Home Blog Page 234

National Operating Strategy unveiled

When Network Rail took over the national rail infrastructure in 2002, it inherited roughly 800 operational signal boxes deploying a wide range of technologies including lever frames, ‘entrance-exit’ (NX) panels and VDU workstations, built over a long period of railway history. The Stockport lever frames mentioned later in this article were opened in the 1880s!

With the age and reliability of the equipment causing concern, and Network Rail coming under increasing pressure from The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) to reduce both operating costs and delay minutes, and to find yet more paths for an increasingly congested network, the National Operating Strategy (NOS) was devised. This sets out to improve capacity and performance standards, while at the same time cutting the day-to-day cost of running the railway.

Twelve ROCs

Cornerstone of the project is the consolidation of train control to 12 Rail Operating Centres (ROCs) nationally. These will be the existing signalling control centres at Cardiff, Derby, Didcot, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Gillingham and new ones at Basingstoke, Romford, Manchester, Rugby, Three Bridges and York.

Network Rail recently opened the new ROC at Manchester. The Rail Engineer went along to hear Andrew Simmons, Network Rail’s technical director for the National Operating Strategy, explain the developments taking place. Jonathan Harris, London North West (LNW) route output integration engineer, was also present and described the way in which the route is implementing the NOS.

The first new workstation in this ROC, commissioned in July, controls the remodelled and resignalled line between Huyton and Roby on the original Liverpool & Manchester Railway.

This is a phase of the capacity improvement programme on the Chat Moss route to re- instate four running lines between Broad Green and Huyton Junction. Signallers use Siemens Controlguide Westcad MCR workstations to interface with Siemens Westlock interlockings. Automatic route setting (ARS) has not been provided at this stage, although the system is capable of interfacing with it when signaller workload would benefit from its provision.

Adjacent to the signaller’s workstation is the technician’s Westcad monitoring workstation, enabling the signaller to engage quickly with the technician in the event of any unexpected technical issue. A framework contract is in place with Siemens Rail Automation to provide further workstations and interlockings as the ROC progressively takes over more routes.

Over the next 20 years, all of the railway in the north-west of England will be controlled from the ROC, bordered by Crewe to the south, Todmorden in the east, Carlisle in the north and the Welsh border to the west.

An off-line signalling workstation simulator is provided in a separate room for signallers to gain familiarisation of track layouts that they will operate in the ROC. The simulation software is TREsim for Westcad, developed by TRE in conjunction with Siemens Automation to provide support for training and assessment of signallers working at a Westcad workstation. The timetable simulation includes the capability to set up incident scenarios.

Train and electrical too 

In December this year, Network Rail, TransPennine Express and Northern train controllers will relocate into the ROC and work together in the same large open-plan office as the signallers. Traction electrical control is due to be included in 2016. When fully operational, up to 400 staff will work in the centre.
Jonathan Harris was keen to stress that the wellbeing of staff is paramount. A lot of work has gone into making it a pleasant place to work with the best possible facilities including break-out spaces and a gymnasium. Old photographs of heritage railway infrastructure add a link with past railway operations in
the Manchester area. The safety-critical nature of operations within ROCs is always a key consideration with all facilities provided throughout the building.

Morgan Sindall constructed the three-storey steel-framed building built at Ashburys on a brownfield site hitherto used for various industrial activities. A variety of specialist design and construction methods were used including laminated, strengthened glass panels and curtain-wall cladding.

The building is highly insulated, with a ‘green roof’ planted with sedum vegetation to absorb rainwater. Although it has been designed for resilience with blast-proofing, multiple power supplies and 24-hour security, consideration is being given to hand-over for continuity in the event of a high-impact event. It is not technically difficult, given IP-based links, to hook up controls to another building. However, one of the more difficult issues is ensuring suitably qualified staff are available to take over at an alternative location.

West midlands recontrol

LNW has a second ROC at Rugby which is currently under construction. Resignalling and recontrol in the West Midlands is gathering pace – the Walsall PSB (power signal box) closed last year whilst Wolverhampton goes later this year. Birmingham New Street and Saltley PSBs are scheduled for closure within the next three years.

As an interim measure, control is being transferred to the West Midlands Signalling Control Centre at Saltley. Built as a Network Management Centre for Railtrack’s ill-fated West Coast ‘Passenger Upgrade 2’ (PUG2) programme of 140mph running with cab signalling, the robust bomb-proof building is not re-configurable to suit the staffing requirements of a ROC.

Once the whole of the West Midlands hub has been fully recontrolled to Saltley, a business case will be prepared on the basis of the benefits that the ROC and Traffic Management will bring, at which time control will be transferred to Rugby with the Saltley building remaining to house the interlockings.
Physically moving the hardware of existing SSIs (solid state interlockings) from old control centres into a new ROCs incurs significant installation, test and commissioning costs. An alternative solution is the remote interface (RIF) to be installed alongside the SSIs at the old signalling centre, which then communicates with the ROC using a modern protocol that is fully compliant with the CENELEC standards for safety related communications. However, maintaining old buildings to house this equipment also incurs costs and a balance has to be struck.

Signal box to ROC

With nearly 500 signal boxes still left in service today, the migration to ROCs is determined by several factors upon which a business case is made on a route-by-route basis including:

» Remaining life of the signalling asset such as interlocking/panel/comms/ power supplies/cabling/signals/points/level crossings;

» Maintenance costs of keeping old signal boxes in service; » Head count reduction;

» Benefits of introducing traffic management (TM);

» Programme to fit European Train Control System (ETCS); » Introduction of Automatic Train Operation (ATO);

» Advantages of extending a larger area to get bigger performance benefits.

A key benefit of the ROC programme will be the introduction of a traffic management system. For example, with the creation of the Ordsall chord line enabling trains to run direct between Manchester Piccadilly and Victoria, it makes sense for this complex area to be controlled by one centre with
the benefits of TM to regulate what is already a challenge for signallers today, even though not all the signalling infrastructure is life expired. Thus the transfer of control from Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester North Signalling Centres to the ROC will result in significant efficiency gains and is planned for the next five years.

