Luminate TMS Crew and Stock system Interface
Following the success of Luminate Traffic Management System (TMS) on Network Rail’s Western Route and the subsequent deployment on the Anglia Route, achieved again within a year of contract award, the Western Route sought to break new ground by interfacing the Luminate TMS with Crew & Stock information, delivered through the Integrale Crew and Stock Management System, provided by Worldline.
Supported by the Department for Transport and having been contracted in January 2021, the first users of the new Crew and Stock modules were able to go live in just 6 months, in July 2021. To achieve this timescale, close co-operation was integral throughout between Network Rail – its Project Team, Western Route and IT Services – and the Project Partners, Great Western Railway, Resonate, and Worldline.
This successful interface of NR and TOC-operated systems is a first in the UK and significantly enhances the capabilities of the UK’s only integrated TMS as it enables both NR and TOC users to access the rich functionality and enhanced decision support information offered by Luminate and Integrale. This required the training of key GWR Operations Team members, with good feedback received from the attendees.
Resonate worked closely and collaboratively with these Network Rail, GWR and Worldline teams to make this project a success:
• Network Rail System Operator (formerly OPD Digital Railway Programmes) who managed the Project including specification of requirements and overall project delivery
• Network Rail Western Route to deliver training material and user acceptance testing with close working throughout the deployment and in business as usual
• Network Rail IT Services to test and prove the LINX feeds from and to Luminate and Integrale
• GWR to train and equip new users
• Worldline to configure the Crew and Stock feeds from Integrale
Building on the core functions of Luminate TMS, issues with crew or stock are identified on the core user views. The conflicts and issues identified by using the Crew and Stock modules include:
• Next Working at risk due to late incoming service. This can affect both crew and stock, the system flags the issue enabling users to re-allocate or re-plan and minimise the impact on passengers. This includes the ability to see crew travelling as passengers on services and the impact of delay on that service.
• Unallocated crew or stock to a service.
• Platform length issues through the use of stock allocation.
Controllers from both NR and GWR, Signallers and those re-planning the service therefore have a common view of the railway which can be used to assess the impact of operational decisions on services, taking into account crew and rolling stock data. This is achieved through access to shared core facilities :
Train Graph
A route wide interactive train graph that delivers; forecast of train movements, conflicts to services, crew and stock to be visualised and resolved and the timetable to be amended. The KPIs are fully configurable and are integrated with the performance algorithms. These provide an action list that directs operators to the issues that are most important to resolve. It also allows offline scenarios to be developed and edited and their impact on the KPIs assessed prior to commitment to the live environment.
Platform Docker
The Platform Docker provides a visual representation of platform occupation (both time and available platform length) and is particularly important for managing platform swaps at complex stations. The data can also be presented in alternate forms (i.e. simplified views) to suit the needs of the user. The addition of crew and stock information in the Western TM Pilot has been particularly useful to Operations Teams.
KPI Dashboard
The KPI Dashboard provides a view of the current network performance and how this will be impacted by upcoming conflicts and proposed changes. This is a key enabler allowing earlier identification and mitigation of issues. The KPIs are configurable to meet customer specific requirements, typical examples include delay minutes, customer impact minutes, on-time performance etc.
Close working between suppliers, NR and GWR has been the hallmark of this project and has helped to ensure a smooth introduction. From tailored training to super-user feedback and process mapping, the goal was always to enable users to gain benefit from day one.