultant

Holemasters Demtech Ltd Replacement of broken housings in G44 & G47 sleepers, replacement of rail baseplates Pandrol Vipa, replacement of Vossloh broken screws. Diamond core drilling, specialist demolition, screw piling, repairs to brick structures, stitching and concrete repairs.

Tel: 01253 892 890 Web: www.holemasters.co.uk

Hyde Group Engineering Ltd

SCG Solutions Ltd

Hyde Group is a leading engineering service provider specialising in design and manufacture solutions. Offering a complete range of services from discrete work packages to full turnkey solutions, Hyde is trusted by the world’s most prestigious OEMs and tier one suppliers across multiple engineering sectors.

Tel: 08455 681 900 Email: enquiries@hydegroup.com Web: www.hydegroup.com

Part of the Tinsley Bridge Group of Companies, SCG is a tier one systems integration company specialising in safety critical rail component manufacture and complete packages of equipment for bogie and carriage production.

Tel: 01142 211 111 Email: sales@scgsolutions.co.uk Web: www.scgsolutions.co.uk

J P Forrest & Son Ltd J P Forrest & Son Ltd is a precision engineering company specialising in the manufacture of medium to heavy welded steel fabrications, machining and assembly to customer specific requirements of equipment such as gear cases, housings, mainframes and equipment bodies for a diverse range of industries including mining, steel making, offshore oil and gas, marine, power generation and recycling.

Tel: 01909 472 031 Email: enquiries@jpforrest.com Web: www.jpforrest.com

LAE Vehicle Rental Ltd The largest independent UK owned supplier of mobile welfare vans and units.

Tel: 01695 722 833 Email: info@lae-ltd.com Web: www.welfare2go.co.uk

Power Testing Ltd SME electrical engineering company with over 40 years’ experience in installation, test commissioning and maintenance of electrical infrastructure operating nationally.

Tel: 01245 266 800 Email: info@ powertesting.co.uk Web: www.powertesting.co.uk

SIC Ltd Leading manufacturer of cable assemblies, control boxes and panel wiring. Over 50 years the company has helped to develop over 14,000 product lines for a range of applications into over 24 different sectors.

Tel: 01792 458 777 Email: enquiries@sicltd.com Web: www.sicltd.com

University of Sheffield Department of Mechanical Engineering provides railway research, wheel/rail tribology, rail component design and testing, modelling of wheel and rail damage, condition monitoring, network modelling.

Tel: 01142 229 735 Email: s.vance@sheffield.ac.uk Web: www.sheffield.ac.uk

Whitmore Rail Provider of rail lubricants. Full friction management portfolio of products and lubricants to cover gauge face lubrication, check rail lubrication, top of rail friction modification and wheel flange lubrication for both mainline track and light rail track including privately owned rail track.

Tel: (001) 972 771 1000 Email: sales@whitmores.com Web: www.whitmores.com

For further information, please contact: The Rail Alliance Tel: 01789 720 026 Email: info@railalliance.co.uk Web: www.railalliance.co.uk

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zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Infrastructure zz Public opinion is crucial If we, as a nation, are to embrace infrastructure improvement to achieve growth and prosperity, we have to improve the public perception of infrastructure, argues AMANDA CLACK, senior vice president at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)

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Amanda Clack

nfrastructure is vital to the global competitiveness of any nation and forms a key component of sustainable economic growth. Structures such as bridges, tunnels, ports and airports play a huge role in ensuring that British society functions well, connecting people, businesses and locations.

These trends are particularly pertinent to the country’s railway network. Since the concept of rail travel was initiated here in the 19th century, there has been a virtually non-stop programme to expand and upgrade our railway system, which has revolutionised transport potential for people in all corners of mainland Britain.

Investment in the railways continues to be a big priority. Two years ago, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced a £9.4 billion package to introduce electrification schemes in the Welsh valleys, a new link to Heathrow airport, and a huge expansion project at London Waterloo. Then, in March this year, a further £38 billion was committed to – among other projects – revamp four major city stations, introduce 850 miles of electric track and to transform rail travel across the north of England.

These measures will improve connectivity for people from all walks of life. Yet how aware is the general public on the significant role that rail travel, and wider infrastructure, plays in their everyday lives?

Beginning with the basics Bhavisha Mistry

The term ‘infrastructure’ itself is perhaps quite an intangible one; recent research from RICS shows that over a third (36 per cent) of the people we spoke to could not explain what the word means, and a further 70 per cent were unable to name any ‘infrastructure projects’ in the towns or cities that they live in.

However, around half of those questioned recognised the importance of infrastructure to society.

Frustratingly, announcements regarding investment in infrastructure – and for railway projects in particular – can be met with resistance, often when it comes to compulsory purchase orders being issued to the public for vital land, or the disruption that major works cause.

Recent examples include the outcry over plans for High Speed 2, and even for plans for High Speed 3.

However, issues of this nature go back as far as the great railway pioneer Brunel, who was met with criticism from landowners, track owners and even a parliamentary committee in his quest to build the Great Western Railway.

Today, we celebrate Brunel and his iconic construction projects – and rightly so. His achievements are incredible and demonstrate that when assessing the impact of new infrastructure, it is important to look at the future benefits, weighed up with the impacts on individuals and the environment, in order to ensure the end results are sustainable and advantageous to society.

So what can be done to address the issue? One way we can help is by changing perceptions of infrastructure among the general public to help them access a more balanced view of it.

Achieving a balanced view In order to do this, RICS recently launched a nationwide photography competition. The competition invites members of the public to submit a photograph of a man-made physical structure which benefits society in some way, including roads, bridges, water supply systems, telecommunications and energy generating facilities, such as power stations or renewable sources of energy generation.

Already, we’ve had some fantastic entries which creatively capture the iconic nature of infrastructure – the Forth Rail Bridge in Scotland has been a particular favourite. It’s great to see the imaginative way that people observe the world around them.

While the competition has now closed, it’s important that we use the photos that have been submitted to continue to challenge and improve perceptions of infrastructure. Our plan, once the entries have been judged and finalists shortlisted, is to open a public exhibition so many more people can see the showcase.

This will then provide a platform to stimulate conversation about why infrastructure should be held in higher regard.

The railway sector has some outstanding structures of which it should be very proud, but our mission is to ensure that the rest of the country is proud of them too.

The photographer who submits the winning image in the RICS infrastructure photography competition will be awarded £3,000 in vouchers towards camera equipment, and image will feature in an exhibition in London open to the public. zz For more information visit:

www.rics.org/infrastructurephoto.

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Configuring the future With modern mass transit networks increasingly functioning as a system of systems, Siemens explains some of the complexities that go into their design, integration and optimisation

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oday’s passengers are no different from people who rode on the earliest trains – they simply want to travel from A to B, safely, reliably and comfortably. The railway itself, however, has changed dramatically, with multiple systems now working automatically to set routes, regulate train movements and make decisions about everything from passenger flow to air conditioning.

On London Underground’s Victoria Line, for example, the Siemens Train Supervision System predicts train positions with a 20-minute look-ahead, several times a second. This drives automatic train regulation algorithms that modify train departure times and driving profiles, which are then used by the onboard system to drive the train automatically from station to station. It also generates accurate information displays, giving passengers the opportunity to alter their journeys if necessary.

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The challenges As passenger numbers continue to rise, accurately predicting and managing surges in demand is essential.

For example, at current annual growth rates of six to eight per cent, the West Coast Mainline will be at full capacity by the early 2020s. In recent years, technologies such as Communication Based Train Control (CBTC) for metro systems and European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) for mainline networks have allowed more trains to operate at higher frequencies than was previously possible, significantly boosting line capacity.

Both systems use radio to communicate with trackside equipment, so trains are updated almost instantaneously with information about how far they can safely go and at what speed. London’s Victoria Line now timetables 34 trains per hour (TPH) at peak times, and new suburban railways such as Thameslink and Crossrail

will have 24TPH timetables.

As well as increasing capacity on the railway, there is also an urgent need to address the rising cost and the environmental impact of using fossil fuel for powering rolling stock. To future-proof its network, the UK rail industry is investing £4 billion in a national electrification programme over the next five years as James Goulding, a business development manager at Siemens, explained: “Siemens is a key member of the Rail Electrification Delivery Group (REDG), and as such we are working closely with Network Rail to overcome the challenges of electrification, such as innovating unique designs in switchgear and overhead line engineering that improve productivity.”

Managing expectations Like access to running water, 24/7 power or any other national infrastructure asset, the general public only really notices the railway when something goes wrong. Of course, even a service that combines a state of the art signalling system and high-performance trains is vulnerable to delay if someone gets their umbrella stuck in the train doors!

But, to a generation used to playing games and videos, taking photos and sending emails, all wirelessly and reliably on their mobile phone, the concept of a train not running because of leaves on the line or a signalling failure is difficult to comprehend.

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zz Infrastructure zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz “Dozens of systems need to interact to ensure a smooth journey for the passenger, but at the moment many aren’t connected and don’t share information with each other,” explained William Wilson, Siemens’ director sales and commercial. “We are committed to making this happen more efficiently in the future, so that we optimise the cost of railway operation, reduce carbon impact, increase capacity and make the passenger experience more comfortable.”

With the growing demand for a 24/7 railway, it is no longer acceptable to close railways to upgrade signalling, train control, telecommunications and line management systems. Recent work on London Underground’s Victoria Line proved that migration work to new systems can be efficiently phased over time to ensure the railway keeps running, with the help of detailed systems engineering, flexible equipment and highly skilled staff.

“Our programme of upgrading brown field sites requires manufacturing, designing, installing, testing and commissioning (often at anti-social times such as bank holidays, Christmas or Easter) – in such a way that the transition is seamless for passengers travelling under the control of the old system one week and under the new system the next,” Mr Wilson said.

Towards an integrated system As if the complexity of moving millions of people daily around the rail network was not challenging enough, the underlying business model needs to be sustainable – in every sense. The railway needs to make enough money to cover costs of operation and investment over an extended period of time, while at the same time optimising energy usage and human and infrastructure resources, and reducing environmental impact.

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At MTR’s Kowloon Canton Railway in Hong Kong and the Richmond Airport Line in Vancouver, Invensys Rail integrated CCTV, lifts, escalators, ventilation, power distribution and traction control systems in a small number of multi-headed workstations, reducing operational costs through more efficient use of employees.

Train and station designs are also important factors.

The latest trains maximise space and passenger movement along the length of the train. “Many trains now integrate complex ethernet-based networks of CCTV, passenger alarm, traction and braking systems, air conditioning and ventilation control,” said Maurice Carter, Siemens’ head of engineering operations. “There are clearly benefits in moving towards full integration of systems such as traction, automatic train protection and automatic train operation in trains too.”

Good-quality communication with passengers will become even more safety critical as more trains are implemented to Grade of Automation 4 (that is, with no employees on board, such as Line 1 of Paris Metro and Singapore’s Downtown Line) and so require close integration with CCTV systems.

In conclusion, William Wilson added: “We are continuing to explore ways to design signalling and train control systems, trains, traction and environmental control systems that work effectively together as a whole. In doing so, we are helping deliver reliable, safe, sustainable and integrated systems that encourage people to travel by train. This means passengers can relax and enjoy their journey, not only in normal, everyday operation, but also during the major upgrade projects needed to create a railway for the twenty first century.” zz

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c2c reshapes commercial team l National Express train operator c2c has made two new appointments as it expands for the new 15-year franchise.

Danielle Agius has joined c2c as head of marketing, and will be focusing on developing and implementing a new ‘digital first’ approach to marketing, and growing the off-peak market. She was previously the customer experience manager at Stagecoach Group, and worked within the Virgin Trains marketing team before that.

Aaron White has been promoted to a new position in the company as c2c’s first B2B manager, and will be responsible for leading the corporate sales and business partnerships across South Essex and East London. Most recently Aaron was responsible for managing c2c’s in-house customer service team and has worked for National Express for 10 years. c2c interim commercial director Ruth Harrison-Wood said: “We are completely reshaping c2c’s commercial team to ensure we are entirely focused on our customer and business needs.”

RBF appoints interim CEO l Abi Smith, currently executive director at the 156-year old railway charity RBF, has been appointed to the post of interim chief executive officer (CEO) as the organisation starts work on a programme of modernisation of its structure and service offering. She will be responsible for managing the development of the change programme, and then driving through the implementation of those changes.

The modernisation programme will incorporate the results of a review of services and support, looking beyond financial aid in the form of grants.

RBF incoming chairman Tim Shoveller believes the changes are essential if the charity is to be relevant to current and former railway employees, and that Abi is the right person to lead the charity to the next stage of its development.

NEWS I Appointments

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Anna Bradley to chair RSSB

New CEO for Thales Group

l Anna Bradley has been appointed nonindustry, non-executive director and chairdesignate for RSSB, taking over from Paul Thomas who retires from the post in March 2015.

After a career in regulation, policy and consumer advocacy across sectors as diverse as legal services and organic food Anna has extensive experience as a non-executive director and chair in public, private and not for profit organisations.

She is chair of Healthwatch England and a member of the Care Quality Commission. Other roles and experience include chairing Southern Water Customer Challenge Group as well as the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.

Anna said: “I am delighted to have been asked to chair RSSB. I think RSSB has a critical role to support the industry in delivering more with less through the harnessing of good practice and innovation, so ensuring that consumers and citizens reap the benefits that a vibrant rail sector can bring.”

l Patrice Caine has been elected chairman and chief executive officer of Thales.

He will oversee the separation of these two key roles, handing over the position of chairman to Henri Proglio, and taking up the mantle of CEO himself.

A graduate of the École Polytechnique and the École des Mines de Paris, Patrice began his career in 1992 with pharmaceutical group Fournier before becoming adviser on mergers, acquisitions and corporate strategy at Charterhouse Bank in London.