In contrast, the five lever-frames at Stockport and the Manchester South Signalling Centre have many years life left. The regulation of traffic in the Stockport area is unlikely to significantly improve with TM from that which is achievable today. Accordingly these boxes are scheduled for transfer to the ROC with full resignalling to a TM system in the late 2020s.

Another example is Merseyrail where the Sandhills IECC (integrated electronic control centre) and associated SSIs are not life expired and, as it is largely a self-contained suburban railway with limited benefit from TM regulation, the migration is expected to occur in the 2030s.

The locations and number of the ROCs were chosen by taking into account the best fit for efficient management of defined geographical areas of the network, availability of railway owned land, integration of Network Rail route controls with those of the train operators, proximity with the operational railway to facilitate running of cable routes, comms and data links, and places with good public transport and road access for staff.

Traffic management (TM)

Centralising control is nothing new. NX panels controlling large areas were built in the 1960s-80s and were staffed with signallers and ‘area controllers’ sitting at the back whose role was to oversee traffic movement and make strategic regulating decisions. Unfortunately, the full benefit of centralised control was never fully realised as, in the pre-digital age, the various departments involved in running the railway functioned in separate offices with limited inter- departmental communication.

That is about to change significantly. The functionality of the new TM systems will introduce an unprecedented degree of integration between railway departments.

A simple example will illustrate this. In GNER days, York was noted for trains standing at signals outside the station whilst the booked platform was occupied, despite the fact that other suitable platforms were available, thereby incurring unnecessary delay with repercussions of late running and reactionary delays.

GNER stated that it was not policy to make platform alterations as this inconvenienced the passenger, particularly those with heavy luggage. This argument doesn’t really stack up given that the signaller can anticipate such a situation some 20-30 minutes before arrival of a train and arrange for the platform alterations to be displayed in good time.

However, GNER did have a point. Neither Automatic Route Setting nor the signaller are empowered to unilaterally make platform alterations. Such a request has to be put to the Network Rail controller, then the train company controller, then the station dispatch team, and the response fed back the same way to the signaller by which time the train has probably already come to a stand outside!

Decision-making such as this requires data from a variety of sources: will the train fit the alternative platform? does the driver know the road? are the dispatch team resources flexible enough to cope? is disabled assistance needed? is there a catering trolley involved? will this platform be needed for another train which might be then be delayed? and so on.

This is where TM comes in. TM links together a wide range of data associated with managing the timetable, train dispatch, issue of movement authorities, network availability, incidents & delays and service information. It continuously monitors the running of the railway, highlighting the effects of timetable perturbation, and provides options to help minimise delays.

Managing incidents and delays

Whilst a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to ensure that infrastructure and trains are made ever more reliable, and the extent of delays from external causes such as fatalities and the weather is minimised, such primary delays cannot be totally eradicated. In response to these events, the TM system will enable the running of the railway to move away from a ‘reactionary’ or even a ‘non reactionary’ mode to fully proactive decision making. When an unplanned event occurs, TM allows planners to use a series of tools to choose the optimal solution to reduce reactionary delay minutes.

As signallers, technicians, train controllers are all in the same room, easy communication, bearing in mind relevant safety critical communications procedures, means the immediate decisions to re-route a train will be supported by all the relevant stakeholders. Even those not in the room, such as station dispatchers, will have access to the process via tablets/ smartphones. Once the planner has selected the most suitable option the TM will do the rest and instruct the interlocking to set routes according to the revised timetable plan.

When TM is introduced, the signaller’s workstation will become part of the TM pod, replacing the traditional ‘entrance-exit’ route setting interface. TM gives a 20 minute window for the signaller to make assessments before a revised plan kicks in as selected by the planner.

While TM can make immediate judgements to work around issues, it primarily takes a step back into timetable planning and allows the plan to be changed on the basis of a variety of data such as platform occupancy, train- set diagrams, when diesel trains need to be re-fuelled, crew rosters, drivers route knowledge and routes out of service. Algorithms will be developed and refined over time.

The business case and focus for TM is based on reducing reactionary delays by 20%. Additionally TM will help optimise network capacity and improve the accuracy of passenger information.

Wider benefits

Key to achieving the TM business case is its conflict identification and resolution capability. As more ROCs are fitted with TM and linked together, so the benefits spread. For example, the right decision on whether to give priority to an on-time local stopping train and further delay a late-running Penzance-bound cross-country train at York may be taken after viewing the predicted outcomes on the rest of the network. At present, there is a tendency to give priority to trains running on time at the expense of those ‘out of path’ to minimise the visible Schedule 8 penalties.

Network Rail has selected the Thales ARAMIS (Advanced Railway Automation Management and Information System) TM system for installation at the Romford and Cardiff ROCs. Contracts for the national rollout of TM will be subject to future competitions and will involve all traffic management framework holders.

ARAMIS is already in service in other countries including Germany, Austria and Portugal. The system has been evaluated by a team of representatives from Network Rail and the train companies using the London-based Model Office with significant input from other industry stakeholders.The tools that TM presents to the planner can best be illustrated by some of the key screens used by the ARAMIS system. The Line Graph displays the track layout indicating train position, timetable deviation, set routes and planned route while the Train Graph is a real-time graphic function that shows planned, actual and predicted train paths and highlights future conflicts between trains, and between trains and possessions and other critical resources such as train crew.

Returning to earlier comments about platform allocation, the Platform Docker informs the user about actual and predicted arrival and departure times of all trains at a station as well as track usage, interconnection dependencies and conflicts. The Connection Graph shows the actual arrival and departure time of all trains at a platform and the relationship between trains such as between a terminating train and its next duty.

