As part of Transport for London (TfL), London Overground (LO) operate suburban train services across a 104-mile network serving 112 stations and enabling 189 million passenger journeys a year.
Arcspeed have worked with London Overground since 2017, with our products supporting maintenance operations delivered by infrastructure contractor Cleshar on the Windrush (formerly East London) Line.
The solutions that we have delivered have included a KPI management portal, our Maintenance Records Register product and the digitisation of maintenance record cards across all engineering disciplines on our Mobile Asset Management platform.
Challenge
In 2019, London Overground took the decision to adopt Network Rail’s initiative for capturing detailed condition assessments for Signalling equipment known as SICA (Signal Infrastructure Condition Assessments), to better inform renewals planning and the prioritisation of budgets.
The SICA approach involves recording a series of scores for asset condition across the following six factors:
- Condition
- Maintenance & Faulting History
- Compliance to Standards
- Modification History
- Operating Environment
- Trend
The individual scores captured against the questions within each of the above categories roll up into a Total Weighted Score which is designed to give an overall assessment of asset condition based on the following ranges:
The original scoring template was developed in Excel, however, a more flexible and dynamic solution was required to enable Signalling engineers to record condition scoring quickly, accurately and easily in the field via a mobile device.
London Overground therefore approached Arcspeed to extend the footprint of our Mobile Asset Management app to digitise the SICA inspection forms to enable asset condition to be captured on site and written back to a central database for review and analysis.
Solution
The scoring questions and criteria for each of the asset types in scope was developed by Atkins Global, working alongside the relevant Signalling & Telecoms engineering leads.
Meanwhile, the Arcspeed team rapidly developed a proof of concept for how the mobile data capture could work, which was presented to the client and further refined through a series of stakeholder workshops.
The key elements of this mobile solution were as follows:
- Ability to easily search for and select an asset (integrated with TfL’s IBM Maximo asset register)
- Ability for the solution to work offline, in trackside locations with poor / non-existent mobile data coverage
- Simple and consistent “push button” method of recording scores, using colour-coded ratings
- Ability to capture additional supporting evidence of condition in the form of photographs
- Ability to record additional comments
- Generation of an Excel report template with detailed scoring
As detailed scoring specifications were signed off by the Signalling team the Arcspeed team worked to deliver pilot versions of each inspection form, which were then field-tested by Signalling engineers. Regular review meetings were scheduled to discuss feedback, agree actions, and plan delivery.
Following completion of mobile app development, the Arcspeed team then worked closely with key stakeholders from London Overground to develop a SICA Reporting Portal which consolidates the data carried out in SICA inspections and presents the results in an interactive dashboard, with the ability to filter and export granular condition data to Excel for more detailed offline analysis.
The SICA dashboard was then integrated as an additional module in our Maintenance Records Register portal.
Outcome
Arcspeed’s Maintenance Records Register already played a vital role in the day-to-day operational management of maintenance on the East London Line. Alongside this, our Mobile Asset Management App has introduced widespread efficiency and data quality improvements across all disciplines by introducing a robust and scalable platform for digital record cards, fully aligned to the relevant engineering standards.
The further extension of the Arcspeed platform to support SICA now enables London Overground to gain a deeper operational insight into the condition, performance, and remaining life of key signalling infrastructure, supporting improved operational planning and more efficient prioritisation of resource and investment as well as helping to ensure a safe and reliable railway.
Proving a state of good repair is as easy as running a report.
Paul Lishman – TfL Signalling Asset Engineer
This tool also helps focus what to include in our renewals forecast and, conversely, what to omit…
If you’re interested in discovering more about how our technology solutions can help support asset condition reporting and maintenance operations within your sector then we’d love to hear from you. Contact us to find out more.