From 1995 to 2002 he held a range of positions including special adviser to the Prefect of the Franche- Comté region of France, head of the industrial development and energy division at the French agency DRIRE, and technical advisor to Laurent Fabius, then French Minister for the economy, finance and industry, He joined Thales Group in 2002 and occupied various leadership positions before being appointed senior executive vice-president, chief operating officer and chief performance officer.

MD for new East Coast franchise l David Horne has been appointed managing director of Virgin Trains East Coast which will be responsible for running rail services on the East Coast Mainline from March this year. He takes up the post in January, and will play a leading role in the mobilisation and transition arrangements for the new InterCity East Coast franchise, a joint venture between Stagecoach and Virgin that will run until 31 March 2023.

David, currently managing director of Stagecoach-owned East Midlands Trains, has more than 25 years’ experience in the rail industry, having started his career in 1988 as a ticket office clerk in Cornwall. He has held senior positions within South West Trains and Virgin Trains, and led the successful Stagecoach bid for the East Midlands Trains franchise in 2007, transforming it into the UK’s most punctual long distance service over a five year period.

Crossrail reappoints Terry Morgan l Terry Morgan CBE has been re-appointed non-executive chairman of Crossrail for a further three years from 1 June 2015, and will be seeing the project through to its opening in 2018.

Before joining Crossrail as chairman of the board in June 2009 Terry enjoyed a distinguished career in industry. He came to Crossrail from Tube Lines where he was chief executive. Prior to that, was group managing director, operations, of BAE Systems, having previously occupied the roles of managing director, royal ordnance division, and group HR resources director. Before joining BAE, he was managing director Land Rover.

Terry has an MSc in engineering production & management, and is a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Electrical Engineers. He is non-executive chairman of the Manufacturing Technology Centre and the National Skills Academy for Railway Engineering.

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A busy day at Liverpool Street station

Sound: an infrastructure blind spot?

The quality of ambient and public address sound at our rail stations can significantly alter the behaviour and experience of passengers and staff.

GRAEME HARRISON explains

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hen thinking of a train station or a railway terminal, what is the first idea that pops into your head? Chances are it’s an image rather than a sound. It’s unsurprising really. While many train stations are visually distinctive, most seem to boast exactly the same soundscape – an unappealing, noisy environment. Of course, the roar of a train’s engines hardly helps matters, bringing with it a seemingly uncontrollable din. I’d argue, however, that this merely means more consideration is required in keeping control of noise levels.

To some extent, this blindness (or deafness) to the impact that sound has on us has become even more serious in the modern day. Sound plays a significant, though perhaps unconscious, role when we come to form our perceptions of a place. It can induce stress, evoke feelings of excitement, and even encourage us to relax – and it seems odd that it is often nothing more than an afterthought in too many building designs.

To give a little context, research from the World Health Organisation has found that regular exposure to noise levels of just 50dB is enough to increase blood pressure; and at just 55dB leads to a higher risk of heart attacks.

The average noise level in a busy office can exceed 65dB so it’s a safe bet that most train stations, which can serve thousands of passengers on a daily basis, will be hitting those noise levels.

Sound infrastructure has three key functions within a railway station: primarily and most importantly, in ensuring the safety of passengers. Secondly, systems are there

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to help inform and guide rail-users. Finally, well-being and comfort; sound plays a crucial role in keeping travellers calm and providing a sense of safety in what can be a fairly stressful environment.

Staying safe in emergency situations The evacuation of any building brings its own set of complications and difficulties, but in the case of a railway terminal these issues can be magnified several fold. The process is made more problematic by factors such as the complexity of the site layout, the location of the site (potentially being underground), and the sheer volume of human traffic. Add to this a limited number of exits, which are often kept small for security reasons, issues of crowding, confusion due to unfamiliar settings, and it’s understandable why terminal evacuations are considered difficult at best and dangerous at worst.

The traditional ringing bell solution is completely unsuited Passengers calmly boarding the Cardiff Central train at Paddington station

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz to the setting and more likely to incite anxiety and panic than facilitate a safe or efficient exit. Understanding the role of sound and how it’s used for communication, we’d recommend a voice evacuation system (VES) that allows the station manager to communicate the hazards or concerns clearly, and unambiguously, providing succinct directions on how occupants need to react.

VES can offer step-by-step instructions – which avoid potential panic – ensuring that people have clear directions on how to exit the building or facility via safe and secure routes.

Previously, we commissioned research to explore the public’s attitude to emergency evacuations and the findings were significant. A substantial portion of respondents – 35 per cent – agreed that instructions delivered by an audio voiceover system (instead of alarms or bells) would make them feel calmer. The goal of anyone responsible for evacuations is being able to both calm people down and direct them away from danger.

Perhaps the main benefit of a more sophisticated audio system is that it can provide real-time information to a building’s occupants, guiding them along the safest exit routes. For example, in the case of a railway evacuation, passengers on one platform may need to use the west exits, whilst passengers on alternative platforms may need to be directed towards the east exits. In this instance it is vital to have a system that provides zone management capabilities. Such a system allows location-specific information to be accurately communicated to people in varying areas or zones throughout the train station.

Staying informed A full station evacuation is, thankfully, a rarity. A more commonplace requirement of a railway terminal’s sound infrastructure is to simply inform passengers of the latest travel information – whether that is platform changes, train delays, or even lost children.

However, this regular function can become a challenge for station operators as many fail to invest in a sound system that can communicate intelligibly with passengers.

Attempting to decipher the latest announcement is a phenomenon I think we’ve all experienced.

Admittedly it is not an issue confined to railway stations.

Other public facilities – from bus and airport terminals to supermarkets and shopping centres – seem to have their public address announcements accompanied by squeaks, buzzing, and a generous helping of static.

The only real solution comes from carefully measured investment in sound infrastructure – not simply in buying the lowest-priced equipment or turning the amps up to their maximum levels – and by ensuring the chosen technology works within your environment.

A scheme trialled by Glasgow Airport, in which a generative sound installation piped natural sounds into the departures lounge to enable passengers to relax ahead of their flights, recorded some additional, unexpected results.

As was expected, researchers found that travellers who had consciously heard the generative soundscape admitted to feeling more relaxed. Interestingly, passengers who hadn’t noticed the soundscape also claimed to have felt calmer in the airport environment. Most surprisingly, retailers noticed a rise in sales during the trial, with some periods seeing an increase in passenger spending of 10 per cent.

The Glasgow case study is far from the only example of how sound can have a powerful effect on the local populace. On the other side of the world, in the town of Lancaster, California, the local mayor installed a birdsongbased soundscape along a portion of the downtown area. Reported crime in this area dropped by 15 per cent.

Other organisations including the London Underground have followed this lead and experienced similar gains with several tube stations, including Brixton and Clapham North, noting decreased levels of violence following the introduction of classical music.

Everyday sounds So how far does the potential stretch? It’s clear that taking control of the sound infrastructure at train stations can have a positive effect, avoiding the aggravation of uncontrolled noise and offering tangible benefits such as avoiding panic, calming passengers, and even bumping up retail sales.

What is exciting is that even minor improvements to the sound design within a terminal building can bring about real value for railway operators. With this in mind we must begin to design soundscapes with the same care and attention that is afforded to the visual aesthetics. zz

Graeme Harrison is executive vice president of marketing at Biamp Systems

The new concourse at King’s Cross station

Keep calm and shop Finally, the innovative use of sound in transport facilities has been shown not only to improve passenger behaviour but has also been linked to an upsurge in retail sales.

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Mobility = greater resilience As winter brings the risk of disruption on the railways, CATHAL MCGLOIN, discusses the development of mobile apps to improve infrastructure resilience

Flooding in the Somerset Levels earlier this year

Cathal McGloin is CEO of FeedHenry

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ail network executives are already implementing plans to minimise weather-related disruption to train services. The usual emergency response teams are on standby to remove fallen trees and debris, aided by a fleet of ‘leaf-busting’ trains and pumps to drain flooded areas of track.

With millions of passengers travelling by train in the UK each day, rail infrastructure bosses must frequently review and refine their contingency plans. One strategy that they have recently implemented is the rapid development of bespoke, mission critical mobile applications to support field workers during severe weather periods.

Flood warning app A good example of this was an Incident Flood Warning app that was developed and deployed by a rail infrastructure company in a matter of days to help trackside engineers identify and respond to damage caused by severe flooding that affected large areas of the UK earlier this year.

While the existing emergency response teams are adept at dealing with localised flooding, the storms that battered the UK at the start of 2014 affected large sections of track around the country.

With thousands of miles of track to maintain, it was difficult for rail infrastructure management teams to pinpoint each and every section of track that was affected by flooding, subsidence, or debris blocking the route.

Field workers needed a way to quickly and accurately report incidents so that repairs could be prioritised and

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maintenance teams dispatched in an efficient and timely manner.

The decision was made to develop an app to enable information on the status of the network to be gathered from the field. The app had to be able to run on iPhones, iPads, and iPad Minis, and support business processes through integration with existing backend systems.

Using input from trackside engineers, two mobile apps were built, tested, and pushed out to all field workers within two days.

Fast track development In my work with several transportation organisations to provide a cloud-based mobile application development platform that integrates with existing backend systems, ‘lightweight’ mobile apps are the priority. Cloud-based mobile application development platforms enable rapid development of these nimble mobile apps that filter information so that only relevant data is accessed by the app.

In the VDC Research report Travel, Transportation, and Logistics Gear Up for Mobile App Enablement, commissioned by FeedHenry, analyst Eric Klein reports that: “An enterprise-grade mobile backend service enables devices in the field to connect seamlessly with corporate systems and employ the mobile-specific capabilities that enable new ways of working. For example, using mobile apps to inspect and verify transport equipment and infrastructure, information can be fed back to a central database, transforming maintenance processes and driving productivity improvements. Cloud technologies can dramatically simplify security, storage, and

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz data syncing and support the use of built-in features such as the camera and augmented reality.�

Using a cloud-based mobile application development platform can speed development, and better enables a two-way flow of information between field workers and back office teams, without compromising the security of corporate data stored in the backend systems. Because only a small data set is accessed by the app, this reduces the load on employees’ mobile devices which enables batteries to last longer.

Using the Incident Flood Warning app developed on a cloud-based mobile application development platform, trackside engineers supplied live information on the status of the network enabling the management team to allocate engineering resources where they were needed most. The app also enabled accurate network updates to be passed on to the government, the media, and travelling public affected by floods.

Supporting health and safety In addition to the Incident Flood Warning app, a Close Call Health and Safety app was developed, which enables trackside engineers to report on incidents and potential risks by providing GPS coordinates, capturing images and text descriptions, and then relaying these to central office.

Cloud-based mobile application platforms should enable information to be stored when users are working offline, or in areas of intermittent cellular coverage, such as tunnels.

Consulting the experts

mobile workers within the organisation. Augmented reality applications are being assessed to enable employees to gather more information about assets while they are out in the field. This can help workers to access data on when assets were last repaired, as well as specifications and schematics.

Along with leaf busting trains and emergency response crews, the use of mobile apps has improved the management team’s visibility of the entire rail network status, enabled them to respond quickly to weather events and rapidly pilot employee ideas that improve safety and productivity. Embracing the many aspects of mobile helps to minimise disruption to the network, keeps trains running and improves safety for passengers and employees.

In the VDC Research report, analyst, Eric Klein, stated that the three most important metrics used by the transportation sector to measure mobile app benefits include: reduced operational costs; improved productivity, and more accurate real time tracking. Klein concluded that by adopting a mobile-first strategy, underpinned by an open cloud platform, transport organisations can reduce the time and effort required to develop nimble mobile apps that run on a variety of devices and meet the immediate and evolving needs of their employees and customers.

Adopting a mobile application platform that can support the development of requested mobile apps within forty eight hours has enabled this rail infrastructure organisation to, quite literally, change with the weather. zz

www.feedhenry.com

These apps are only two examples of how a cloud-based mobile application development platform supports rapid development of apps in response to changing travel conditions. Field workers and operational staff were originally consulted to get their ideas on how mobile apps could transform their working day by redefining data capture and on-the-job tasks. This is an important stage in helping to develop a mobile strategy: consult and engage your users at every step of the way. The railway infrastructure organisation has 34,000 experts to call on and more than 600 app ideas were submitted by employees.

Once apps are rolled out, analysing and sharing user feedback is a priority.

Not every app has been a success. However, the rapid development process has enabled the organisation to take an iterative approach by piloting apps in the field with small groups of workers and actively tracking app usage and employee feedback. The right mobile application platform enables the organisation to gather detailed analytics information, which is critical for revising app design or withdrawing unsuccessful apps completely.

Trackside engineer working in the snow

Future developments Following the successful deployment of the mobile application platform, rail network bosses are continuing to expand and enhance the use of mobile apps to other

Track welding

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Transport for London

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Permanent Way

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Westminster, on the District Line

Gearing up for improvement MARK BESWICK, examines some of the latest developments in switchgear technology, such as those currently being implemented on the London Underground, and how they can benefit the UK rail industry

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s the UK’s railways enter their most extensive phase of upgrades since the Victorian era, it’s imperative that the new technology being employed in these projects can withstand the added pressures it will face in the future, and meet demanding ever-changing safety guidelines.

One of the upgrades currently in progress is on the London Underground, which operates around 3.5 million journeys a day, serving a total of 270 stations.

A £2 million contract was available to R&B Switchgear to design and manufacture of a series of LV and MV switchboard panels for the SSR3B project on the District Line.The MV switchboards are the first IEC61850 to be installed into London Underground.

The project commenced in autumn 2013, and is being constructed at a dedicated facility in Greater Manchester.

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zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz In addition to helping boost power system reliability and productivity, intelligent electrical switchgear can reduce peak energy consumption by up to 50 per cent

By incorporating low voltage, intelligent switchboards which deliver superior safety, reliability and performance, operators will be able to ensure safe operation, trusted reliability and optimum performance.