There is also an Incident Management Tool which allows a live view of the status of an incident to be viewed and updated, by those involved in managing the incident.

On-train systems

As well as controlling conventional signals, the ROCs will also interface with the latest and future on-board systems in the driver’s cab. The European Train Control System (ETCS) is one such system which is already being implemented.

The cab display shows movement authorities generated by the TM system via the safety interlocking. Network Rail has successfully simulated Level 3 (moving block) at the ENIF (ETCS National Integration Facility) test site. Capacity is a weakness of main line multiple- aspect signalling.

For example, when faced with yellow aspects, drivers brake the train in anticipation of a red light ahead. However the red may be due to a train ahead doing a station stop. Having made the stop, this train is now accelerating away. Even so, the following train will continue to slow down until the first train clears a signal overlap some distance ahead. Consequently, the gap between the trains has widened considerably.

With ETCS, each train knows exactly where it is and provides this information back to the control centre continuously. Hence ETCS Level 3 will permit trains to close up in a safe manner since there is no longer the constraint imposed by a fixed block system. The technically challenging issues are train integrity and ‘end of train’ position. This topic is currently the subject of research to develop a safe system. The initial East Coast ETCS fitment plan includes an option to fit Level 3 between Drayton Park and Moorgate.

Another train-borne system, Automatic Train Operation (ATO), receives movement authorities from TM via the ETCS system and calculates the optimum speed profile of the train. Already in use on several London Underground lines and the DLR, Network Rail’s first application will be on the Thameslink route by 2018. Siemens Class 700 trains will be fitted with ATO which is ideal for high capacity railways.

To help the driver keep to time, a driver advisory system (DAS) is fed with the working timetable for the train. It then calculates the optimum speed that will ensure the point-to-point timings of the timetable are matched by the performance of the train in a fuel efficient way. However, when connected via the TM system, the speed profile can be adjusted to take account of conditions ahead – availability of a path at a junction, or the platform at the terminus.

The system can also tell the driver when the train needs to reach a junction or station at the right time without having to stop and restart at a red signal, thereby clearing the junction more quickly and also saving fuel. It’s a double win. Connected DAS, which does not require ETCS, is being trialled at Airport Junction this year and will be rolled out to Thameslink and South West trains. All the exciting technological developments described above have tremendous potential to improve the efficiency of the railway and reduce delays in the years to come. Many traditional roles such as signaller and timetable planner may well evolve as the programme develops. Naturally, Network Rail sees staff and stakeholder engagement as vital for the success of the project but there is a great enthusiasm to get on with the programme and realise the benefits.

Thanks go to Network Rail’s Selina Clarke and Jim Lynch, NOS communications managers; Andrew Simmons, technical director for NOS; Jonathan Harris, LNW route output integration engineer; and Alex Tapsell, operations and interface manager. Mark Smalley, sales manager with Thales, and the evaluation team who demonstrated the Thales TM Model Office, were also invaluable for their help in preparing this article.

Video: Launch of London Midland’s new Class 350/3

A report on London Midland’s official launch of its new Class 350/3 fleet which will progressively enter service over the next few weeks.

Great Western Electrification – Arrival of the new High Output Plant System

In March 2012, Amey was appointed by Network Rail to deliver a five year operate, maintain and deliver (OMD) contract to electrify the Great Western main line (GWML) using a new high output factory train to be provided by Network Rail.

This Amey contract forms part of the Great Western Route Modernisation programme to increase speed and capacity on this part of the railway network and is valued at approximately £20 million/year.

The GWML contract requires Amey to electrify from Maidenhead to Bristol Parkway, Oxford and Newbury by December 2016, then through the Severn Tunnel to Cardiff by December 2017, with a possible extension of electrification to Swansea by May 2018.

The Network Rail team responsible for developing the GWML electrification project has been determined to use the best and most modern equipment available to get the job done. To ensure this, a specification was developed over three years, based on current best practice in Europe. Through a competitive tender process, German plant manufacturers Windhoff were awarded the contract to design and build a suitable high output plant system (HOPS). Network Rail, Windhoff and Amey have since been involved in the final design details and commissioning of HOPS.

Purpose-built factory train

The £35million HOPS consists of 23 railway vehicles. It is a factory train, built in stages
by Windhoff and transported to this country over the last twelve months. In July, the final 13 vehicles reached the Rail Innovation & Development Centre at High Marnham for testing and commissioning.

The logistics associated with these arrivals have been significant. The Multi-Purpose Vehicles (MPVs) arrived by rail through the Channel Tunnel at Dollands Moor before being forwarded to High Marnham whereas the KFA wagons, which are refurbished Network Rail flatbed wagons used for carrying steel piles etc., came in by sea to Immingham and thence by road to High Marnham. With up to thirteen vehicles on site at any one time, the testing and commissioning facility has been operating at full capacity.

Whilst this influx of plant and equipment has been underway, Neil Johnson, Amey’s project director, has been responsible for recruiting, training and developing more than 150 staff for the project.

Expanding OLE expertise

Under the contract, Amey is required to ensure that there are enough skilled people to provide two train teams capable of covering six night shifts per week and associated maintenance and logistics operations. However, Amey is also charged with helping to develop an Overhead Line Electrification (OLE) skilled workforce for the future in the West Country. For Network Rail, this is a very important aspect of the contract.

For many recruits, their training has included visits to Windhoff’s works in Rheine, Germany, and to the nearby testing site at Bad Bentheim, for training and familiarisation. More comprehensive training, testing and commissioning has taken place at High Marnham. This extensive and varied development has given the team the opportunity to understand how the train works and to become competent in its operation and maintenance.

Training and testing activities for this stage are designed to take trainees with general OLE installation experience, develop their plant operating skills and provide detailed knowledge and understanding of the nuances of the new Series 1 OLE range.

HOPS Consists

Justin Davey, Amey’s principal project manager, explained that to accommodate the different stages of construction required to install an OLE system, HOPS has been designed as three distinct consists. Each is designed to address the particular construction requirements associated with the main elements of OLE.

