201911 – Loriente – The Signalling Industry from the Eyes of a Track & Civil Engineer

This paper discusses the strong points & areas of improvement for the signalling industry in Australasia, as perceived by this Track & Civil specialist. As a Track & Civil Railway Engineer working deeply within the Signalling world it has been a rare opportunity to understand in depth the railway system as a whole, and how railway operators can more effectively plan their maintenance & renewals to achieve best-for-business track & signalling outcomes. The paper touches on several areas from the point of view of a Track & Civil Engineer including:
• The signalling skills shortage challenge – training, succession planning, finding the balance between knowledge, experience, and the urgent need for more resources.
• The industry’s readiness for the ‘new era’ of automatic train operation, the increasing need for network communications skills, and are we doing enough to plug this gap?
• Condition assessments in line with ISO55001 best practices – where does Signalling sit compared to other disciplines? What technologies can we put in place to improve?
• The leadership challenge – balancing the requirement for people management & leadership skills against the dependence on technical knowledge and expertise.
• The importance of early involvement from Signals stakeholders in the development of mega projects.
• Tips and tricks for railway operators to ensure Track maintenance & renewals plans target the most effective reliability improvement programs, and how they can use a joint ‘Track & Signals’ approach to increase the life-cycle of Signalling assets.