The IEC61850 is a new communication protocol, which was designed to provide a single protocol for a complete substation and implement a common format to describe the substation and facilitate object modelling of data required in the substation.

The new standards will also define the basic services required to transfer data using different communication protocols and allow for interoperability between products from different vendors.

The element of intelligence Intelligent switchboards communicate their status in real-time and automatically alert operational crew of an overload or situation where power failure could occur if not dealt with. Also, if a power failure does occur, serious consideration should be given to incorporating a facility to ‘hot swap’ out the circuit protection, allowing rapid replacement without the need to switch off the whole switchboard.

Being informed in real-time of the status of the electrical network, means that any downtime required for maintenance can be accurately scheduled to fit rail timetables, something that is paramount for providers and engineers.

An intelligent switchboard can also greatly reduce energy costs by providing visibility for optimising loadings, motor operation, trace problems, precise control, identify trends and troubleshoot problems before they result in a costly power loss. In addition to helping boost power system reliability and productivity, intelligent electrical switchgear can reduce peak energy consumption by up to 50 per cent.

This is something which is high on the agenda of Network Rail which has committed to reducing the carbon intensity of its electricity supply by 14 per cent as well as reducing total carbon emissions and investing in energy efficient assets.

It’s not just rail passengers that will benefit from this commitment, the electrification of lines to make train travel cleaner is helping to remove lorries from the UK’s roads as

rail freight is 75 per cent greener than road freight.

This is having an impact on the way switchgear manufacturers are building to save space. With electrical switchrooms taking up valuable space, there is always a premium to be had by operators specifying main electrical distribution switchboards that can reduce the size of these areas.

Where size matters New compact modular, standardised LV boards are designed to accommodate more features with less volume and weight, with specially adapted characteristics such as space-saving drawers which directly connected to the vertical busbar are ideal for rail applications.

This is something that is increasingly important for contractors and suppliers who will need to work with legacy structures and existing infrastructure to upgrade systems and must be taken into consideration when implementing new technology.

It is vital for modern rail services to have electrical switchboards that deliver superior safety, trusted reliability and optimum performance.

Switchboards must also comply with a whole set of requirements linked to increasingly sophisticated and challenging applications and changing international standards, while also offering increased productivity and rapid return on investment.

By ensuring electrical equipment is built to these exacting standards, operators have equipment which significantly reduces the risk of supply loss and decreases maintenance requirements while increasing reliability.

It should also deliver the highest possible level of safety for people and installation, even in the most demanding conditions and have built-in peak reliability both short and long term, guaranteeing availability as well as delivering a constantly superior level of performance with ease and speed of use and maintenance.

As the UK’s entire rail network undergoes the biggest investment since its inception, the upgrades will prove to be a unique test for engineers, contractors and providers.

The upgrades on London Underground will need to accommodate the rapid growth of passenger numbers and deliver the same longevity and performance as the previous systems. zz

Mark Beswick is managing director at R&B Switchgear Group

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vonROLL CASTING

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Keep rolling…

vonRoll casting is one of the most modern and innovative foundry groups in Europe, providing custom-made castings for its clients

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xcelling in the sector of complex, thin-walled castings with many cores, the business is noted for the superior quality and high precision in realising its customer’s demands. The product range, which includes machined and pre-assembled components, is all from one source. “We offer solutions in modern cast iron alloys, such as austempered ductile iron (ADI) and solid solution strengthened ferritic ductile iron with an excellent strength-toughness relation, similar to steel casting, which is essential for permanent quality during the entire lifetime of railway components,” says Danilo Fiato, CEO. Its goals are reflected in the quality of the products that come out of its foundries, the precision of the ancillary services provided and the care it takes of its customers’ needs. The services on offer range from consultation, via the manufacture and full processing of cast components, to meeting logistical deadlines. The business has an industrial history of more than 200 years, and today

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employs approximately 450 employees in two foundries located in Switzerland. With a superlative track record and many years of experience it has grown into the position of a market leader. It is by far, the biggest iron-casting group in the country, and is equally well established in main European markets, directly exporting 65 per cent of its production. With a customer base, that includes global players such as Stadler Rail, Alstom Transport, Bombardier, Siemens and Voith, its components play a vital role in most corners of the railway industry. vonRoll casting has built up its competence in public transport systems and specifically railways based on a strategic decision. Danilo Fiato: “Railway transport is of increasing importance in Europe and worldwide. It replaces aviation in city trips of up to 600 kilometers and, well managed, is the perfect land born transport system in our container time. The new train technologies however need new cast materials and new cast solutions. Our

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Engineering Centre has built up specific know how in high safety parts and their production, especially in cooperation with energy supply and transport industries.

According to our experiences and as a result of the discussions with our clients, we see that material properties like high fracture toughness and fatigue strength are of decisive importance for the quality, reliability, safety and economic operation of new train and railway systems.”

One of the great strengths of vonRoll casting is its symbiotic approach to a project, encouraging participation from customers’ designers. Jointly it progresses the development of highly complex cast components, which has proved successful in resolving even the most exceptional requirements. In the last five years, vonRoll casting has invested more than 35 million euros in its production and engineering capacities.

Danilo Fiato: “It is our strategy to further develop our

technological skills, including 3D-printing, engineering and production. We see interesting new applications and opportunities for both our customers and ourselves and we are convinced that these massively above-average investments, which have been paid out the cash flow of our group, are the base for innovation and technical leadership.”

The expertise within the Engineering Centre is available to customers for all their metallic material casting requirements. Engineers and designers use modern 3D CAD and finite element programs to help find the ideal design solution for all operational demands. Involving the customer in this important developmental and creative solution-finding phase has enabled the business to produce already the prototypes at the highest standards and to start the production in the shortest delays possible. “Our clients appreciate the time winning effect of their co-operation with vonRoll casting,” points out Danilo Fiato. And he continues: “Our success is due to this specific approach of engineered casting and material technology combined with our experience.” Combining the inter-disciplinary skills of its engineers in the Engineering Centre, as well as in the production department, and a focus on the business and development processes of its customers is an approach it refers to as ‘Simultaneous Engineering’. “Besides the knowhow, our Engineering Centre plays a very important role as a development and innovation engine. We simulate mould filling and solidification, and become more and more a development partner for our customers. By applying the finite element method we can find the best solution for our customers’ cast components,” he explains.

Additionally, the business has played an important role in the industry, investing in new materials and their application.

The materials range from cast iron with nodular graphite, and cast iron with lamellar graphite, to special alloys such as SiMo, Ni-Resist and austempered ductile iron. vonRoll casting: “One of our strengths is the development of customised iron casting materials. As an example, we are able to develop the iron material to fulfill and guarantee the properties needed in the customers’ applications – beyond existing iron material standards. This highlights the vonRoll’s values - technological leadership, reliability and success orientation.”

As the business looks ahead to its strategic position over the coming years, Danilo Fiato concludes with a brief insight into its own growth potential: “Our focus is on complex solutions in cast iron and 3D technologies. In this area we will strengthen our position in the European market, but also develop new markets such as Canada, the US and Russia. We are optimistic that the expected internal growth rate of five per cent per annum will be achieved.

Furthermore, we are also open for acquisitions, however it is important to note that growth is not a value per se.

We want to remain independent from bank financing and it is crucial to also build up enough qualified management capacities.” zz

www.vonroll-casting.ch

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Craig & Derricott

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Rail approved LED tubes

Switched on

Component supplier to both rolling stock and infrastructure sectors within the rail industry Craig & Derricott continues with its drive to introduce its innovative LED tubes into the refurbishment market

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ith a history of operating in the UK rail industry dating back over 60 years, Craig & Derricott has developed a strong reputation as a manufacturer and supplier of switch gear.

Predominantly involved within the rolling stock sector, the company has worked with blue chip organisations such as Bombardier, Hitachi and Alstom on new build and refurbishment projects as well as the design of new components.

Previously featured in Railway Strategies in March 2014, business development manager Jon Beaumont discussed the company’s activities. “We offer a wide range of very bespoke equipment from the overhaul and new construction of drum switch un-couplers to master controls, power break controllers, cab isolation switches and driver key switches. We provide switchgear equipment rated from milliamps right up to 4000 amps.”

Focused on providing high quality bespoke products,

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the company believes working closely with clients is key to designing and developing components and solutions for issues such as obsolescence which has become increasingly more problematic in the industry. Indeed, although the lifetimes associated with components used in the rail industry can reach up to three decades, the expected level of performance over this time period can only be achieved if products are supported by maintenance programmes and the availability of replacement parts. Furthermore, the rail industry faces the specific challenge of having both old and ultra modern rolling stock and infrastructure in operation. Because these can’t be dealt with in the same way companies must identify all parts potentially affected by obsolescence and evaluate the various means of replacement.

“Throughout 2014 we have been increasingly overhauling and upgrading equipment,” confirms Jon. “We regularly work with Unipart Rail who supply the whole

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz rail industry. We are undertaking a significant programme with them to support the management of obsolete products and equipment upgrading. Furthermore, we provide overhaul services on equipment we have previously manufactured such as drum switch un-couplers, master controllers and power break controllers. We bid on contracts too but really anything that comes up in a C6 and a C4 is of interest to us. We are also in the process of overhauling door opening pushbuttons - another project to overcome obsolescence and to meet PRM TSI.�

Having engaged in a programme of investment and growth over recent years, Craig & Derricott has further enhanced its services and boosted its reputation for engineering expertise, customer service and proven product quality. As part of its on-going growth program Craig & Derricott has signed a contract in July 2014 with Milan based Studio Professionale di Ingegneria Industriale (SPII), a leading component supplier and system integrator for the railway industry and increased its focus on significantly upgrading its product base.

To make this aim a reality, the company has continued to build its R&D department complete with engineers using CAD and 3D modelling specifically for rail projects.

LED Downlighters

Complementing these strengths is the company’s full understanding of market requirements gained through open communication with manufacturers of trains and refurbishment organisations such as Rail Services, Bombardier and Alstom. Additionally, the innovative firm has developed close relationships with ROSCOs and operators as a way to further generate business.

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Craig & Derricott

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A prime example of Craig & Derricott’s ability to respond to market demand is its solution for the refurbishment sector following the government’s decision to make T12 fluorescent lighting obsolete. With T8 tubes due to follow suit the company came up with LED tubes - a new product that can replace existing fluorescent tubes using existing fittings with minimal wiring changes.

The product is not only on the market having successfuliy completed extensive complex trials and met all specifications but is also in the process of being fitted for the first time in a major contract with Bombardier.

Hitachi back wall panel

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Train door actuator

Since it was awarded the £30 million twoyear contract to undertake the enhancement and maintenance of Eversholt Rail’s fleet of Class 365 trains in November 2013, Eversholt Rail Group has chosen Craig & Derricott to replace the fluorescent lighting on the entire fleet with its state-of-the-art LED tube lights.

“The first vehicle should be completed this week and we will also be supplying the door pushbuttons on this project,” says Jon. On top of this game changing project, the company is also working with Bombardier on the £1 billion Crossrail contract and Hitachi with their on-going IEP project which involves Hitachi Rail Europe providing new electric and bi-mode trains on both the Great Western Main Line and the East Coast Main Line.

Moving forward the future looks positive for Craig & Derricott as it continues providing high quality solutions to some of the major railway projects in the UK and as Jon concludes: “Although we do a lot of refurbishment there is a lot of new build activity at the moment; you have Bombardier working on Crossrail and Hitachi working on IEP with whom we are doing a great deal of work currently. The test vehicle is nearly ready on the East Coast Main Line and more vehicles will be following in 2015 and we are working on designs for the Great Western Main Line. We also see potential for growth into Europe following Hitachi’s recent expansion into this area.” zz

www.craigandderricott.co.uk

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semmco

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Side access platform

The train at platform one…

Semmco is the UK manufacturer of access platforms, building innovative concepts that tackle head on the challenges of reaching new heights in the construction and maintenance of a modern sector

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he company began operations in 1993, based in Woking, itself a hub attracting engineering expertise. Employing a workforce of 25, across sales, design and production, the business specialises in the manufacture of access and ground support equipment for the railway and aviation sectors.

Semmco’s position in the access market, utilising a lightweight aluminium construction, was affirmed with the introduction of working at height regulations, which opened up numerous opportunities within the railway sector. “Most of our products have and continue to be evolved through

customer requirements. Although we produce a standard range of equipment, each bespoke solution complements the differing profiles of trains, and also the restrictions within a depot,” says Stuart McOnie, managing director.

The rail sector continues to promote an exciting environment for business, with investment from all channels. Through hard work, Semmco has grown its position, educating its audience to the benefits of its offering, as Stuart points out: “It has taken a long time for people to accept our product, which as a customised option comes at a premium, but the quality, reliability and

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Above: Portable roof access platform Above left: Side access/ Driver access platform Left: Fixed steel gantry Below: Front access Platform Facing page: Pit Board

safe access it provides for working on and around trains is becoming more recognised. Across the sector in the last 18 months we have experienced growth of nearly 40 per cent.” This is a statistic reiterated by business development manager Andrew Walling: “Our offering and the benefits compared to competitors products are well understood, and we have brought in new customers as well as grown with our existing customer base.”

From operators such as First Group, East Midlands Trains, C2C and Hitachi, through to depot construction

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companies and large businesses such as Bombardier and Arriva Trains, the range of its clients reflects the bespoke nature of its service capabilities. “R&D is a big driver within our company and we spend well into a six figure sum each year on developing that aspect. We are well respected within the industry for delivering innovative and smart solutions, driven to design products with consideration to multi-function and manoeuvrability, whilst remaining safe, strong, reliable and importantly aesthetically smart,” says Stuart.