The first consist is designed for foundation construction and includes:

» A piling sub-consist (1A) of five vehicles, designed to drive a minimum of 16,000 steel tube piles of varying depth and between 610mm to 762mm diameter;

» A concrete foundation sub-consist (1B) of five vehicles, required to construct approximately 2,000 foundations each one metre square by four metres deep.

The second consist is designed for the installation of the OLE structures and includes:

» A structures sub-consist (2A) of three vehicles, designed to install the main steelwork for 15,000 OLE structures;

» A small parts steelwork (SPS) and wiring sub-consist (2B) of five vehicles for installing SPS, including the unique Furrer + Frey single insulator cantilevers (SIC), the auto transformer feeder wire and the earth wire, and three further vehicles for installing contact and catenary wires.

The third consist (3) is designed for final works and for complex layouts, and includes two vehicles with wiring capability and platform.

The three-vehicle structures consist (2A) has now entered service on the GWML. At High Marnham, the 2A team erected, took down and re-erected (for additional practice), 54 OLE structures of varying sizes on the test construction site. These included 350mm x 350mm and 300mm x 500mm masts, twin- track cantilever booms, larger portal booms, and 14 baseplates and anchor struts in both compression and tension arrangements.

Innovative ground release shackle

The Amey team on consist 2A has introduced a unique method for erecting masts using a ground-release shackle.

Alternative methods are to use a manipulator mounted to the crane, or to use conventional slings, which would then require operatives in a MEWP working alongside the mast to release the slings after installation.

In contrast, Amey’s innovative approach uses a shackle that can be released quickly, simply and safely by the operative pulling a release line from a position on the ground. This allows fine control in the placement of the mast, negates the requirement for an access platform, reduces the overall risks associated with the activity, and allows for an operating cycle time that is compatible with the high output concept.

The operating methodology has been successfully demonstrated to the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) and to Network Rail and is now in use on the project.

Adjacent line open

Each consist is designed to transit at a speed of 60mph on open lines. Within a possession, consists may travel at up to 20mph. In working mode, within a possession, HOPS modules are restricted to a maximum speed of 3mph.

A key element of the HOPS specification was that operations would be enabled with the adjacent line open (ALO). This requirement has been tested and, following a rigorous hazard log process and series of stage gates, ALO operation has been approved. Initial trials were undertaken on 1A and subsequently on 2A. Piling and steelwork erection operations have now been authorised under ALO conditions without the requirement for a speed restriction on the adjacent line.

This is a significant achievement for the project, allowing train operations to continue at up to 125mph on the adjacent line whilst construction activities are underway. It’s good news for the project, for Network Rail, and for train operators.

Trials are now continuing in the Swindon area for the concrete foundations consist (1B). Work is underway with the manufacturer and project team to optimise the concrete batching process and to modify the excavation and spoil-handling vehicles to permit efficient and safe operation under ALO conditions.

HOPS 045

High Output Operating Base

The HOPS train will operate from the High Output Operations Base (HOOB), a £7 million facility recently constructed by Amey and located in the transfer sidings to the east of Swindon station. Maintenance and logistics teams have been recruited and trained to manage and operate the base full time. In addition, a 140,000 sq ft distribution centre has been acquired and developed nearby, designed to house six weeks’ worth of OLE materials and components required for the project.

After several months of production shifts with the piling train, the materials and logistics teams have now become well-practised in delivering the daily turnaround of reloading, shunting and preparing HOPS for production shifts. The maintenance team has also been making good use of the new facilities, having recently completed the first major annual maintenance on consist 1A.

So far, the design of the HOOB has proved to be successful and it is functioning effectively. However, the true test of the facility and team will come when all 23 vehicles are in service and need to be prepared and serviced for production shifts, six days a week.

Everything ready

By mid-October, all the HOPS consists will be based at the HOOB. To ensure efficient delivery of the construction programme, the daily process of preparing each working consist of HOPS must be a finely tuned logistics operation. Each vehicle will need to be unloaded, refuelled, maintained and restocked with materials, in the correct construction sequence, for the next shift.

Justin explained that, whilst the focus over the past few months has been the commissioning and final preparation of HOPS, everyone is acutely aware that the success of the project will depend heavily on the effective functioning of the planning, logistics, and design teams, and the materials supply chain. To deliver ‘high output’ electrification, every aspect of the programme needs to operate according to high output principles.

The team has been using lean methodologies to maximise what can be achieved in the working time available. This has involved examining and gathering data about all aspects of the operation. Improving and standardising set-up and handback activities has enabled the team to increase the productive time on site, while optimising the construction cycle has ensured the team gets more out of the time available. Ongoing data gathering has allowed these improvements to be quantified and tracked.

Further initiatives are underway to continuously improve the information available before the shift starts, to ensure that the supply of materials is optimised through the life of the project, and that the maintenance of HOPS and its associated equipment is always sound and efficient. So far, everything suggests that the team are totally focussed on ensuring that this will happen.

Issue 120 – October 2014

Our own Private tram… to Wednesbury

Ever wanted to get away from the crowds and have your own private train? Well, The Rail Engineer had just that recently – its own private tram from Birmingham Snow Hill station to the Wednesbury depot. Apart from one confused passenger, who was politely asked to wait for the next in-service tram, it was just Rail Media and Midland Metro personnel on the non-stop run.

The occasion was one of the early runs of the new CAF-built trams that will enter passenger service on Friday 5 September. Clean, modern, quiet, comfortable – and air-conditioned; these descriptions all fit the new CAF Urbos 3. Twenty-one are on order, twelve have already been delivered, and there are options for another four.

A 100% low floor design, the new trams are longer (32.4 metres vs 24) and wider (2.65 metres vs 2.44) than the old T69 models that are being replaced. They also hold 210 people, 60 more than the earlier design, which will help increase capacity even without the frequency moving for one every eight minutes to one every six minutes.

