The icon of train control in Australia’s public railways

Jared Haube for NSW Infrastructure

Maintenance operations have entered a new frontier in New South Wales through the

consolidation of six former control centres around the state into one Infrastructure Control

Centre, appropriately named ICON and located in the heart of Sydney Central Station.

Comprising 70 staff, ICON provides ‘round-the-clock service during major incidents and

support customer service managers through one streamlined point of contact. I had the

opportunity to speak with Andrew Constantinou, Communications Delivery Manager at

Railcorp, about the developments, obstacles and unique procedures of the ICON.

Challenges & requirements

The Maintenance Directorate previously had six control centres provide the 24/7 support

for network incidents and maintenance operations, which were effectively a product of

various disciplines working independently.

Although these centres were able to manage incidents quite well, there were multiple

challenges to coordination in complicated circumstances that required various groups to

work together.

The lack of a single point of contact also contributed to frustrations amongst staff, especially

from an operator’s perspective.

Andrew Constantinou explained to me that the push for consolidation incorporated a

unique scope:

“We wanted to integrate control systems, communication systems, operational securities,

signals, civils, passenger information and condition monitoring. It was about ensuring that

the focus would underpin coverage between AM and PM peak periods.

“We also had to develop rapid analysis, but with complicated issues, we had to make sure

we could come up with one update that would report how it was progressing. A challenge

here related to staff in the electrical functions.

“They provided particular updates at a certain point in time, whilst the communications

team gave a slightly different update due to obvious differences in objectives and being

situated in different centres.

“Efficiencies were also an area that required development. You can imagine, six operating

centres meant six rostering clerks, six analysts, six monthly reports; it was evident that we

needed to streamline.”

The core objective of this consolidation targeted improvement of incident and fault

management through a single point of contact, resolution time for intricate inter-related

faults, and visible accountability and reporting lines.

The implementation approach

Andrew and his team developed a five-step model that would see progression of the

project:

1. Start-up – project team mobilisation & scope clarification.

2. Current documentation – stakeholder consultation comprising site visits & meetings,

review of relevant plans & documentation, and benchmarking through review of

infrastructure and control centres.

3. Consolidation – reviewing and consolidating stakeholder consultations and other

practices.

4. Project planning – developing project vision, assessing alignment & integration

(including pros and cons) and reviewing recommendations.

5. Implementation – review conducted by the steering committee, presentation and

final report submission to Railcorp executives, separate presentation provided to

staff and Union, and actual implementation of the project. “We needed to interview

everyone in the centres, especially the influential stakeholders, looking at what their

expectations were regarding the Maintenance Directorate,” Andrew said.

Three options for the ICON project were initially developed:

1. Effectively consolidating without new processes, metrics or efficiencies.

2. Colour-coding through continuous improvement, which would’ve required a current

strategy analysis to identify the processes in each area, establish metrics that were.

used and correlate them against efficiencies that were identified for the new centre.

3. The ‘big bang’ option – a brand new centre, a brand new organisational chart, and

brand new roles and responsibilities.

“We opted for the the second approach, effectively looking at what’s best practice

throughout the various six centres, what could be adopted across the board and how we

could bring that together.

“We wanted to come up with some quick wins, create some momentum and consolidate

the centres more quickly. That happened in September last year. We completed the centre

at the end of July this year. It was the start of the ICON,” Andrew remarked.

Sample metrics

The change management initiative

Andrew and the project team placed strong emphasis on the human factor of this huge

consolidation program. The intent was not only to build a centre and bring everyone

together; it was to get buy-in from their people.

Perth study trip

The team took 11 individuals on a study trip to establish a party that represented the

workforce, and have an understanding of how a world class operating centre functioned, as

well as visibility of the project team’s objectives.

Through extensive benchmarking, they identified a world class best practice example in

Perth, in which the team visited top-end operation centres at Rio Tinto, BHP and the Public

Transport Authority.

A separate Hazard ID Workshop was also conducted, independently facilitated by risk/safety

and human factor specialists. The outcome led to eight key recommendations and one

observation.

Some of these recommendations included development of specific communication

protocols within the planned ICON, a strategy for an audible and visible alarm system, and a

Requested Power Out (RPO) detailed risk assessment.

Full-scale construction mock-up

Uniquely, there was one particular recommendation that entailed a full scale mock-up of

the Electrical Operations Centre at the planned ICON. This was an important design de-

risking initiative, which Andrew explained to me:

“One of the biggest lessons I’ve learnt from this project was the importance of taking the

shock out of a new working environment. We made changes to actual cardboard, to make

determinations about the size of screens, walkway distances, and organisational logistics.

“It was a very important human factor sub-project within the program, which allowed us to

de-risk design, get buy-in from people and minimise cost,” Andrew noted.

The mock-up Electrical Operations Centre room was built and open for consultation from 4th

to 21st

February 2012, which led to several modifications and improvements upon the

original layout.

From 25th

February to 7th

March, consultation was made available to three built-to-scale

mock-up desks designed for the Infrastructure Operations Centre. This enabled detailed

review of layout, equipment arrangements, and content of the overview screens.

A full-scale Electrical SCADA overview wallboard was built on 11th

March and made available

for consultation until 22nd

March.

Project update posters & offsite workshops

Monthly project update posters were placed on all operation centre notice boards, with

progress updates also included in regular team meetings and face-to-face fortnightly

updates.

Project update poster

Interestingly, two offsite residentials were conducted, incorporating three to four

representatives from each of the six operations centres. The workshops focused on

developing processes, protocols and procedures for the new centre.