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Product choice ranges from standard side access platforms, through to bespoke nose docking replacement duct, front access platforms and bespoke roof access platforms. The aluminium profile of each design, unique to Semmco, is a bolted and plated slotted system that allows for high strength mechanical joints without the requirement of welding. “This eliminates the problems that customers have been experiencing with weld fractures and high maintenance required on competitors equipment. “Our R&D capability allows us to stress and load test throughout the design stage. Each of our platforms has its own CE certificate, and the completely aluminium product boasts long life qualities. Whilst our platforms may have side access capability, they may also be used for front access on a vehicle,” highlights Andrew as the business introduces more solutions to the market such as variable height platforms, which reduce the number of platforms required by the customer. “Although the initial outlay for the client may be greater, the long term advantages are clear,” he adds.

Not only has Semmco brought to the market the variable height, front access platform, which allows for doing all the front end access work on the vehicle, but has also introduced the portable roof access model, providing increased safety for the operator. A third product, offered in the UK is the Peco, a manual access platform, which is both height adjustable and manoeuvrable. The one-man operation, removes the requirement for special training as a result of it not being a powered unit. First ScotRail Ltd, a long-standing customer has benefitted from simple access platforms to large boxing ring roof access platforms. “We have also been working on construction projects with VolkerFitzpatrick, where we have been highlighted as one of the potential suppliers of access platforms for the new Hitachi depots. We are winning quite a bit of work with our portable access platforms, roof access and bespoke design capabilities,” says Andrew. As new rolling stock is brought in over the coming years in line with new franchise

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agreements, it opens up opportunities for Semmco to supply new equipment to existing and potentially new customers.

To keep up with the growing demand, the workforce also must inevitably grow and the company is actively addressing this in manufacturing and design, as well as expansion of aftersales, service and total care packages, as Stuart expands: “Internal training ingrains the basic principles of engineering, assembly and welding, opening a deeper understanding of the theoretical knowledge as well as developing the practical experience.” Looking forward, Stuart provides an insight into the strategy that has proved its success and will continue to do so: “We run a one, three and a five-year plan, and we have achieved most of the objectives that we set ourselves for this year. We are now in the process of reviewing our objectives for next year, targeting close working relationships with the operators and depot designers.

Through offering an expertise in access solutions in and around the depot we have the capabilities to save everybody money, designing and delivering solutions that are right first time.” zz

www.semmco.com

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Touax Rail LTD

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A logistics showcase As one of Europe’s largest lessors of intermodal railcars, Touax Rail’s growing reputation is second to none

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Louis Pastré business development and marketing director, Touax Rail

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ounded in 1855, Touax has a rich history that can be traced back to when the company began life as Compagnie de Touage de la Basse Seine et de l’Oise, operating as a river transport service on the Seine and Oise rivers. Today the company has grown into a truly global enterprise with a diversified portfolio trading in four areas comprised of shipping containers (600,000 TEUs), modular buildings (three assembly plants), river barges and rail cars. The business ordered its first hopper cars in France during 1954 and over the years Touax Rail has grown its fleet to over 9000 owned and managed rail freight vehicles, serving 70 main clients across five continents. Within Europe Touax Rail works in co-operation with workshops and mobile teams and represents clients in the US through its partnership with Chicago Freight Car Leasing. Furthermore the company is keen to expand its fleet to as many as 10,000 rail cars and to maintain its momentum through a programme of continued diversification of its wagon types.

The company manages its wagons under Vereinigung der Privatgüterwagen-Interessenten (VPI), the German association of parties interested in private freight wagons, which allows it to deliver maintenance such as reprofiling

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and revisions closer to its clients’ operational areas. This greatly reduces transportation costs and downtime.

Furthermore Touax Rail gained ISO 9001 accreditation in 2010 and became one of the first companies to achieve Entity in Charge of Maintenance (ECM) certification during December 2011. As such the company’s technical know-how in the field of technical management and maintenance of railcars has seen it contracted to manage the ECM services of a large intermodal fleet of over 1100 wagons over the course of three years. Additionally it has undertaken further projects to supply a large number of coal wagons for traffic between the Benelux and Germany, and gained new clients in existing and new countries, including Poland and Turkey. It has also recently opened a central warehouse to deliver the main spare parts to its clients, in addition to secondary stocks spread over Europe, based on main clients’ routes.

Since it was last featured in Railway Strategies during July 2013, Touax Rail has continued to grow its fleet and won contracts that have enabled it to pursue its ambition of an expanded service portfolio. In October 2013 the company announced that it had won a prestigious contract from Volkswagen Logistics to deliver a fleet

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Touax Rail LTD

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ELH As a very experienced manufacturer, ELH has the capabilities and technology needed for the development and production of special and track friendly bogies for freight and passenger wagons.

The company creates a wide range of products in a variety of options, such as the RC25NT family, which includes the RC25NT-D (with brake discs), the RC25NT-C (with compact brake) and the RC25NT-K (composite brake blocks).

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of 300 high-capacity sliding-wall wagons. The twin-axle wagons were required to have minimum internal height of 3000 mm to enable the transport of mesh box pallets (CKD) and were constructed by Greenbrier Europe at its Świdnica plant in Poland. The manufacturer was able to prove its experience in sliding wall wagons and ensured a close and successful co-operation thanks to a strong commitment

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from the top management, sales and R&D departments.

The first prototype was received in March 2014 with a second following shortly thereafter. During InnoTrans 2014 Greenbrier symbolically presented a prototype Wagon to Touax Rail, where the company triumphantly showcased the prototypes.

Following successful trials of the prototypes, EBA certification and others, Touax has begun the process of delivering the new fleet to Volkswagen, with the first new cars set to arrive in November 2014. “The partnership with Volkswagen coincides with our marketing strategy to lease more wagons to industrial clients, who are interested in profitable and long term agreements,” said Louis Pastré, business development & marketing director.

“Touax is proud to be a partner for inbound logistics, as for many years we have been actively involved in the outbound logistics, transporting new cars on laaers wagons.” Touax Rail was already renting four axle Ha wagons on the market, but was looking for additional optimised sliding wall wagons. The company plans to continue to invest in his segment, offering new wagons for light or heavy cargo.

During July 2013 Louis commented that rail would continue to grow as a vital link in Europe’s supply chain: “Rail market share versus road will increase regularly in Europe. In addition, the European fleet is getting older and needs a strong replacement programme over the coming years. Whilst the market needs 10,000 to 20,000 new wagons per year, the last five has seen only 5000 to 7000 produced. Compared to a European fleet that numbers around 700,000 wagons this represents around only one per cent. This is a structural under-investment trend that should end soon. So far the market remains under full production capacity but is improving, helped by regular replacement of tank wagons as well.”

Indeed the continued success of the company in winning tenders for such significant contracts such as its recent success with Volkswagen would seem to suggest that the future could present a significant opportunity for Touax Rail. Certainly the conditions are right for freight lessors to supply significant added value to clients,

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as Louis elaborates: “These combined parameters will position leasing companies as key partners to accompany this development. Leasing ensures flexibility and low capital expenditure for our clients who need to optimise their organisation, traffic management, and costs. This enables them to focus on their core business of customer service and transportation. In addition, industrial companies are also leasing wagons in order to stay independent from the RUs (railway undertaking) – in the case of lower quality service they keep control of the wagons and simply have to find another solution for the traction.”

Presently Touax Rail is enjoying regular growth throughout Europe despite a challenging market, the US, and is starting in India. “We believe in a continuous recovery of rail business,” said Louis. The group’s wagons are leased on long-term contracts to railways, logistics and industrial clients in intermodal transport and the transport of palletised general cargo. Additionally Touax is the owner of a fleet of wagons transporting mining coal, steel coils and finished vehicles.

Over the next 12 months, Touax intends to offer pocket wagons for the transport of mega trailers and other additional open or covered wagons. Louis added: “Touax Rail offers other solutions like sale & leaseback where clients can prioritise cash allocation while they continue to use the wagons, protecting their market shares/positions.”

Looking further ahead, Louis concluded with Touax’s longer term strategic vision: “Touax Rail expects to

increase its development further in Europe and develop on other continents with internal or external growth, and continue to improve its service level. As such it maintains a wide service base that will support the company for many years to come.” zz

www.touax.com www.touaxrail.com

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V.S. Rail

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Benfleet station

Platform for growth With an extensive track record of delivering £10m infrastructure projects behind them, the duo who bought V.S. Rail a year ago brought a main contractor’s perspective to running a sub-contracting company

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hey knew the best sub-contractors they had worked with delivered on time and on budget and were not harbouring ambitions to become main contractors themselves. Their ambition was to run V.S. Rail as a sub-contracting business that would be a valued partner rather than a potential rival for main contractors. Twelve months down the line, Daniel Jane and Operations Director Jonathan Pounsett, believe this philosophy has been a key driver of the company’s success. Client numbers have increased significantly and turnover has doubled in the 12 months since they bought the business. Daniel Jane is the company’s managing director. “To date, we have undertaken close to 100 platform extensions and rebuilds, along with drainage, fencing, vegetation clearance and the provision of safety critical resources,” he began. “We have established a first class, experienced management team to meet our customer’s requirements and continuously strive to achieve the delivery of an unrivalled service.”

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V.S. Rail’s management team’s aim is to ensure main contractors see a job well done, without surprises, by staff who understand the bigger picture when working on infrastructure projects. The company’s strategic vision is to become a construction and support service sub-contractor of choice, a firm that can be relied upon to meet any challenges that arise during the lifecycle of a project, while always looking for ways to exceed the expectations of their customers.

Founded in 2000, V.S. Rail has developed an impressive blue chip client list. Daniel highlights the reasons: “Our clients include Balfour Beatty Rail, Osborne, B&M McHugh, BAM Nuttall and Raymond Brown. We believe that these contractors value our capabilities and quality of work. We will not compromise on delivery by cutting our prices, which ensures that clients receive projects safely, delivered on time, to budget and to specification.”

V.S. Rail is also keen to back initiatives taken by the

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companies it works for, helping them to achieve their aims and objectives, while also embedding best practice in the company’s own training regime. An example of this is Osborne’s STOPTHink! Program, which is a safety initiative to encourage everyone on site to think about their personal safety and the welfare of their colleagues by working to curb bad habits or complacency. Two of V.S. Rail’s senior management team have enrolled on a two-day STOPTHink! training course to ensure this message is reinforced at V.S. Rail. Company management and workers have also undertaken several courses on service detection and avoidance techniques.

V.S. Rail is Link-Up approved and the board recently signed up to the Utility Strike Avoidance Group.

The company’s new management has been keen to reinvest for the future. It has bought welfare vans for its staff and a new fleet of vehicles. V.S. Rail is also investing in human capital. “We are currently actively recruiting operatives, engineers and site managers to

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V.S. Rail

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Liphook station

help us deliver our increasing workload,” Daniel explained.

“We believe that we need a good core of highly trained individuals to help us develop the next generation.”

The skills that V.S. Rail has accumulated since it was founded have been implemented in a range of projects, as Daniel noted. “V.S. Rail continues to support BAM Nuttall on a variety of projects across the Western Region, and is currently working on several bridge deck replacements around Didcot,” he said.

“We have recently finished the installation of 17 access points for Cleshar on the Network Rail Wessex Region, and supported Raymond Brown on quite an intense programme of upgrading and resurfacing Ashtead Station, undertaking coper renewals in possessions using gantry systems.”

V.S. Rail has also been working with B&M McHugh on several projects and Balfour Beatty Rail on the Crossrail Western Outer Track Infrastructure project. It has also

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secured a place on the Osborne Supply Chain for the Wessex Region. “This is due to our local knowledge and specialist capability of platform works and minor civils. We are also currently working on station improvement works at Upwey and Moreton,” noted Daniel.

From Paddington to Penzance, from Waterloo to Weymouth and from Southampton to Swindon, V.S. Rail has all points of the compass covered in southern and central England. Daniel explained that it is the company’s policy to continue to target its efforts in this area: “The Board believes that there will be a significant level of work in southern England over the coming decade and is looking to further establish V.S. Rail in this area.

We have just moved to a new Head Office just outside Southampton, which will provide a significantly improved operating base on the south coast. This office will be supported by facilities in Exeter and Gloucester to enable us to deliver works in the Network Rail Wessex and Western areas.”

These activities are also supported by V.S. Rail’s recent membership of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association: “This ensures that we help support the civil engineering community and understand what our clients’ employers are looking for,” explained Daniel. “Having these processes and system, audited by Achilles, enables us to work in the rail environment and gives our clients a certain level of confidence in our ability.”

As it enters 2015, V.S. Rail has more development plans in place to continue to evolve its offering to the market. “Over the next five years, V.S. Rail is looking to grow its turnover while remaining operational in a similar

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz area, delivering services to our chosen clients,” Daniel confirmed.

“We also plan to further expand our service while remaining as a sub contractor of choice to our clients. So we are looking to work with a local highways contractor to review challenges of working on remote sites during short outages of the network. We believe that there are lessons to be learnt in both the skill profile of the individuals, but also the methods and techniques of working.”

He concluded with some more predictions for the future: “Network Rail has talked about this Control Period being more about collaboration and maintenance. We have seen the award of various frameworks recently and V.S. Rail has positioned itself to be able to deliver a multitude of maintenance tasks in the civils sector.

We hope that we will be able to continue to develop relationships with our clients and bring about further improvements and efficiencies.

“With increasing passenger numbers using the network, we believe there are further improvements required to stations and platforms in the near future.

We have seen some of these in recent years but there are many more projects left to deliver. Introduction

of composite materials and modular sections further improves efficiencies and reduces costs, enabling more sites to be improved for the same money.