Platforms have already been modified to take the new trams, which are elegantly turned out in white, grey and ‘telemagenta’ pink.

With the line due to extend as far as Stephenson Street (for New Street station) next year, and proposed further extensions to Edgbaston and Wolverhampton mainline station on the cards, Midland Metro could well need those extra four trams.

Biggest-ever light rail contract in the US: 175 new trams for San Francisco

3 Siemens-proposed designs, one of which will be chosen by the SFMTA following public input.

San Francisco has placed a firm order for 175 new light rail vehicles for the city’s Muni transit system.

The $648 million order includes an option for a further 85 cars, making it Siemens’ biggest-ever light rail contract in the US.

It is the second high-profile train order for Siemens’ Sacramento factory in as many weeks.

Earlier this month, Siemens won the contract to build two dual-mode locomotives and four passenger cars for the Miami-West Palm Beach section of the planned north-south All Aboard Florida corridor.

San Francisco’s new modern trams, which will start to be delivered by the end of 2016, will be based on the S200 vehicles being supplied to Calgary.

San Francisco mayor Edwin Lee said: “Today, we are truly moving Muni forward.

“By expanding San Francisco’s light rail fleet, these new Siemens vehicles will make our city’s public transportation system more reliable, easier to maintain, and ready to meet the demands of a growing city.

“In addition, these new vehicles will be built right here in California, bringing jobs to our regional workforce.”

On bended knee to Berlin: What to see at InnoTrans 2014

Canterbury, Lourdes, Glastonbury, Santiago de Compostela and Berlin. What do they have in common? All are places of pilgrimage. In the case of Berlin, 125,000 people assemble in one small area of the city every two years for that most revered of occasions – InnoTrans.

Since 1996, when an initial 6,000 experienced the magic of InnoTrans, the event has grown until, in 2012, 121,066 people, 62,803 of them from outside Germany, gathered at the Berlin Messe for the world’s premier railway technology exhibition.

Over 94,000 square metres of exhibition hall space (that’s 13 of the internationally recognised units of area – the football pitch) and a further 3km of outdoor railway sidings make up the show. That space is occupied by the displays of 2,500 exhibitors from 49 countries around the world.

Berlin Messe
Berlin Messe

Comprehensive displays

Amazingly, it all runs smoothly. All those visitors arrive by metro trains at two stations and file into the venue and then, eight hours later, file out again.

So what do they see inside? 26 Halls, some of them on two or three floors, packed with exhibits of everything from complete diesel engines to the cloth for train seats. Do you want to find a lubricant to make points work more smoothly? Try Hall 26. How about those neat clips that hold rails down? Hall 23. Couplers for fastening carriages together into trains? Hall1, second floor. The pantographs to go on top are in Hall 9.

It’s all there! Whatever you want – someone will have it on a stand for you to see, touch, pick up (if you’re feeling strong) and ask about.

And there are whole trains there as well. High speed trains, locomotives, new designs of trams, even on-track plant. A couple of shows ago, Alstom’s latest AGV high speed train made its public debut, side by side with Bombardier’s S-stock train for London Underground. This year, Siemens’ new train for Thameslink is rumoured to be making an appearance.

The show is so vast that there is an internal bus service taking visitors between halls. If walking, be sure to take comfortable shoes and give yourself at least 15 minutes between appointments to make sure you get there on time.

If a company doesn’t show up at InnoTrans, everyone assumes they’ve gone bust. It’s that important. The Rail Engineer will be there – look for us on stand 215 on the ground floor of Hall 7.

But apart from your favourite railway engineering magazine, what else might be of interest this year?

Trains and technology

Bombardier will have one of the largest stands at InnoTrans. Showcasing ‘The Evolution of Mobility’, exhibits will include vehicles and technologies that tackle 21st-century mobility challenges while redefining passenger and freight transportation.

Operators, cities and governments worldwide face the same three biggest mobility challenges – capacity, efficiency and urban flow. Bombardier’s Capacity exhibits will include metros, double-deckers and high speed trains with enhanced space and flexible interiors for moving more people in greater comfort. The Efficiency exhibits will show how advanced technologies bring about improved performance with optimised lifecycle and infrastructure costs as well as higher safety and availability.

Included in Bombardier’s Urban Flow exhibits will be advanced monorails, trams and signalling systems, together delivering cleaner mobility, reduced headways and the flexibility needed to optimise traffic on any network.

Siemens will be showing off a host of products. As well as the Thameslink ‘Desiro City’ trains already mentioned (the first three complete cars), there will be the first of the new Avenio-series trams and a C2 metro, both for Munich, and an Inspiro destined for Kuala Lumpur.

The company will also be displaying its smart rail grids, an intelligent power supply for trains, and driverless systems which are already in service on Paris Metro.

Alstom will introduce three major new products: the very latest version of its Citadis tram, a predictive maintenance tool, and new versions of the Atlas range – its ERTMS solution.

The new Citadis, more comfortable, more spacious and more accessible than earlier models, has been designed to improve the passenger experience. It will also feature more options, enabling it to be adapted to suit the unique requirements of individual towns and cities.

The predictive maintenance tool, which has been developed to reduce total lifecycle costs, can monitor the state of equipment and forecast its remaining usage time, hence optimising operational availability and maintenance costs.

Finally, Alstom will introduce new versions of the Atlas range, its ERTMS solution. Scalable, they will adapt to various traffic requirements and can be used in low or high density networks to provide a better response.

Vossloh’s ultramodern and high-powered diesel locomotives for shunting, freight and passenger services are very much in demand not only in Europe – Class 68 and Class 88 are currently being built at the company’s Spanish factory for the UK market.

All locomotives on display outdoors will be based on the modular platform strategy whose basic objective is to develop customised locomotives from series-production units. Moreover trade visitors are invited to inspect the new 100% low-floor tram and 70% low-floor tram-train (similar to the units in-build for Sheffield Supertram).

