Technical Meeting Papers

Technical Meetings are held three times per year.
Papers are available here for download.
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1986 – Aug – Balck – The Ericab 700 ATC System – Economics, Design & Re

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015


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1991 – March – Lugsden – AUSTRAC: The Australian ATCS

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

Keith Lugsden, B.Eng., M.I.E.E.E. Software Team Leader, Safety Sr Communications International Railroad Systems Pty Ltd Adelaide, South Australia This paper describes the design of AUSTRAC, which is the Australian implementation of the North American Advanced Train Control System (ATCS) series of signalling specifications. AUSTRAC is being installed on Australian National's Trans-Australian and Central Australian lines. In particular, this paper focuses on the differences between AUSTRAC and ATCS, on some of the problems found with the ATCS specifications and on the unique features incorporated into AUSTRAC.


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1998 – Nov – Ackland – Commissioning Tools for Railway Signalling

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

Graeme Ackland B. AppSci (Elect) FIRSE ALSTOM AUSTRALIA The purpose of this paper is to examine the tools available to the Commissioning Engineer to achieve successful commissioning. Railway Commissioning activities are performed under a very tight time fiame, with substantial operational repercussion if the time fiame is exceeded, and safety repercussions if the testing procedures are not followed. My paper today will firstly define a commissioning and its component activities. I will then look at a number of tools and strategies that are used, and then examine the use and abuse of these tools by examining a number of commissionings. There have been a number of papers written about testing strategies but this paper concentrates on the method used to affect the alterations to signalling systems.


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1990 – July – Keogh – Queensland Railways Implementation of Driver Only Operation

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

J.Keogh Manager Operations Research Queensland Railways Following over twelve months of investigation and negotiation Driver Only Operation was introduced into Queensland Railways on the Brisbane to Rockhampton section on Monday 14th May, 1990. This type of operation being successfully introduced without any loss of time due to industrial disputation.


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1999 – March – Hickey – Railways at War

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

Michael Hickey B.E., GRAD. DIP, P.M. & I.R., F.I.E. AUST, F.P.W.I. Manager Contract Operations, Rail Services Australia Since early civilisation signalling has been an important and noble profession. Generals, when summoning their troops, used signalling or heralds in various ways to concentrate their forces at the appropriate time or retreat to fight another day.


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1998 – Nov – Chadwick – BTR Rail WESTRACE Tools

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

Marc Chadwick BE, GradDipMgt, MIRSE Manager, Product Development, Westinghouse Signals Australia Industry and its customers are jointly seeking lower costs, faster delivery, higher quality and greater consistency. All this in the face of the ever increasing shortages of skilled personnel in our profession, a problem that is going to get worse before it gets better. This paper presents the tools that have been developed by the BTR Rail Group Conlpanies for use in WESTRACE Interlocking applications to help satisfy these demands.


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2001 – Nov – Walsh – National Express Group Train Franchises & the Trai

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015


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1996 – July – Aitken – Outsourcing of Communications Networks

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

John Aitken Director, Aitken & Partners Consulting Engineers Outsourcing of services is a concept that has the virtues of political correctness and fashion. It is certainly not a new concept but outsourcing has become a popular answer to all manner of corporate ills. Its current significance is perhaps not unrelated to some of the spectacular corporate failures of the 1980s when short term gains were the objective of many an entrepreneur. The current reaction appears to be an emphasis on "core business" activities, with those activities that are not considered essential to the core business being "outsourced". Some would argue that communications are not core business for railways and that they should have been outsourced long ago. Others will argue that connnunications are the very life blood of a modern railwa? -- as integral a part of the operation as the track, locomotives. rolling stock and signals. In this paper we consider the role of communications in railway operations. the impact of historical developments, the impact of developing technology and the impact of legislation on railway communications. There are some areas where outsourcing is a natural and obvious step, some areas where outsourcing would achieve nothing and others where outsourcing has been In place for a long time. The common characteristic is that they provlde cominunications for trains that move on steel wheels on steel tracks.


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1993 – April – Antoniou – Strategies for Train Control Within QR – Part

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015


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1995 – March – Eldridge – Quality Assurance in Design / Consulting / Contract

Date Presented: December 27th, 2015

Mike Eldridge Connell Wagner In the consulting and contracting industries it is essential nowadays for firms to be quality accredited if they wish to bid for government and increasingly private contracts. A large number of government organisations require their suppliers to have quality systems in place which meet the requirements of AS3901, AS3902 or AS3903. This paper addresses the quality assurance issues relating to design services provided by consultants and contractors.


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202503 – Afshar – CBTC Signalling System & Emerging Technologies

Author(s): Parisa Afshar

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202503 – Moore – Signal Design Report: What Is It and Why Do We Need It?

Author(s): Trevor Moore

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2004 – July – Modernisation of KTMB’s Signalling & Telecommunication Systems

Author(s):

The total route length of KTMB’s network amounts to approximately 1670 km and is mainly single track except for about 150 km of electrified double track sections around the capital city, Kuala Lumpur, for commuter services.

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2001 – March – Garrett – Brisbane Airport Rail Link Project – Overview

Author(s): Mike Garrett

Mike Garrett Airtrain Citylink is a Queensland company formed specifically to undertake the development and operation of a rail link between Brisbane Airport and the city of Brisbane on a build, own, operate, transfer (BOOT) basis. See attached Figure 1. Airtrain's shareholders are Colonial Group Staff Superannuation Scheme, Airtrain Trust (4 superannuation funds), Hyder Investments, GIO Australia, CDC Projects, Transfield & 26 smaller investers.

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2001 – July – Stepniewski – Blacktown’s VDU Signalling Control System “Sigview”

Author(s): Richard Stepniewski

Richard Stepniewski Alstom's VDU Control System, called SigView, was successfully commissioned at Blacktown, in two stages as part of the Blacktown Resignalling Project: - Stage 1: control of Blacktown and Quakers Hill in December 1999. - Stage 2: control of Richmond Line and Quakers Hill in March 2000.

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2000 – March – Furness & Clarke – Maintaining for Reliability

Author(s): John Furness & John Clarke

John Furness & John Clarke ABB Engineering Construction are responsible for maintaining various components of the Victorian Rail system on behalf of the newly franchised businesses. The transition from publicly owned railway authority to private industry, specialist maintenance provider has required considerable change at both the organisational and individual staff levels. The process has also uncovered a number of deficiencies in the pre-existing maintenance structure and practices that do not meet the needs and performance requirements of the new Operators. ABB are currently developing and planning for new procedures and practices, etc ,where necessary, to meet our client's expectations for continuos improvements in the overall railway system reliability to achieve and exceed the new performance benchmarks

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