“Projects such as Crossrail 2 and Southern Overhead Electrification bring a further level of security for the market sector in which we operate. This enables us to confidently invest and recruit staff for the future.” zz

www.vsrail.co.uk

Hudsons VS Rail initially sought advice from Hudsons for the hire of cable location equipment, this was quickly converted to purchasing their own equipment. VS Rail chose Cable Detections equipment primarily for their ease of use and the high quality of the data management. Hudsons continue to support VS Rail with a high level of after sales service and training on the effective use of cable locators as well as other services such as construction lasers. Hudsons are proud to support VS Rail.

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ZONEGREEN

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Points Converter

Promoting a safer environment With over 15 years of experience, Zonegreen has developed a market-leading reputation in the field of rail depot protection

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onegreen delivers intelligent technologies that offer protection from the dangerous environments in rail depots and workshops, in a safe and efficient manner. The company operates from its headquarters located in Sheffield, from where it has served some of the rail industry’s most recognised brands within the UK and abroad, including Siemens; Alstom; CAF, New Zealand; Eurostar; Dubai Metro; Kiwi Rail, New Zealand; First Group and Hitachi. “Our customers choose to use Zonegreen systems for many reasons,” says Zonegreen’s technical director, Christian Fletcher. “We are commonly thought of as the industry leaders and as a result are often specified by consultants during the design phase of most modern depots. Our reputation of quality, safety and reliability, combined with our team of expert engineers and transparent pricing maintains our position as market leaders. By developing long-term working relationships with our clients, we ensure our products consistently meet the demands of a rapidly changing industry.”

Zonegreen specialises in the provision of rail depot personnel protection. The company’s Depot Personnel

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Train in depot Protection System (DPPS), offers fundamental advantages to conventional control systems, in particular, reliability, flexibility, expandability and resilience to single point of failure. The DPPS is an off the shelf, proven product, that is based on distributed intelligence control architecture, as aposed to conventional, bespoke programmable control logic (PLC) based control systems.

“Zonegreen provides maintenance depot operators with the tools that they need to protect their most valuable asset; their people,” Christian explains. “The combination of products that Zonegreen offer, mitigate the risks that employees face whilst at work. With recent RSSB statistics demonstrating that maintenance depot workers reported a RIDDOR injury rate of 20 per 1000 workers per annum compared to ten per 1000 track workers per annum, the risks that are present in maintenance depots are very real and often overlooked.”

Indeed the DPPS is currently in operation within the UK and around the world. As a safety critical system that demands the highest level of operational integrity, DPPS has proven its reliability and capability with clients in Europe, Dubai, Australia and New Zealand. Furthermore the DPPS was awarded system integrity level (SIL) one prior to its installation at the prestigious Eurostar Temple Mills Engineering Depot in East London in 2007.

This impressive installation once again highlighted the system’s capability and was the first to demonstrate that it is fully complaint with SIL as defined by IEC61508 and EN50128/50129.

While the DPPS is used to protect depot personnel from the unauthorised movement of trains, Zonegreen’s latest technology, the Points Converter, further safeguards operators through the automated and remote

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Operating REP at depot door Road end control pannels

manipulation of manual hand points, switches and railroad crossings. Powered manual points offer a number of significant advantages including enhanced safety through the mitigation of manual handling injuries and the reduced potential for slips, trips and falls; increased depot efficiency and speeding up of operations by eliminating many stops and starts. The Zonegreen Points Converter is a low cost, expandable system in which routes can be pre-set, re-configured and upgraded at any time, meaning that multiple hand points can be set at the push of a button. In addition the Converter system provides traceability through an event logging system that allows the depot manager to keep a record of the points operation.

“Shunters are very much ‘on the ground’ and working in the thick of the action, the RSSB’s report showed that the rates of shunter fatalities and RIDDORreportable injuries are at a significantly higher level than other workforce groups,” Christian explains. “This demonstrated to us that there was a clear need for safety technology to be put in place to protect these employees and improve their working conditions.

According to figures compiled by the Rail Safety and Standards Board, injuries to drivers and shunters account for almost one third of all accidents in rail yards and depots, with 68 per cent of these resulting in major injuries.”

Zonegreen’s Point Converter attaches directly to the hand point mechanism and moves the switch blade with a hydraulic actuator. Multiple units can be linked and operated from a distance, using a remote handset that enables predefined routes to be programmed in advance. Switch position can then be moved

automatically, allowing a train to reach its desired location without physical intervention and exertion. Furthermore, the radio controller is flexible enough to be hand portable, cab mounted or mounted within the depot, all of which can be managed through a centralised control system via windows PC interface. This offers advanced route planning and on-screen visualisation, which can be used in route select mode to operate several points and crossing simultaneously.

Christian concludes: “With the growing pressures faced by the government to reduce pollution and increase the ease at which people can travel between the power hubs within the UK, rail travel will continue become an ever more popular mode of transport. This will result in an escalation of traffic through rail maintenance depots, intensifying the pressure on the personnel who work there and adding to the risks that they face.

“We believe that the increase in demand will be met with an increase in automation advances in condition based maintenance equipment and further technological advances. In order to keep abreast of the changing risks it is important that we continue to evolve the protection solutions that we offer.”

Improving safety rightly continues to be of paramount importance to the rail industry. Zonegreen’s innovative safety solutions play their role by providing 21st century technology to railways both in the UK and abroad. zz For more information about Point Converter and Zonegreen’s wide range of rail depot safety solutions, please telephone +44 (0)114 230 0822 or visit:

www.zonegreen.co.uk.

Rail Depot

Derailers

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FP McCann

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Concrete evidence FP McCann precast concrete shafts

The combined commitment of developing through acquisitions and organic growth has firmly positioned FP McCann as a key solutions provider, capable of serving the rail industry at home and abroad

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P McCann has a long history of meeting its clients’ needs, having secured and completed a portfolio of award winning projects in the UK and Ireland. Unlike a standard manufacturer, the business manages projects from conception to completion and handover by providing facilities and general management throughout the build programme. Recognised as the UK’s market leader in the manufacture, supply and delivery of precast concrete

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solutions its range is the largest available to the rail sector.

The quality and reliability of FP McCann products and services are the foundation of its success, and by constantly developing and improving its solutions it continuously builds on that position. “Over the last 12 months we have made a number of strategic acquisitions that have enabled us to increase our market share substantially, as well as growing our manufacturing capacity,” begins Stuart Carson, national sales manager for tunnelling, rail and power. In a series of four acquisitions ranging from manufacturing plants of modular platforms to leaders of pre-cast concrete products, the business has successfully increased sales and stock profile, as well as bringing new products to the market.

“These developments have led to us receiving some of our biggest orders to date, such as the refurbishment of London Bridge Station with Costain,” he highlights.

Through a geographical presence that incorporates nine manufacturing sites across the UK, the entire rail industry is able to benefit from the innovative and intelligent approach of the business and its products.

“We maintain a continuous dialogue with the market and

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FP McCann precast concrete solutions railway oversail block

landmark scheme to be involved with, and delivering this on time and to programme whilst co-ordinating the design team, contractors and engineers is a huge feat. Taking the leading role through using new technology, the weight of such a demanding project has been significantly lifted.

Through the use of building information modelling (BIM), in-situ concrete foundations and platform finishes can be designed on a series of standard unit types, which can be adapted across the entire station, minimising the number of different moulds required. “This is the first time we have been involved in BIM in terms of the design,” says Andy.

Incorporating the latest technology is an ever-growing aspect of the business and has helped in eliminating the complications once seen in projects where a spectrum of services seek to use similar passages. Shedding some light on the finer aspects Andy says: “BIM has helped no end in detecting clashes within other services that are tying in with the pre-cast, and the model will very much be something that we will move forward with. This gives the client the potential to incorporate all elements of the project into one model highlighting any issues that could arise, and also ensures we can pinpoint exactly where to manufacture holes and service ducts. We are embracing

this keeps us tuned in to the industry’s needs. From this we are able to develop products that really make a difference, such as the dual platform coper,” points out Stuart. The one piece unit, which consists of a standard coper unit combined with contrasting colour tactile section, saves installation time and avoids the problems associated with joining coping and tactile units; such as trip hazards and freeze/thaw exposure, and ultimately reduced life costs. “Our range extends far beyond the mainstream too, developing products such as the ‘lid lock’, enhancing the cable protection range to eliminate cable theft,” adds Andy Cooper, general manager.

Whilst the majority of FP McCann’s work is within the envelope of the UK, its ambition to provide the finest products to the market has been recognised further afield, securing contracts to supply platform components and copings in a prestigious supply deal to the Middle East on a light railway system in Qatar. The business is supplying Network Rail approved platform copers to two sub-contract construction companies working on different sections of the rail system.

The London Bridge refurbishment project was another

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FP McCann

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FP McCann precast concrete rail troughs platform coping - London Bridge

new technology, and the shift towards this improved method of working as a solutions provider.”

The business has adopted a system that is so well engineered at the early stages, that on site installation has been simplified. Not only does this save time and cost on installation, but more importantly, facilitates the opportunity for clients and contractors to see the product in ‘working’ condition at an early stage, as Andy discusses: “The client can actually come and look at the product even before it leaves the factory, which is a huge advantage, particularly in prestigious works such as London Bridge. From the contractors point of view it promotes a quick and safe installation, checking that it fits together even before it arrives on site.”

A surge in project demand has inevitably led to the development, not just in technology, but of its workforce too, as Stuarts highlights: “We regularly take on apprentices and provide training for new employees.

We see the importance in developing and supporting the local community and talk with the colleges and universities, offering internships in some regions, and this is something we are looking to draught out nationwide.” Functioning as a self-contained business, the design, manufacture and final product are all key aspects of its overall vision, but so too is supply.

Taking note from the joint venture agreements in place between clients and contractors alike, FP McCann has explored the potential of its own joint venture agreement with a distributor, which will promote the capabilities of both companies coming together to serve the rail industry. “We expect to make a formal

Dual Platform coping

Platform coping

announcement before the end of 2014,” indicates Andy.

Through a combination of contractual arrangements and the organic development of its interests, the expectations of a 25 per cent expansion rate appear well calculated. “We are only just scratching the surface in terms promoting the method of working as a solutions provider. We have achieved record sales

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FP McCann

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz this year, and predict the same as more contractors switch over to this process, driven by health and safety, speed of installation and quality of product. Pre-cast concrete interests make up the majority of the turnover and though acquisition, organic growth and investment we will continue to cement our position in the rail sector,� concludes Andy. zz

www.fpmccann.co.uk

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Stadler Rail

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Freedom of movement Stadler Rail Group is a system supplier of customer-specific solutions for rail vehicle construction

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he company has locations in Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Italy, Austria, Belarus, Algeria, the Netherlands and in the US, and across these sites it employs around 6000 people, of which 3000 are based in Switzerland.

Since being established by Ernst Stadler in 1942, Stadler Rail has created an enviable reputation in the rail sector. In order to maintain its leading position, the Group has formulated a strategy that focuses on the regional, suburban and intercity service market segments, the light regional express railway service, and streetcars, and it intends to remain the global number one in the rack railway vehicle market. In order to further cement a solid foundation Stadler Rail has positioned itself as a supplier that complements global rail vehicle builders such as Alstom, Bombardier, and Siemens, and its status as an independent company is an important basic strategic value that clients appreciate.

This business approach will also assist Stadler to operate in a railway vehicle industry that is in a dynamic, highly complex restructuring phase. Companies active in this industry are being acquired, merged or strategically repositioned, or even disappearing from the marketplace.

In such an economic environment, it is crucial for a medium-sized group of companies to ensure that its strategy matches its human and financial resources.

Over the past few years, Stadler has met this goal, even achieving exceptional development despite the negative trend prevailing in the industry.

By focusing on market needs, Stadler was able to foresee what investments in facilities would enable it to offer an expanded range of services. Over the past few years, the company has closed the last existing production

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gaps by selectively expanding into the areas of electrical engineering and bogie (truck) construction.

This means the business is now able to offer complete vehicle concepts, and it can offer customised solutions to railway companies on the basis of modular concepts, which are tailored to their specific needs.

The best-known vehicle series from Stadler Rail Group are the articulated multiple-unit train GTW, the RegioShuttle RS1, the FLIRT and the double-decker multipleunit train KISS in the railway segment, and the Variobahn and the Tango in the tram segment. The Metro is another addition for the commuter rail market. Furthermore, Stadler Rail manufactures metre-gauge trains, passenger carriages and locomotives and is the world’s leading manufacturer of rack-and-pinion rail vehicles.

One of the company’s most recent contracts was for the KISS train variant – in November 2014, it successfully shipped to Moscow the first unit of the 25 doubledecker KISS trains ordered by Russian railway operator Aeroexpress. The contract includes the supply of 25 double-decker KISS trains consisting of 118 coaches, out of which 16 units will be four-car and nine will be six-car vehicles. The Stadler factory in Altenrhein, Switzerland, is producing the first four units, while the remaining 21 are being manufactured in a new Stadler factory, which has been recently constructed on the outskirts of Minsk in Belarus.

The trains are designed to cope with the specific Russian climate, which can range from -50 degrees Celsius to +40 degrees Celsius. The trains have a speed of 160 km/h and have comfortable, bright interiors in two

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz classes (business and economy). The carriages are made from lightweight aluminium, which makes the vehicles much lighter than the traditional steel carriages. The reduced weight means that the train operator can make significant energy savings on everyday services.

Just a month before the KISS train was delivered to Moscow, Stadler had handed over another first – this time the first unit of a FLIRT intercity train, for Hong-Kong based private operator MTR Express for operation in Sweden. This contract was a particular highlight for the business as it managed to produce the train in record time, within only one year, which is exceptionally fast in the railway industry. The first FLIRT of the five-carriage fleet is expected to start commercial operation in March 2015 on the Gothenburg-Stockholm route. The top speed of these trains is 200 km/h, and they have been specifically designed to fulfil the strict requirements of extreme climatic conditions.