Equipment for trains

Voith, known in the UK for its automatic transmissions, will also be showing its new SA3 coupler. This allows automatic coupling of the main reservoir and brake pipes and has proven itself in heavy goods and passenger transport. It can be found on locomotives, railcars and passenger trains, particularly in Russia and the former Soviet states.

The SA3 head now accommodates fully-automatic coupling and uncoupling, enhancing safety, efficiency and comfort. The coupler heads are extremely robust and withstand high loads and temperatures of up to -50°C.

SKF plans to introduce a new class of compact tapered roller bearing aimed at the heavy haul market. Rated for 45 tons axle loadings, the new bearings will allow freight railways to increase capacity by carrying more in each wagon. On a smaller scale, new bearings for EMU/DMU applications have been designed for longer between-service intervals which will keep maintenance costs down.

Deute-Werke will feature six series of new products under the banner ‘Worldwide Tailor-made Innovations’. These will include REDBOX Safety Systems cover the entire spectrum for the measurement, recording and visualisation of speed with a safety level of up to SIL 4.

Meanwhile, in the driver’s cab, the four most important strands of driving information can be displayed on the digital display of the new MFT R 11/2 multifunctional terminal. The driver can manually switch between the TFT and the digital indicator.

Beakbane, manufacturer of composite panels, will be showing its latest lightweight guard technology for rolling stock. These are built around a honeycomb core and offer very high impact resistance combined with extremely low weight. Compared to metal alternatives they are easy to fix and handle, more durable and, because of their light weight, reduce energy costs and carbon footprint.

The British company will also demonstrate its comprehensive range of bellows and flexible connectors for applications such as brake actuator bellows, pantograph arm bellows, HVAC connectors and air intake bellows.

Cytec Industrial Materials, based in Heanor, Derbyshire, will showcase innovation in advanced lightweight composite materials based upon prepreg technology. This allows the manufacture of thin and complex sections, including sandwich panels, which exhibit outstanding mechanical and fire performance properties, whilst offering significant weight savings over conventional materials. Typical railway interior applications for these materials include wall panels, partitions and ceilings while exterior and structural applications include fronts and fairings.

Infrastructure is not overlooked

Plasser & Theurer always has a large stand at InnoTrans. ‘30 years continuous tamping’ emphasises the economic successes of continuous-action tamping machines for over three decades. Over that time, technology has been developed constantly, enabling continuous tamping of up to four sleepers simultaneously while using fewer resources. At the same time, operators have benefited from ergonomically-designed workstations. At InnoTrans, Plasser & Theurer will be presenting the latest product of this continuous-action tamping technology, the universal tamping machine Unimat 09-4×4/4S.

Also at InnoTrans will be Plasser & Theurer’s new material conveyor and hopper units. Designated type MFS 120, these permit higher safe loads and offer improved load distribution for travel on additional types of line. The retractable transfer conveyor belt means that no match wagons are needed. A new operating concept allows several MFS units to be controlled from one unit and the MFS 120 can be switched off automatically when it is completely loaded.

Robel, which can be found next door to Plasser & Theurer’s stand, will focus on its hand-operated machines and equipment. It will introduce its 62.05 Vertical Tamper series to international trade visitors and also present its innovative battery powered series which achieves time savings of up to 25%.

All 62.05-series vertical tampers feature patented vibration decoupling which enable operators to work comfortably due to their low hand-arm vibration. Available with either petrol engines or electric motors, the tampers have a newly-developed tamping tool which can be replaced easily and quickly on site.

The new range of modular battery-powered drills and wrenches is ideally suited for working in tunnels and, due to the low noise output, in urban environments. The high-power battery pack delivers quick cycle times and good availability – crucial in so many jobs on the railway these days.

Schweerbau will take its usual place in the outdoor displays. Look out for the new rotary planer, as described in issue 116 (June 2014). More traditional rail grinding will also be on show, as will machinery for ballast cleaning.

Talking track

Kilfrost, which supplies de/anti-icing products for the transport industry, will be presenting its solution to frozen ballast and dust suppression problems. Track renewals can be challenging during the winter period due to the risk of ballast freezing, and frozen ballast on the ground can significantly slow down the excavation of old ballast, including the lifting of rail panels.

In the warmer months, dust becomes a greater issue that is often exacerbated by track renewal work, reducing visibility for those working by the track and impacting the health and safety of rail professionals and passengers.

Overcoming both of these problems, Kilfrost’s AGT is an inhibited glycol-based de/anti-icing fluid which is fully biodegradable and non-hazardous. It offers high levels of de/anti-icing performance down to temperatures as low as -25°C and also suppresses dust. It can be easily sprayed onto the ballast, absorbing any moisture from the surface and creating a coating which prevents further moisture from forming.

Tata Steel will be showcasing its extensive range of premium rail products, including Stress-Free heat-treated rail which has the lowest residual stress available for enhanced resistance to foot failures, and Multi-Life grooved rail which offers multiple lives through its increased wear-resistance and its ability to be weld-restored in track. The market leader in rail products, Tata Steel will also have two of its international experts on hand. Pascal Sécordel and Frédéric Fau will be at Speakers’ Corner discussing how Stress-Free heat-treated rail’s outstanding wear-resistance and uniquely low residual stress deliver industry-leading performance.

Consolis, the French pioneer in rail infrastructure, will be showing that InnoTrans is not just about trains. The Consolis group manufactures more than 3.5 million concrete sleepers each year and is a leader in both the design and manufacture of precast concrete sleepers and bearers. Consolis Rail’s extensive product portfolio includes mono and twin block sleepers, slab track systems and bearers as well as other products and systems. The group also provides engineering services for the construction of sleeper factories.

