Simulation collaboration is set to keep trains on track
East Midlands Railway (EMR) is to improve efficiency in its depots with a simulation tool being developed with the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre.
The project, made possible by the Network Rail Performance Improvement Fund, has seen AMRC engineers work with EMR operations staff to record the rules, processes and timings of train movements to develop a representative model of its Nottingham Eastcroft depot.
Eastcroft provides the day-to-day maintenance of the EMR Regional fleet, which is made up of Class 156, 158 and 170 trains.
The tools create a virtual simulation of activities taking place on the shop floor at the depot and gives the user the ability to identify capacity constraints, model scenarios and rapidly visualise the impact on performance.
According to AMRC, they will enable EMR to plan, stress test and simulate operational scenarios more quickly than by using conventional methods.
In a statement, Richard Gardiner, AMRC senior innovation fellow and sector lead for rail, said: “We are collaborating to assess the application of state-of-the-art process flow simulation tools to assist the efficiency and effectiveness of rail depot operations.
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