In fact, one particular FLIRT model does offer a range of benefits to operators that provide services in severe winter conditions. The pedigree of these trains can be traced back to a contract in 2006, with Finnish company Junakalusto Oy, when the model was developed to fulfil the requirements of severe winters. These were also the

One of the FLIRT trains in Helsinki first broad-gauge vehicles manufactured by Stadler. All Stadler trains now intended for Moscow and Norway are essentially based on the innovations that were included on that first Helsinki FLIRT train.

Such was the success of the 2006 contract with Junakalusto Oy – the first 32 trains have been operating successfully for many years now – that in October 2014

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Stadler Rail

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Tram in Basel The first KISS for Aeroexpress the company ordered another 34 FLIRT trains in a contract worth EUR 200 million, exercising the second option of the contract. Delivery of the first option of nine further FLIRT trains was achieved in November 2014.

The new trains will include insulation that is increased by 50 per cent and windows that are triple-glazed. A heat recovery system has been added to the tried and tested air-conditioning system used in many FLIRTs. The warm air extracted from the passenger compartment is used to preheat the cold, fresh air that is sucked in.

Intercity train for Austrian Westbahn Vienna- Salzburg This results in a substantial energy saving. At the same time, heaters have been fitted in the door areas in order to keep the temperature inside as constant as possible when passengers embark and disembark. The train can achieve speeds of 160 kilometres per hour and will initially be operated using the Finnish EBICAB train control system, although an upgrade to the European Train Control System (ETCS) at a later date is possible.

Peter Spuhler, CEO and owner of Stadler Rail Group, was very proud of this specific vehicle order: “It gives me immense pleasure that the 1000th FLIRT train will travel in Helsinki, because from now on this customer will be operating 75 Stadler trains. The fact that this option has been exercised is evidence that the customer is very happy with the trains that have been in everyday use for five years now. We are proud of our broad-gauge FLIRT with its excellent resistance to severe winters.

This vehicle is a perfect example of how innovative Stadler can be.” zz

www.stadlerrail.com Glas Trösch AG Rail Glas Trösch AG Rail is proud to be supplier in cabin glazing for Stadler Rail AG. Besides outstanding quality and reliability, product innovation plays a significant role for our company. Thanks to our company-owned developmental team, motivated staff and state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, Glas Trösch AG Rail counts as one of the most competent suppliers worldwide in the field of high-end windscreens and cabin glazing for the most important train manufacturers.

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IDOM

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discipline With offices all over the globe, IDOM represents a significant multidisciplinary provider of engineering, architecture and consulting services

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ounded in 1957, IDOM operates as a leading multidisciplinary group that provides engineering, architecture and consulting services. Today the company boasts more than 2500 professionals at work across 34 offices spread over 16 countries across five continents. Furthermore the business is employee owned and as such values and strongly encourages the personal development of its employees. Indeed IDOM nurtures strong relationships with its team, which it considers to be its principle asset in the service of its clients. It is the philosophy of IDOM that its customers are its absolute priority and “raison d’être” and it is for

this reason the continued technological development, introduction of new quality systems and diversification of activities are the tools that the company relies on to deliver the best solution to it clients’ needs.

In over 50 years of operation, IDOM has grown to serve a broad base of clients and industries. Its infrastructure division has developed a particular focus on urban transportation systems and is today present in over 120 countries. Within the UK, IDOM currently manages six offices that provide a local base of operations and intermediary between national and international projects, Javier Quintana as Director of IDOM’s Architectural

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IDOM

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Division in the UK: “IDOM first opened an office in the UK in 2001, with the primary focus on expanding our Architectural Division. Having established ourselves in the UK, we were focused on providing a link to our network of Spanish clients who were expanding themselves also into the UK market. These included clients such as the Embassy of Spain, Spanish Tourist Board, Celsa and Silken Hotels. We also worked in collaborations with some of the prominent UK architects who were developing projects in Spain. Years later IDOM had the chance to build lager and more complex projects such as the T2A and T3IB in Heathrow Airport and other British clients. From the UK IDOM is also operating with Anglo-Saxon markets.

“IDOM has been involved in the railway sector since the 90’s and the railway division in the UK works with a UKbased team scattered throughout the different offices in the country, with professionals with specific expertise and knowledge of the UK rail industry and with the continued support of railway staff from the different offices that IDOM has worldwide.”

IDOM has a wide expertise in the Railway Sector worldwide, delivering multi-disciplinary projects covering the whole lifecycle of them, from feasibility and detailed

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design until test and commissioning. At this point IDOM is involved in the design and construction of railway lines in Chile, Mexico, Spain, Colombia, among others. During 2013 the company also began work on a new metro network for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in collaboration with its client the ArRiyadh Development Authority (ADA). The metro system will comprise six lines covering 180 km with 75 stations and is projected to take five years to complete.

IDOM is in the consortium led by Salini-Impregilo as designers, which were awarded with the Line 3.

“We cover all the different disciplines such as civil works, track and railway systems and architecture. Our figures are over 1000 km of high speed lines designed, 37 km of high speed tunnels, 25 km of high speed viaducts, seven high speed intermodal stations and on site supervision contracts of over 300 km,” says electrical engineer IDOM railway and electrification systems, Carlos Azuaga. “In regards to electrification systems our expertise extends from DC systems for metro, tramways and conventional rail to AC systems in 25kV AC with or without ATF for high speed railway lines.”

Within the UK, IDOM is also part of a £3 million partnership funded by the government to research a more effective design and application of overhead power lines. “This is a competition that is being funded as part of a Future Railway competition managed by RSSB, and in partnership with Network Rail and the Department for Transport,” Carlos explains. “The scope of it is to develop innovative solutions regarding the OLE or Civils to accommodate the new OLE equipment necessary for the National Electrification Programme and avoid the bridge reconstruction on dozens of them. The current issue facing the network is that the British railway lines were the first ones in the world to be built, and due to this the majority of the structures and bridges on the line are historical and listed bridges that were not conceived

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SUGREMIN

to accommodate the new electrical equipment. This is even more the case with the 25kV AC electrification system, which requires big electrical clearances. IDOM is one of the nine companies awarded in this competition, and we are designing and developing an OLE innovative solution which will gain clearance avoiding the bridge reconstruction and keeping intact the historical and listed bridges along the British railway line.”

Furthermore IDOM was a finalist and highly commended in the RIBA international design ideas competition for Aesthetic Overhead Line Structures related to HS2. “IDOM led a consortium with British heritage consultant Alan Baxter Associates and Spanish

manufacturer SEMI,” Carlos reveals. “IDOM’s proposal called the ‘Needle System’ is designed to minimise visual intrusion in environmentally sensitive areas and to complement contemporary cutting-edge design of new HS2 stations. Needle System combines an elegant, slender asymmetric profile with practical, economical and robust detailing. Conceived as a ‘kit of parts’ it uses a generic mast design in 20mm & 30mm steel gauge variants that can be configured respectively for twintrack configurations as a simple cantilever but also for use with multi-track gantry configurations.” zz

www.idom.com

SUGREMIN is a state-ofthe-art railway catenary structures manufacturer.

SUGREMIN has supplied its products to development projects across the globe.

SUGREMIN goes beyond high quality and competitive pricing; SUGREMIN has a special focus on research and design enhancement to maximise client satisfaction and ensure projects are delivered on time and on quality. Over the years, IDOM and SUGREMIN have partnered to provide the best and most competitive designs.

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ADCOMMS

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Real-time developments Incorporating vast experience in mobile communication technology, ADComms is a privately owned company, specialising in end-to-end telecomsbased services

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Mike Hewitt

Jason Pearce

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DComms began its life as part of the AlanDick Group, with the Communications division being formed following Core Communication Services’ purchase of the AlanDick Rail Business in December 2011. The company continued to operate from its purpose-built integration and logistics centre in Scunthorpe, and brought together a new management team with over 50 years of RF and fixed telecommunications experience. All staff and systems were transferred as part of the purchase.

Over the course of its history, ADComms has developed a strong presence within the rail communications market, refining its expertise across a series of high profile projects spearheaded by managing director Jason Pearce. This has included the design of a

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz new leaky feeder infrastructure to support the installation of GSM-R on Network Rail’s Merseyrail Sub-Surface railway upgrade, which played a key role in supporting Network Rail’s nationwide GSM-R roll-out programme.

Today, the company is heavily focused on the digitisation of the rail network within the UK and throughout Europe. Network Rail’s CEO Mark Carne is spearheading a significant drive on digitisation, which will see ADComms working in collaboration to bring Network Rail’s FTNx into operation throughout 2015.

“Network Rail’s new FTNx network is the world-class optical and internet protocol (IP) backbone that it has recently spent around £50 million on building as part of its overall strategy of rail digitisation,” explained Mike Hewitt, head of next generation networks at ADComms. “This is part of a ten to 15 year programme for the digitisation of the UK rail network, which will include the upgrade of the signalling infrastructure to European Train Control System (ETCS) to increase capacity of the network to meet increasing demand for journeys, while also improving reliability.

“In addition, the FTNx core network will support the digital passenger (e-ticketing, improved information availability and broadband connectivity on trains) and the

digital workforce with improved information availability via ORBIS for the engineering workforce.”

ADComms is taking a leading role in transitioning the UK’s legacy network infrastructure. Indeed, Mike was appointed as its head of next generation networks to bring in over 30 years of experience within the telecoms sector. “My remit is to build a strong optical and IP (internet protocol) deployment capability while continuing to forecast industry transitions and identifying what those challenges are going to be to ensure we stay ahead of the curve.”

Mike is already hard at work within ADComms across the company’s Telefonica project on the implementation of FTNx. This allows a huge assortment of equipment to be inter-connected using IP, and as Mike explained, within the

SpliceGroup Europe Actively involved in the Rail Sector for over 20 years, SpliceGroup Europe Ltd has manufactured and supplied fibre termination products. Our focus during the last 10 years has been on the fixed telecom Network (FTN) and the provision of GSMR. Our range of robust, tried and tested products are used extensively throughout the National network and as part of our on-going product development programme, SpliceGroup continue to work closely with Network Rail and their strategic partners in providing, product accepted fibre connectivity solutions within a fast changing environment

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zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz rail environment, it has been realised that a world-class optical backbone has been built and can now be more fully utilised.

“ADComms is supporting Telefonica with deploying Cisco and Infinera equipment across the rail network,” said Mike. “In our capacity, we have enabled the OEM installation teams to operate safely in the rail environment and access the node locations. We’re now working through that final handover process to ensure the quality of the field deployments meets Network Rail’s expectations, guaranteeing that the network is fully functional and meets specification through fault clearance and service validation.

“We are going to be connecting a significant amount of devices across the network as Network Rail goes down the digitisation path of making information more available,” he added. “This ranges from areas such as Wi-Fi on trains to the wider asset management system.”

Digitisation will bring with it a number of benefits, which will both enhance the travel experience for commuters as well as improving rail operators’ ability to manage an efficient service. “As passengers, we expect our mobile devices everywhere. We want them to work

on trains and the solution to this will likely centre around Wi-Fi,” Mike noted.

“Demand for information to devices will be more than we can currently get on traditional mobile networks.

Passengers also now use a number of devices that don’t have 4G connectivity, such as laptops, tablets and media players, and which are dependent on Wi-Fi connections.

We will also aim to get real-time information on the trains so that more journey information can be relayed to the customer.

“From a rail management perspective, when we look at the network and the ability to get more real-time information to staff in the field, they will be using internetenabled devices - this will mean they can get more of the right information where they need it. So there are direct benefits for workers being able to work smarter and safer.

Central Crane Hire Hull Central Crane Hire Hull Ltd is a leading crane hire and logistic company that supply the construction industry. The company has recently started to supply Hiab vehicles to the rail network industry.

The company specialise in short notice out of hours delivery’s to all over the United Kingdom supplying materials to assist our client with the installation of new communication equipment

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ADCOMMS

High Speed 2, there is a big skills shortage forecast.

We are looking towards meeting this additionally.

We have to pay attention to the ‘whole business as usual’ network while ensuring our migration to new technologies is simulataneously supported.

“This is underpinned by a series of ongoing projects and the migration of legacy services onto new networks. It’s clear there is a significant challenge for the industry to have the right skills available and that is where a lot of our focus is going to be.”

With a demonstrated capability within the rail communications market and a growing knowledge base, ADComms’ role is clearly an expanding one within the industry.

Mike concluded: “Our aim is to continue to develop a very strong skills based organisation to support the UK communications industry both across rail, carrier and enterprise space. ADComms is on track to remain a vital link in the implementation of digitisation across the UK.” zz

ADComms www.alandickcomms.com

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Haze Batteries Haze Batteries UK Ltd, have a long, well established relationship with Alan Dick Ltd and wish them every success now and in the future.

“As we move forward into an operational comms network, there will be a modern network carrying all the safety critical services, and supporting that we start getting into the ‘internet of things’ which means there will be devices across the network gathering what everyone is talking about - ‘Big Data’. That data is going to be used to analyse conditions and predict events and ideally be able to get more information remotely, which saves having engineers out trackside in a dangerous environment.”

Given the company’s focus on next generation technology and the way it has positioned itself to ensure can offer the IP and optical skills that are going to be needed in the rail environment, it is no surprise that ADComms is spending a proportion of time making sure its engineers are ready: “We foresee there is going to be significant growth in the network with the digital transition and the need to add new devices to the network, so we are bringing our engineers up to speed,” Mike confirmed.

“A lot of IP and optical engineers come from an enterprise and carrier environment and need to learn what it is like to work within the rail environment, with which they are unfamiliar. So for us the big priority and emphasis is on training and skills to supply the rail industry with the expertise it needs.”

ADComms is also preparing to meet additional challenges. “With the discussions circulating around

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Arriva TrainCare

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On a roll Keen to further integrate itself within the wider Arriva group, leading independent train maintenance company London & North Western Railway Co. Ltd (LNWR) undertook a strategic rebrand in 2014

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ounded in 1993, the company has grown into a wellreputed quality overhaul and maintenance services provider, and has continually expanding its range of skills and services offered to ensure its capabilities in meeting the demands of the rail industry.