British presence

The Brits will be there in force. The Railway Industry Association is organising two pavilions on behalf of UK Trade and Investment. 46 companies will be represented on those stands, and there will be a further 60 British exhibitors with their own independent displays scattered around the show.

The Rail Alliance will also be in Berlin. Around a dozen members will be exhibiting a range of products and services – many of them taking the plunge into an international market for the first time.

Looking at the list of British participants, one can’t help but notice the wide range of activities that it represents. It includes CLASSEQ Classic Glass & Dishwashing System, Holdsworth Fabrics, Beacon Rail Leasing, Cressall Resistors, DWG Timber Components, Welsh Government and the University of Birmingham. What a mixed bag!

Furthermore, Secretary of State Patrick McLoughlin will be at InnoTrans on Wednesday, doing his bit to promote British technology and expertise to an international market.

The Rail Engineer will be at InnoTrans Berlin between 23 and 26 September, along with the Secretary of State and around 2,500 of our readers. If you’re one of them, drop into Hall 7.1A stand 215 and say hello (or should that be ‘Guten Tag’?).

If your company is announcing new prducts or technology or recently completed a major engineering project, please stop by our stand at the rail engineer and meet with our engineers.

Let us know what you thought of InnoTrans in the comments…

Civils before signalling

Here in the Rail Engineer, there are often articles on successful signalling and resignalling programmes. The reports are full of descriptions of sophisticated electronic kit, LED signal heads and lineside cabinets.

But behind every major signalling project there lurks, hidden in the shadows, a civil engineering one.

Signal bases, foundations for cabinets, cable runs, trackside buildings – they all need civil engineers to come along in advance and sort them out.

However, it is all in response to a requirement from the signal engineers, so a collaborative approach helps to ensure that all ancillary civil engineering works are ready for signalling installation and testing teams when they need them.

Detailed planning

VGC Rail Projects has invested heavily in first-class planning resources so that critical possessions are planned meticulously, often down to the minute. Engineers draw up a timed project plan well in advance of the possession, setting out all the individual elements and identifying key decision points so that pre-planned mitigation measures can be implemented if necessary.

However, the pressure to deliver means that designs are rarely cast in stone at a project outset and have to evolve as the project progresses. Contractors such as VGC often have to adapt programmes to cope.

“Sharing the detailed plans with project partners right from the start makes it much easier to manage re-planning. Close collaboration between the civil engineering, signalling and telecoms disciplines allows real flexibility in project delivery,” said Jaques Kriel, director of VGC Rail Projects. “On a recent signalling project it was necessary to re-schedule our whole delivery because of design delays. By working collaboratively with our client, we jointly reprogrammed the works resulting in little overall impact on the project.”

Meticulous planning and collaborative working mean that as much work as possible is undertaken during possessions, and the railway is handed back into operation on time. The travelling public, who gain from improvements to train services as a result of infrastructure investment, are happiest if they never have to know about the intense work periods when the railway is closed.

Drones: Rail Survey technology reaches new heights

Network Rail and the various infrastructure contractors are in a high risk business. They have to plan work on assets that are not fully understood, there is increased pressure on project overruns and to manage and reduce health and safety issues, all necessitating more complex project management. They are having to come up with more and more imaginative solutions to the problems faced procuring or bidding for new work, delivering construction projects and maintaining key assets.

New technology

The stakeholders on all projects are searching for the following four objectives:

  1. greater efficiency (reduced cost);
  2. less risk (especially Health and Safety);
  3. quicker project times;
  4. less track closures.

A recent post on a LinkedIn forum seems to support these findings and sympathise with those involved: “Rail infrastructure managers find themselves in a dilemma. They have to maintain the infrastructure to ensure its safety and reliability, while keeping the track as available as possible. They also have to optimise the use of their resources and contractors to keep costs to a minimum.”

The initiatives to support these key objectives are varied but represent a step change for the industry. Instead of palliative solutions aimed at reducing the symptoms (e.g. working longer shifts, reducing margins etc.) there is now an increasing use and adoption of technology to tackle the real causes.

But how can technology help?

One of the companies involved in helping contractors to understand what they are being asked to do is the Bionic Group. The London-based multi-media animation specialists for the construction and rail sector have worked directly with Network Rail and supported over 1,000 projects with the network’s main contractors. Having been working in the construction industry for 14 years, the company has amassed a wealth of experience. This shows that there are three main fundamentals to any major project: better information, improved communications and a reduction in human interaction.

Information

The better an asset is understood, the more accurate an invitation to tender (ITT) can be created and the more precisely a proposal can be crafted. The traditional method for understanding assets is through surveying. In addition to human interaction (see later) the output of a survey is often subjective and in the form of a fixed report non re-usable or transferable.

Where technology assists is with an increasing adoption of photogrammetry to create life-like images of topology. Large, high, remote or inaccessible structures can be filmed using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or ‘drones’) and the images used to create 3D models for surveyors to use for condition assessment. This can be done prior to a bid or as part of a risk based maintenance assessment.

LiDAR is increasingly being used to create pinpoint 3D measurements of land, tunnels and viaducts. This is coupled with a technology to convert the terabytes of data into pin-point accurate 3D models, often overlaying the use of photography to add texture and realism.

One example of the use of this technique is to create fully-immersive 3D models of new routes for signal location work and driver training. The results from this work can also be used to create BIM (building information modelling) models which have an obvious re-use.

All of this activity is entirely in keeping with Network Rail’s asset management strategy which defines, as an objective of its core principles, “optimising decisions and planning based on risk principles, robust principles and innovative methodologies”.

Whilst the introduction of these technologies is underway, the demographic is uneven. Some organisations have no capability while others conduct full LiDAR, cloud-point data processing in-house. There is no dominant player to go to today and often a solution would necessitate some in-house capability and a number of different sub-contractors/suppliers. These are indications of a young, emerging market which will, in all probability see a number of mergers and acquisitions over the next few years.

