Abstract :
The Train Control System (TCS) project is a near £1 billion programme to develop a new generation of railway signalling technology, and is a central part of Railtrack´s infrastructure modernisation programme. The delivery of this system is being executed by a Joint Project Team, in which the traditional client and supplier teams have come together into a shared risk/reward environment, taking responsibility for all systems engineering, system design and overall project management. The Joint Project Team itself is multidisciplinary, with the main partners to the venture Railtrack and ALSTOM Signalling Ltd-being supported by a broad range of subcontracted specialists drawn from many sectors of industry. This collaborative environment provides an opportunity to exercise true management of value, in which requirement and design trade-offs are undertaken-both within the scope of the TCS project and between TCS and adjacent projects-in order to maximise overall value provision to Railtrack and its customers. In order to support this approach, a comprehensive systems engineering process framework has been introduced, based upon concurrent engineering principles, and driven by value considerations. This paper reviews the first six months´ operation of the TCS Joint Project Team, and assesses the effectiveness of the partnered Joint Project Team and its systems engineering approach in controlling the project and in enhancing value provision
Keywords :
traffic control; ALSTOM Signalling; Joint Project Team; Railtrack infrastructure modernisation programme; Train Control System; concurrent engineering principles; overall project management; railway signalling technology; shared risk/reward environment; system design; systems engineering; value management;