In 2008, the company was acquired by its current owner Arriva plc, within which the company operates as an independent stand-alone business. In 2014 the integration process was completed with a strategic rebrand to Arriva TrainCare (ATC). Although Arriva TrainCare was enjoying success under its previous name, the company felt a rebrand would prove beneficial for both existing and potential customers to understand its purpose and vision

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moving forward: “We were acquired by Arriva in 2008, so this is by no means a new acquisition, however the rebrand reinforces the position of the company within the wider Arriva family. It also means we can take greater advantage of synergies and be more demonstrable about

WG Specialist Coatings WG Specialist Coatings offer paint solutions to the rail industry with both works and on-site capability including site/project set up, working closely to meet customer standards and requirements. Our commitment ensures full supplier support, approval and warranty from all coating suppliers in respect to preparation, painting and livery requirements, ensuring a successful and ongoing working partnership with Arriva Traincare.

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what being part of the Arriva DB Group can bring to us as a business,” explains business enablement manager, Russell Fletcher.

Today the business operates from five strategically placed depots nationwide, located at Crewe, Bristol, Eastleigh, Cambridge, and Tyne Yard, near Newcastle, with over 200 dedicated and highly experienced employees and possessing combined workshop facilities with space for more than 70 vehicles.

The main services offered by ATC are comprised of quality overhaul, maintenance and servicing options for passenger rolling stock, locomotives, freight wagons and on-track plant.

“Servicing and light maintenance activities are carried

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out round the clock at our five locations, all of which boast extensive servicing, train presentation and fuelling facilities. Approximately 180 vehicles per night are serviced for key passenger service customers such as Bombardier, Siemens, Arriva Trains Wales and East Midlands Trains. Additionally, a tandem ground wheel lathe at Crewe depot provides our capability to undertake wheel re-profiling, whilst freight vehicle maintenance is also undertaken at several of our depots,” explains Russell.

“We also undertake heavy maintenance and refurbishment work on a wide range of passenger vehicles, and this market segment has been identified as one of the areas for strategic growth within the business.

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zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz These activities are presently undertaken at our Crewe and Bristol depots and are likely to be expanded to other locations in the future. The strategic spread of depots across the UK means that ATC can offer our customers greater and more readily available options in terms of fleet locations, while providing the company with an excellent base of potential future growth and diversification opportunities.”

No stranger to working with leading train operating companies (TOCs), rolling stock leasing companies (ROSCOs) and train manufacturers on these ambitious projects, the company has recently commenced work on two new major contracts at its Bristol and Crewe depots; the former of which involves a C4 exam and the installation of new Auxiliary Power Units on 24 Mark 3 coaching stock vehicles.

“This project is being undertaken on behalf of Chiltern Railways and is progressing well, having completed around 25 per cent of the fleet to date,” confirms Russell.

“Meanwhile, in Crewe, we commenced a contract working with Porterbrook, undertaking a C6 overhaul, full external repaint and interior modifications to a fleet of 74 Class 170 ‘Turbostar’ vehicles.

“Additionally, during 2014 we also completed a comprehensive internal and external refurbishment project

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at Crewe that returned four Mark 3 coaches back into passenger service for Arriva Train Wales that had previously been in storage for a number of years, and completing a busy year for our Heavy Maintenance operations, our team at Bristol completed a classified repair program for Angel Trains on Class 142 vehicles that saw every unit completed on time over the duration of the 12 month programme.”

With the upcoming Persons of Reduced Mobility Technical Specification for Interoperability (PRM TSI) regulations across all transport modes, including heavy and light rail, coming into force in 2020, Russell anticipates further growth for Arriva TrainCare over the upcoming five years: “With regard to the PRM TSI Legislation, there are a lot of rail vehicles operating on the railway today that were built prior to this legislation being introduced and therefore a significant amount of vehicle modification work needs to be done between now and 2020, across the industry in general, in ensuring these vehicles are fit for continued service after the introduction of this legislation.

“In addition to this, we see the market as also very buoyant, with significant activity taking place in both heavy maintenance and interior refresh projects. As such, we are well placed to add to our order book during 2015, and we continue to seek new opportunities and customers. We

expect the next five years to be a very busy time and for customers to be looking for value added solutions from their key suppliers. We are very focused on making sure that we play a major part in helping our customers deliver and we believe that the company’s collaborative, solutions led approach will allow us to provide this,” he concludes. zz

www.arrivatc.com

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Kier Group

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Selby Swing Bridge

A successful connection With roots reaching back as far as 1928, Kier Group has established a reputation as a leading property, residential, construction, and services group

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oday Kier is a multi-billion pound business that continues its track record of delivering prestigious projects for high-profile clients across a spectrum of industries and markets. The company was last featured in Railway Strategies magazine during March 2014 when business development director, Richard Turner discussed Kier’s takeover of May Gurney, which was completed during July 2013 as well as several other aspects of the business. Within the past 12 months May Gurney has been fully integrated into the Kier Group and the addition of May Gurney has grown the Kier Group turnover to around £3 billion, which is a comparable size to Balfour Beatty in the UK. Richard comments: “From a market perspective, where previously May Gurney would bid on jobs valued between £5 million to £10 million, Kier now look at jobs from £5 million to £500 million. Furthermore, with the advent of HS2 we will see packages valued a £1 billion and that is the kind of opportunity we are now targeting as a business.”

Kier is already preparing itself for these significant projects and taking steps to be ready to adhere to the requirements

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anticipated in the future. For example, working on HS2 will require Level 2 Building Information Modelling (BIM) and this will be a Government requirement by 2016. BIM is a tool for generating and managing both visual and physical building data, and Kier is already further advanced than the requirements, standing at BIM Level 3: “This will deliver Mark Carne, the CEO of Network Rail’s vision of a ‘digital railway,” said Richard. “BIM allows for modular off-site construction, reduced delivery time, right first time, as possibly most important, increased safety.”

Indeed, health and safety is a core concern for Kier and the business constantly works to improve workplaces for employees, clients, partners and the public. Part of this is its Safety, Innovation and ‘National Level Crossings Risk Reduction Framework’. “This is now fully on stream, reducing risk every week on our railways, and delivering innovative delivery methods to further reduce cost, and delivery,” highlighted Richard.

Presently Kier is busying itself laying a strong foundation for Network Rail’s Control Period Five (CP5).

The company has won several tenders for high profile and challenging projects that underline Kier’s reputation as a highly trusted construction and services supplier. These include the £8.5 million station improvement scheme at Port Talbot, Wales. Kier was able to win the contract in the face of stiff competition and although its bid was

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Selby Swing Bridge

not the lowest cost submission, it was considered to be the best technical and most innovative solution by a significant margin. In the wake of this success Kier has gone on to win several other contracts for CP5 that embody the company’s ability to tackle even the most technically challenging projects. “We will be delivering a number of jobs in the West of Wales within the Great Western Route Modernisation Programme,” Richard explains. “There are a lot of structures in this area requiring gauge adjustment, some of which will need to be demolished or heightened, and in most cases have parapets added to allow for electrification and Splott Road Bridge in Cardiff will be one of them. Potentially it will be a challenging project – Network Rail has described it as one of the more difficult, but we are ready for it.”

One of Kier’s strengths in this area is its ability to utilise its previous experience on difficult projects – for example, it recently completed the £13m Selby Swing Bridge Strengthening, Painting and Track Replacement development for Network Rail.

The bridge itself is 130 years old and comprises five spans, one of which spans the River Ouse in Selby, North Yorkshire. The project included the reconstruction of three of the spans, steelwork repairs to the other two spans, replacement of the hydraulic system which drives the swing span, replacement of the permanent

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Chesterfield Canal bridge being lifted into position - Part of the GNGE bridges contract

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Great Barton footbridge - October 2014

at the industry over the coming years. Although the way running across the bridge and complete painting of industry’s leading contractors are used to dealing with the bridge using an innovative protective coating called technically demanding projects, the sheer scale of termarust. There were many challenges throughout projects like HS2 and CP5 will place greater demand the entirety of the project most notably, working over on resources and likely drive a spirit of co-operation water, boat movements, timescale, age of the structure, within the rail industry, as Richard elaborates: “This is management of numerous trades and close proximately something that we are increasingly beginning to see to residents. around the country. There is beginning to be more This last point included managing noise, which was demand than supply of certain scarce resources and particularly challenging. Kier mitigated this as much as this requires contractors to work in collaboration. We are possible by using acoustic barriers all around the site. already starting to see this in Wales where framework In the end the refurbishment has meant a reduction in holders are already collaborating to indentify resources noise every time a train passes over the bridge. The new in design and making sure that we don’t overcook some track has created a smoother ride for the trains meaning of the design houses as well as sharing knowledge on a quieter time for not only residents, but passengers on best practice.” board. It has also provided a more reliable service on Part of the Kier strategy is to work in partnership the route. with leading specialist companies like Keltbray. Both Furthermore as part of its aim to get involved with businesses are now in a strong position to play a vital the community, Kier also worked closely with a local role in the UK’s rail network for years to come. zz Primary school. Along with Network Rail it ran a poster design competition and asked the pupils to find the most creative way of getting site safety messages across to residents and visitors in Selby. The lucky pupil at a Barlby Bridge Community Primary School had their artwork publicly displayed on the hoardings around the site. It also held environmental days with pupils and built a new outdoor learning area. This was a complex project, but thanks to Kier’s innovative approach, the bridge was successfully handed back on time after a tight six-week blockade, and within budget.

With the likes of HS2, Crossrail and CP5 on the agenda, the rail industry could be described s e Jane Burges as in a major period of transition, with massive Kier Apprentic ke of York on day Du meeting the investment and technical innovation targeted llege 2014 release at co

www.kier.co.uk

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Nexus’ £389 million regeneration programme is designed to radically improve public transportation in the North East

Tobyn Hughes

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NEXUS

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Cinderella story

exus is the trading name of the Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive (PTE), a public body that plans and provides local public transport in and around the cities of Newcastle and Sunderland, along with the districts of Gateshead, North Tyneside and South Tyneside. Unusually among the six PTEs in England, Nexus directly owns and manages the local light rail network, the Tyne and Wear Metro. Opened in stages from 1980, Metro is the busiest light rail system in the UK outside London, with 38 million passenger journeys a year. The network of 78km has 60 stations and is served by more than 450 train services a day.

Metro passengers make up just under a quarter of all public transport journeys in Tyne and Wear. Nexus sets the service specification and fares on behalf of the seven local councils which make up the new North East Combined Authority (formed in 2014). Trains services and station management is provided on behalf of Nexus by operating concessionaire DB Regio Tyne and Wear Ltd, who secured a seven to nine year contract to operate Metro in April 2010.

The last Director General (DG) of Nexus, Bernard Garner, retired in December 2014 and Tobyn Hughes took the position of Managing Director Transport Operations for the North East Combined Authority, which also incorporates the role of DG. He explained that as well as leading Nexus, the MD has a wider remit to forge greater integration in the delivery of transport services across the Combined Authority area. “This is an exciting time to take on such a role because, away from Metro, we are embarked on the creation of a Quality Contracts Scheme to transform the way bus services are provided,” he noted.

“The North East would be the first area to do this, bringing the benefits of integrated transport similar to that seen in London and many cities in other countries. We are also delivering the North East Smart Ticketing Initiative to rollout smart travel across a huge geographic area.”

The Smart Ticketing Initiative Tobyn referred to is part of phase one of the £389m ‘Metro: all change’ modernisation programme. Phase two, which complements and overlaps with phase one, is now underway and as Tobyn explained, the majority of the

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investment in this phase is in infrastructure including track and track beds, overhead line, structures, cabling, communications and train management systems.

“While Metro itself opened only 35 years ago, it uses infrastructure dating back to the birth of the railways – in fact our oldest alignment was surveyed by Robert Stephenson himself!” he highlighted. “Much of the track we are replacing is around 50 years old and the beds and drainage beneath it up to three times that age. The investment we’re making now will serve North East England for many decades to come.

“We have delivered 25km of new track and trackbeds and the same distance of renewed cable and ducting routes, and overhauled and strengthened more than 20 bridges and tunnels and several thousand metres of embankment. There is also scope to bring older stations up to modern standards of accessibility, including the installation of tactile surfaces, double-height handrails, bench seating and improved wayfinding and passenger information. In addition we will by Spring have replaced 19 escalators most of which were life-expired and almost impossible to source parts for, and six passenger lifts.”

This programme also includes a refurbishment of the train fleet, delivered on behalf of Nexus by DB Regio Tyne and

Wear Ltd through Wabtec in Doncaster, which will be complete in the summer of 2015. The £30m refurbishment brings the fleet up to modern RVAR standards – in fact the early Metrocars were the first rail vehicles in the country to attain this – and deals with serious corrosion. It extends the life of the original fleet into the 2020s, by which time they will be more than 40 years old, while Nexus plans for the procurement of a new fleet.

“Our big priority for the next few years is creating a business case for the new train fleet,” Tobyn added. “It’s clear from the work we’ve done that the heritage and future of Metro is as a sub-regional light rail system, most closely related to the continental ‘S-Bahn’ model, rather than as a tramway as seen in other British cities. This has important implications as we model the size and capacity of a future fleet but also its power source – could we, for example, introduce a fleet at the present 1,500v DC voltage but with the potential to run on 25,000v AC and so extend into new parts of the region’s Network Rail infrastructure? On a network as busy as Metro which is already offering a very high frequency we need to be very confident about the dimensions of the fleet we set out to Balfour Beatty Rail As part of the ‘Metro: all change’ regeneration programme, Balfour Beatty Rail has recently been awarded a contract to undertake switches and crossings (S&C) renewals at two sites on the network at St James and Regent Centre.