Communications

The re-usable material created by the above technology-assisted surveys is highly visual. This can greatly assist in the creation of method statements which are immediately usable, easy to understand and unambiguous for all project stakeholders. Poor communication of ‘the story’ is cited by project managers as a prime reason for project delay. The same output can be re-used again for public consultations and/or even dispute resolution.

Here the picture for adoption is equally fragmented, with the default position being a reliance on paper. The more enlightened (and more efficient organisations) are comfortable with using 3D method statement videos, with time lines, as the primary communication for project teams.

Interaction

A direct benefit of using unmanned vehicles to place cameras close to assets is the obvious reduction in ‘boots on ballast’ and, often, surveyors on ropes. Although there are obvious limitations (no tactile examination capability), the unmanned camera approach provides a fast method to determine just how much, if any, of a given asset requires closure for human inspection or costly out of hours work.

Surprisingly, the number one bugbear from contractors is not cost or time scales but the complexity, time and cost involved in satisfying Health and Safety obligations. Here, technology is massively reducing potentially-risky human interaction with the rail network.

Bionic Eye

So the primary move seems to be around ‘asset information’, gained with the minimum of human interaction and impact to the track. This data can then be leveraged and re-used in everything from bid support to maintenance approach. It’s a methodology that is easy to summarise but difficult to execute.

To assist, the Bionic Group has recently launched a specialist technology division aimed at bespoke solutions for rail survey and asset management, the Bionic Eye. This uses unmanned vehicles (aerial, ground and cable) and bespoke camera rigs to transmit highly accurate and interactive data to surveyors – the BE.3DAM solution.

The Bionic Eye mission is to be at the vanguard of the use of this new technology and processes – the ‘leading, but not bleeding’ edge of technology – and to use remote vehicle use to provide obvious and quantifiable benefit to contractors on the rail network.

For more information, visit www.thebioniceye.co.uk

SWORD – cutting edge technology

Developing a new wireless-operated distant signal

Network Rail’s modular signalling programme was set up some five years ago to develop ways of renewing the signalling on secondary routes at a substantially lower cost than could be achieved by the usual techniques.

Secondary routes are characterised by lower linespeeds, simpler layouts and a lower-frequency train service. This allows the functionality provided by the signalling system to be simplified by comparison with that required for a busier and more complex primary route. It is this simplification, together with an approach to design, construction and testing based on standardisation and increased offsite preparation, which delivers the required cost saving.

Eliminating cables

With two pilot schemes commissioned and further schemes in development, attention is now turning to further ways to reduce cost. One initiative is to reduce the amount of lineside cable needed by using a wireless controlled Distant signal, with the power required to operate it generated at the signal. The Distant signal is the first signal seen by a driver and is located at braking distance, typically 1600 metres, from the Stop signal which controls access to the next section of track or protects an infrastructure feature such as a level crossing.

A development programme was initiated to investigate the possibilities of controlling such a signal by radio. Westermo took charge of the radio element, Rockwell Automation worked on the PLCs (programmable logic controllers) and Firstco acted as system integrators working with Network Rail.

RedFox Industrial Rack.
RedFox Industrial Rack.

Combining technology

The resulting signal uses four key elements. Firstly, lightweight, low power consumption LED signals have recently been developed which don’t need to be backwards compatible with traditional filament lamp signals. With a filament lamp, proving is done by measuring the current drawn. First-generation LED signals retained this method, using a ballast resistor to mimic the current draw of a filament lamp. The new LED signals provide feedback that the signal is functioning correctly by means of voltage-free contacts and hence consume far less power.

60MHz wireless systems, which again have a low power consumption, have only recently been made available for licensed use by Ofcom. This frequency band is licensed, giving a degree of control over usage and has a typical maximum range of about five miles which means that the range required for this application, around 2000 metres from the local equipment room to the Distant signal, can be achieved reliably. The wireless system which Westermo selected has modern addressing and encoding facilities to help ensure the integrity of the data carried.

Fuel cells have been around for over a century, but their first commercial use came in NASA space programmes. Over the past 40 or so years typical applications have been to provide high power for relatively short durations but small capacity units, delivering around 100W of power, have become commercially available over the last few years.

A fuel cell works by passing a fuel, in this case methanol, and air across a membrane impregnated with a catalyst. A chemical reaction occurs generating a DC voltage which can be used to charge a battery. Water and carbon dioxide are the only waste products.

There are a number of different types of fuel cells. The methanol type was chosen for this project, partly because it presents no specific hazards to the user or maintainer. The fuel is supplied in robust polyethylene canisters, easily installed without special precautions and safe to transport.

Industrial control equipment, rated at Safety Integrity Level (SIL) 3, is used to control and monitor the signal. A desire to see industrial Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) used within a signalling system is part of Network Rail’s technical strategy. PLCs offer many advantages – as a result of their wide customer base and large scale manufacture they are very reliable, competitively priced and well supported with a proven history of forwards and backwards compatibility.

Intermittently lit

From this mix of components it has been possible to design a Distant signal which can be operated over a typical distance of around two kilometres from the local equipment room. Power management is key to the design, so the signal is lit in time to be viewed from the approaching train and then extinguished after the train has gone past. A self test is carried out before a train is allowed to approach the signal to ensure it will function correctly when called upon. By this means overall power consumption is low enough for the methanol fuel canisters to need replacing only once a year.

The concept has been proved by means of a year-long trial away from the railway, with a simulated train service typical of a secondary route. Work is now underway to demonstrate that the system can meet safety targets, particularly with regard to the radio communications, and also cost targets.

Development of the wireless signal matches several of the themes in the Network Rail technical strategy, covering cost effective procurement, energy efficiency and improvements to staff safety. This is achieved by reducing the time required on track both to install and maintain it. Removal of the need to run cable to the signal saves both cost and avoids the risk of theft and the hazards that result whilst train operations are disrupted.

1...233234235...292Page 234 of 292