Regular combined working parties took place as well, with time provided to all members

and line managers to enable circulation of updated information to all involved staff

members.

“We invited and continuously engaged as many people as we could to our working party

meetings. Our change management strategy was completed in January this year,” Andrew

said.

ICON specifications

The strategic design of the control centre reflects both the technological innovation and

management of the Sydney Trains network.

The centre comprises five specialised departments:

1. Electrical operations

� Provides 24/7 control of the entire Sydney Trains electrical network.

� Manages and operates the high voltage reticulation and the 15000V traction

supply electrical networks.

� Provides traction and signaling power supplies required to run Sydney Trains

passenger rail service throughout the electrified area.

� Coordinates the removal of supply for safe access to the 1500V and high voltage

electrical networks.

� Coordinates emergency repairs and for access to other emergencies in the

vicinity of electrical equipment.

� Ensures continuity of supply or alternative supply to traction, signals, workshops,

stations, offices, lifts, escalators and all high and low voltage electrical systems.

� Controls SCADA network covering the areas Newcastle – Lithgow – Kiama, and

consists of 2200km of 1500V overhead wiring and the same for high voltage

transmission lines and 150 substations and section huts.

2. Corridor Safety System

� Committed to the safety of track workers.

� In operation since August 2010, Monday to Friday, 6 am to 6 pm.

� Has additional level of control verifying that worksite protection arrangements

are adequate.

� Protection officer engages the Corridor Safety System by phone.

� The Corridor Safety System agent is guided by a computer system to ask a series

of safety related questions designed to review the Worksite Protection Plan.

� Once planned protection is adequate, a Corridor Safety Number is issued.

� PO then follows existing Network Rules Procedures.

3. Central Control Systems

� Provides 24/7 monitoring and operation of infrastructure equipment associated

with the ECRL – monitor and control aspects of the Central Control System.

� Ensures safe, timely and efficient response to incidents on the ECRL.

� Notifies and deploys staff resources and equipment to investigate and rectify

infrastructure incidents in ECRL – liaises with Electrical Operations and

Infrastructure Operations when required.

� Provides SMS service to management for significant incidents, extreme weather,

and possession progress updates.

� Daily management reports – summary IMS and IFMS.

� Coordinates a permit to work system on tunnel pumps, fans security and fire

systems.

� WOLO implementation during extreme hot/wet weather and monitors

temperatures and liaises with regional civil staff and operations to ensure

compliance with policy.

4. Infrastructure Operations

� Provides 24/7 infrastructure support and coordination to ensure timely and

efficient response to network infrastructure incidents.

� Coordinates the deployment of field staff resources and equipment to

investigate and rectify signaling and civil problems, incidents and accidents.

� Provides technical support to field staff through use of track plans, circuit plans

and equipment manuals.

� Escalates critical signalling faults by consulting or deploying Signal Engineers.

� Monitors weather patterns and warnings to develop customised standby and

response.

� Monitors safety critical level crossing equipment through the CERBERUS system.

� Has rainfall and slip monitors.

5. Rail Technology Operations

� Provides 24/7 monitoring and surveillance of all technology operational

applications, networks and systems.

� Acts as the operational command and control point for managing the response

to operational technology incidents, planned outages and service interruption

post analysis.

� Passenger information operations team provides a 24/7 help desk for services to

support passenger information systems.

� Control systems monitor and manage day-to-day operational availability

(covering peaks) of rail control, indication and support systems for safe on-time

running of trains.

� Provides incident management for data switching, voice, transmission,

communications backbone, telecommunications power, facilities & radio towers,

wireless systems and network control systems.

Visual Management Cells

Realising the benefits

There have been numerous successes to date since inception of the ICON, and Andrew

shared with me an example of a recent incident:

“We had a particular failure in August at Martin Place, which was a signalling failure. Pre-

ICON, three operating centres would’ve looked at the incident. The control systems area

would’ve reviewed information displayed on the signalling screen, the infrastructure area

would’ve looked into the signal failure itself, and the communications area would’ve

focused their concerns on the comms link failure.

Any one of these three factors could’ve caused the particular failure mode. We would’ve

had three different locations mobilising resources to the incident. The infrastructure area

would’ve phoned the control systems area, and asked them for a log to be captured and

email it back.

The infrastructure area would’ve analysed the sequence of events and attempt to

determine the failure mode to ensure accurate investigation.

As you can appreciate, a lot of people moving to the same location, different managements

all trying to fix the one failure and not necessarily communicating with each other by virtue

of being in separate locations, no one would really know who was being deployed from the

different areas.

Because ICON was already operating at the time of the signalling failure in August, the

infrastructure operator stood up, walked across to the adjacent desk, sat down with the

particular operator, and analysed the log together within minutes of that failure being

acknowledged.

It was soon evident that it wasn’t a comms failure – and even if it was they would only need

to check with the comms representative sitting two desks away – but an anomaly in the

actual signalling area.”

The ICON has produced a series of immediate benefits, including rapid incident analysis and

coordination, improved efficiency for response team deployment, complete staff

accessibility to real time information, increased accessibility to field resources, and reduced

duplication of effort and support.

The next planned stages include:

• Further integration of Visual Management Cell (VMC)

• Implement internal communication across the ICON

• Clarify communication interfaces with rail operations

• Optimise data capture and consistency

The ICON’s operation is underpinned by continuous improvement. By driving accountability

and ownership amongst the team, the ICON is not merely a control centre, it’s an organic

asset at Sydney Trains that continues to evolve and adapt.