Core renewals will take place during 52 hour weekend block closures to limit disruption to passengers. At Regents Centre works include the delivery of an entire renewal to include replacement of geotextile, sleepers and track, together with two crossovers and two sets of points and associated drainage. While the works at St James include an S&C renewal together with associated signalling and telecoms works.

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zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz procure for the four decades ahead, and there is detailed analysis and modelling going into that work now.”

All of these improvements are designed to not only create a better service for passengers but also have a wider effect on the community, as Tobyn highlighted: “Metro is fundamental to the local economy and social life of the region,” he said. “Metro keeps about 15 million car journeys a year off the region’s roads and contributes some 10,000 daily visits to Newcastle city centre which would otherwise not happen, whether that be for work, education or leisure. Our modernisation programme is worth £2.5bn to the region’s economy compared to the consequences of letting Metro decline and fail, when calculated as a benefit-cost ratio. This is fundamental to our business case for on-going investment in the network.

“We can quantify the benefits of modernisation in more

Story Contracting Story Contracting are proud to be supporting Nexus as they deliver their exciting investment plans for the modernisation of the Metro. From our base in the North East we are working closely with Nexus providing on-track plant solutions across their network and delivering track renewals schemes that will greatly enhance the passenger experience. Our comprehensive design and build capability brings innovative solutions, underpinned by collaborative working relationships that add real value for all of our clients.

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direct ways, as the many projects that make up the whole programme have secured and created hundreds of jobs in rail engineering and construction. These are jobs with contractors and extend right through the supply chain but also within Nexus itself. We have set up an internal ‘capital delivery’ team of 60 staff which competes to deliver projects within the programme, and we have had the confidence to take on 30 apprentices over three years knowing they have good prospects of a career with us.

“It’s also important to demonstrate the benefits in terms of reliability – the last five years have seen us replace 25km of track and vastly increase the proportion of the network where rails are fully stressed and laid on modern concrete sleepers and good ballast; we have seen payback through a decrease in rail misalignments and cracks as a result.

“The ticketing and gating programme, substantially completed in 2013, has led to a decline in fraud and consequent increase in revenue, alongside overall passenger growth of around seven per cent in the last year. Metro has always been something of a Cinderella network surviving on a very low cost base among UK railways, but it is now in a healthy position to look to the future.”

The entire Metro: all change programme has of course

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz featured innovation and new technology, not all of which will be obvious to passengers but will be quietly working behind the scenes to improve information flow and recovery from disruptions. For example, Kapsch is delivering a new digital radio communication system, which is moving to delivery through 2015. “This is a really important project for which Kapsch was chosen following an international procurement process,” noted Tobyn. “Because Metro is such a busy system we need the highest quality communications between trains and the Metro Control Centre or the IECC York centre, which covers movements on Network Rail infrastructure through Sunderland.”

Nexus has a local transport remit stretching much wider than rail, but with the Metro, Tobyn highlighted the key priorities for the coming year as the continued successful and efficient delivery of modernisation projects, and the development of a business case for the essential new Metro fleet. Nexus will also be leading on national rail issues for the new North East Combined Authority, which is among the partners in Rail North exploring the potential for devolution of the Northern Rail franchise with the Department for Transport. “We see significant benefits from devolution, an idea which

has inspired and brought together local authorities from Northumberland through Tyne and Wear and the Tees Valley to North Yorkshire in forming a single rail strategy for this huge region,” said Tobyn. “The current structure of local passenger services invites the concept of a North East Business Unit at arms’ length from the wider franchise, which better serves the unique needs of this region, where people are making often much longer journeys by local trains on older and sometimes sub-standard trains, when compared to conurbations along the M62 corridor.”

He concluded: “The programmes Nexus is now embarked upon will shape local transport in North East England for many years to come – securing and improving bus routes by making better use of the profits they make to provide a genuine public service, completing the introduction of smart ticketing and moving forward into contactless payments, and modernising Metro. But of course Metro works best at the heart of an integrated transport environment and what we are seeking to do is integrate the way people buy travel as well as the modes they use.” zz

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Kapsch CarruerCom Kapsch CarrierCom offers Nexus state-of-the art technology components, a cost-effective pricing model, and the ability to deliver the radio network as an end-toend, turnkey solution. The new communications system will provide full coverage of the network in the entire area of Metro operation. TETRA signals are more secure and harder to intercept, which will help Nexus prevent eavesdropping. The system will maximize service availability and the quality of voice communications will improve exceptionally,” says Leindecker (VP Public Transport Kapsch CarrierCom).

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TAYLOR WOODROW

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Nottingham Station south concourse façade

Nottingham Station – Carrington Street façade

Liverpool Street station – new substation north elevation

Sharing L success Having joined the VINCI group in 2008, Taylor Woodrow (TW) has not only developed a stellar reputation within the civil engineering field, but is now taking the lead on an increasing number of projects throughout the rail industry

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ast featured in Railway Strategies in July 2014, TW has spent the subsequent eight months working on several high profile rail projects, and recently won a £33m contract with Network Rail as Fred Garner, Sector Director – rail, explained: “This project is called ‘Filton Four Tracks’ and it involves an increase in rail capacity from two tracks to four between Dr Day’s Junction to Filton Abbey Wood Station in Bristol.

This three-year contract includes the replacement or enhancement of 17 structures along the 15km route, including four bridge reconstructions for electrification clearance and the refurbishment of two stations.”

Already on site for investigations and surveying, the project will benefit from TW’s experience in six different Crossrail schemes, as Fred highlighted: “We have already completed a project at Liverpool Street where in October 2014 we handed over a new substation that powers Liverpool Street’s London Underground (LU) station.

Then in mid-January we handed over the Connaught Tunnel Project, and we finished that four months ahead of schedule, which was a significant milestone.”

In 2015 TW expects to complete the Victoria Dock

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Portal project, and it is working on the Crossrail Old Oak Common Depot for Bombardier. “We are also upgrading the stations between Paddington and Maidenhead, on the Crossrail West Project, for Network Rail,” added Fred.

“Finally, we are involved in one of the most complex jobs we have at the moment, which is Whitechapel station for Crossrail. We are building a station 30 metres below ground around an existing London Overground and LU station, in a very densely populated area, which makes it a real challenge.”

This last project is being undertaken as part of a joint venture with Balfour Beatty and Morgan Sindall.

“We do deliver a fair amount of work through joint ventures,” agreed Fred, “and we look for partners with complimentary skills so that we can deliver good value and the right solution for the client.

“On our two major LU jobs, Tottenham Court Road and Victoria, we are joint venturing with BAM Nuttall and that has worked very well. In fact, we have just had a major achievement at Tottenham Court Road, where we have opened the new Northern Line ticket hall, after four years of work.

“We are looking to build on those joint venture relationships going forward, and using expertise from

other VINCI group companies, particularly with their experience of building the Tours to Bordeaux High Speed Line in France.’’

Whitechapel project Fred mentioned was also runner up in the Most Considerate Site category at the Considerate Constructors’ Scheme National Awards 2014, and this ties into TW’s dedication to not just the local community, but also the wider environment and sustainability as a whole. “We are now planning our annual Sustainability Days, which we hold in April every year,” said Fred. “These are used to reflect on how we have done in the previous year and formulate the plan for the current year. By sustainability we mean safety, respect for environment and economic sustainability, and this event gives us a chance to bring the three aspects together in

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Whitechapel Durward St shaft – temp works Whitechapel East Stair shaft abutment demolition

Hub project. Interestingly this isn’t all about Victorian engineering, for example, at Tottenham Court Road we are restoring some of the Eduardo Paolozzi tiling, which is from the 1970s and 1980s.”

The final area that is also covered by TW’s sustainability umbrella is safety. “The company recognises the priority that Mark Carne at Network Rail is placing on safety and his message ‘that good safety is good business’. We want to make sure we are aligned with that, as it is a vision that we share,” noted Fred.

As TW moves forward into 2015, it already has a number of significant projects underway as well as some on its radar. But in order to be able to deliver all this, the company is keen to recruit and retain the best talent.

“One way we are addressing this is through an initiative that recognises the value that women have in the business,” noted Fred. “We have established an internal support organisation called Women in Taylor Woodrow, and 12 of our most senior female members of staff have just participated in a Women In Leadership training course. We are also organising a lecture at the Institution of Civil Engineers in May, on the theme of inspiring women to get into construction. In engineering and construction the workforce is made up of only about six per cent of women, and we see bringing more women into the business as a significant opportunity to help us prepare for the future.” zz

www.taylorwoodrow.com

one place.”

Reviewing lean projects will be included in this event, and one issue is the design of the Crossrail West projects. “Design is one issue that is at the top of the agenda for us, as we really want to see the scope absolutely nailed down before we go into a design process,” said Fred. “On more than one project we have seen wasted effort when aspects have to be redesigned that probably weren’t captured properly in the first place.

I think that stakeholder management sounds obvious but still has a major part to play in that.”

Another aspect of sustainability is what Fred refers to as TW’s work on ‘the nation’s heritage’: “We have to make sure that what we are working on is preserved, protected and built into new schemes for the future if that’s suitable,” he said. “We won a National Rail Heritage Award for our work on King’s Cross, and we followed that up with another one this year, for the Nottingham

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TCR new station entrance

TCR Central Line – Paolozzi tiling to be retained and refurbished

zzzzzzzzzzz NEWS I Conferences & Exhibitions zz Forthcoming Conferences and Exhibitions This listing represents a selection of the events about which we have been notified. It is strongly recommended that direct contact should be made with the individual organiser responsible for each event before booking places or making travel and accommodation reservations. Cancellations and other last-minute alterations are liable to occur. The editor and publishers of RAILWAY STRATEGIES are not responsible for any loss or inconvenience suffered by readers in connection with this guide to events.

9 February UK Air-Rail Update 2015 DLA Piper, London Organiser: Waterfront Conference Company Tel: 0207 067 1597 Email: conference@thewaterfront.co.uk Web: www.waterfrontconferencecompany.com 9-11 March Metrorail Europe 2015 Olympia, London Organiser: Terrapinn Tel: 0207 092 1125 Email: philip.kwok@terrapinn.com Web: www.terrapinn.com/conference/metrorail 17-18 March Middle East Rail Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre Organiser: Terrapinn Tel: +971 4440 2500 Email: enquiry.me@terrapinn.com Web: www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/ middle-east-rail 17-19 March Rail-Tech 2015 Utrecht Organiser: Europoint Conferences & Exhibitions Tel: +31 (0)30 698 1800 Email: info@rail-tech.com Web: www.rail-tech.com

18 March The Future of Rail Signalling: Transition to ERTMS Stephenson Harwood, London Organiser: Waterfront Conference Company Tel: 0207 067 1597 Email: conference@thewaterfront.co.uk Web: www.waterfrontconferencecompany.com/ conferences/rail/events/rail-signalling-ertms

14-16 April World Travel Catering & Onboard Services EXPO Hamburg Messe, Germany Organiser: Reed Exhibitions Tel: 0208 910 7132 Email: daniel.kazimierczak@reedexpo.co.uk Web: www.worldtravelcateringexpo.co

24-26 March Intermodal Asia 2015 Shanghai World Expo Centre Organiser: Informa Exhibitions Tel: 02075 519 309 Web: www.intermodal-asia.com/

12-14 May Railtex 2015 NEC, Birmingham Organiser: Mack Brooks Exhibitions Tel: 01727 814 400 Email: railtex@mackbrooks.co.uk Web: www.railtex.co.uk

25 March Releasing Capacity on the UK Rail Network Dentons, London Organiser: Waterfront Conference Company Tel: 0207 067 1597 Email: conference@thewaterfront.co.uk Web: www.waterfrontconferencecompany.com

3 June 23rd Annual Rail Freight Group Conference Stephenson Harwood, London Organiser: Waterfront Conference Company Tel: 0207 067 1597 Email: conference@thewaterfront.co.uk Web: www.waterfrontconferencecompany.com

31 March to 1 April AsiaPacificRail 2015 Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre Organiser: Terrapinn Tel: (65) 6322 2720 Email: sophia.ku@terrapinn.com Web: www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/ asia-pacific-rail

15-17 July RailNewcastle Conference Newcastle upon Tyne Organiser: NewRail Tel: 01912 083 976 Email: www.newrail.org/education Web: conferences.ncl.ac.uk/ railnewcastleconference

Institute of Mechanical Engineers Training Courses Technical training for the railway industry A listing of courses currently available from the IMechE (Unless stated otherwise, all courses are in London) 15 April Fleet maintenance - Advanced Understand the issues affecting rail vehicle performance and cost of maintenance

Date: 14 May Vehicle dynamics and vehicle track interaction Understand the dynamics of railway vehicles to improve safety, comfort and asset life

25 March Traction and braking Principles of traction and braking for railway engineers

16 April Train structural integrity Structural integrity, fire and crashworthiness systems found on today’s rail fleets

Date: 18-22 May Introduction to railway signalling technologies An overview of railway control systems, subsystems and technologies used on UK main line and metro railways

26 March Train communication and auxiliary systems New and existing systems in use on today’s rolling stock fleet

12 May Train control and safety systems Learn of the systems used on UK fleets that provide safety and train operational control

Downloadable brochure is available at: www.imeche.org/learning-and-development/ courses/railway

14 April Fleet maintenance - Introduction Improve your processes and fleet maintenance processes

13 May Vehicle acceptance and approvals Introduction to acceptance procedures which apply across the rail network

24 March Introduction to rolling stock Provides a basic understanding of the role of traction and rolling stock within the context of railway systems as a whole

For more information, please contact Lucy O’Sullivan, learning and development co-ordinator: Tel: +44 (0)20 7304 6907 Email: training@imeche.org Web: www.imeche.org/learning/courses/railway

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