Railway signalling and control systems technical training course

09.45

Teams opens

09.50

Welcome and introductions

Chair: Harvinder Bhatia, Head of Central Engineering, TfL
Chair: Martin Fenner, Director, Flare Technology

10.00

Session 1: Keynote

Rod Muttram, President, IRSE

10.30

Break

10.35

Session 2: A Brief History of Railway Signalling – from the Bobby to the Balise.

John Alexander, Principal Engineer, MB Rail Consultancy

11.30

Break

11.45

Session 3: The Role of the Regulator

• Understanding what these duties are and how organisations engage with the regulator will be beneficial to all who enter the rail industry.

Maya Petkova, Head of Power, Control and Command Systems, Office of Rail and Road

12.40

Lunch

13.40

Session 4: How does Signalling Contribute to the Railway Enterprise?

• recognise the range of potential purposes of a railway enterprise
• recognise the contribution of signalling systems to the operational and business performance of a railway system
• recognise how signalling affects capacity, reliability and customer experience on a railway system

Andrew Love, Director, Headway Innovation

14.35

Break

14.50

Session 5: Engineering Safety Management and the Signalling Engineer: A Beginners Guide to Engineering Safety Management

• Understand foundational safety principles and concepts of safety management in engineering contexts (including hazard identification, risk assessment, and safety culture).

Panagiotis Takis Kantartzis, Associate Director, WSP

15.45

Break

16.00

Session 6: Human Factors for Railway Signalling and Control Systems

• Be able to give an overview of Human Factors/ Ergonomics and the role in rail
• Describe user-centred design principles, covering
  • Human/ user
  • User interfaces
  • Workstation
  • Organisation
  • Environment

Dr Amanda Elliott, Human Factors Rail Specialist, Innovace Designs

16.55

Day one finish

09.30

Teams opens

09.35

Welcome

Chair: Arvind Bali, Principal Engineer, Network Rail
Chair: Andy Bourne, Senior Technical Director, Arcadis

09.40

Session 11: Rail Traffic Management Systems (RTMS) and Driver Advisory Systems (DAS)

• Develop a high level understanding of Traffic Management and Driver Advisory Systems.

Andy Bourne, Senior Technical Director, Arcadis

10.35

Break

10.50

Session 12: Telecommunications Supporting Signalling and Railway Operations

• Why the railway needs Operational Telecommunications

• What Operational Telecommunications within the railways are​

• What the significant Operational Telecommunications Applications are in today’s Railway​

• Have an idea of the future direction for Operational Telecommunications

Neil Wilkinson, Principal Engineering Leader (Telecoms), TfL

Fraser Allan, Senior Programme Manager FRMCS Lead, Network Rail

12.00

Break

12.05

Session 13: Signalling for Capacity

George Clark, Chief Technical Officer, TfL Engineering and Asset Strategy, TfL

12.35

Lunch

13.35

Session 14: Metro moving block principles

• Gain an awareness of the principles of moving block and understand how it compares with conventional fixed-block signalling systems

• Understand the generic system architecture of a moving block system, including the rationale for each system element, and will be introduced to a sample of available supporting technologies

Jane Power, Past President, IRSE

14.05

Break

14.20

Session 15: Signalling Train Equipment and Interfaces

• Explain how the train on-board signalling systems works within the rail environment

• Understand the common constituents that provides train protection and associated automation

• Understand the key interfaces between train and signalling systems

• Common challenges associated with delivering such systems

• Some of the practices adopted by the presenter that may aid the attendees in their future roles

Ken Chan, Technical Services Director, Tilt Consulting

15.15

Break

15.30

Group workshop

Run by Andy Bourne, Senior Technical Director, Arcadis

16.30

Day three finish

09.30

Teams opens

09.35

Welcome

Chair: Thulasi Karunakaran, Technical Director - Head of Systems Engineering, Arcadis
Chair: Martin Fenner, Director, Flare Technology

09.40

Session 7: The Need for Train Detection

• The purpose of train detection in signalling and control systems
• The main types of train detection
• The way in which the main types of train detection work, and their pro's and con’s
• The future of train location

Sam Daw, Technical and Assurance Director, Hitachi Rail

10.35

Break

10.50

Session 8: Interlocking Principles

• An introduction to the building blocks of train path route design
• It will provide a spring board into the vast subject of British route signalling practice
• The session will introduce some of the changes made by NR with due cognisance that lineside signals still have a lifetime prior to ETCS

Graeme Christmas, Principal Engineer, Network Rail

11.45

Break

12.00

Group workshop 1

Run by Martin Fenner, Director, Flare Technology

12.55

Lunch

13.55

Session 9: Intermittent and Continuous ATP

Paul Booth, Associate, The Nichols Group

14.50

Break

15.05

Session 10: Systems Engineering and Requirements Management

• Understand how to take a whole systems approach to the delivery of projects and how to ensure that requirements are managed throughout the lifecycle of the project

Thulasi Karunakaran, Technical Director - Head of Systems Engineering, Arcadis

16.00

Group workshop

Run by Thulasi Karunakaran, Technical Director - Head of Systems Engineering, Arcadis

17.00

Day two finish

09.15

Registration

09.30

Chair welcome

Harvinder Bhatia, Head of Central Engineering, TfL

09.40

Session 1: Electrical Interfaces (Integration, Safety and Management)

• Identify Electrical Interfaces
• Improve interface design
• Understand the importance / safety risks of electrical interfaces
• Gain knowledge on what standards to apply and tools/processes to manage the interface

Sarah Dale, Technical Directorl - Traction Power, Mott MacDonald

10.35

Break

10.55

Session 2: Simulation and Performance

Steven Brown, Associate, Tilt Consulting

11.50

Lunch

13.00

Session 3: ETCS – System Versions, Change Control & Hybrid Train Detection

Craig Tuck, Principle Engineer, Network Rail

13.55

Session 4: European developments on ERTMS

Martin Zweers, Senior Advisor ETCS Signalling systems, Arcadis

14.50

Break

15.15

Session 5: CBTC technology on London Underground - Four Lines Modernisation programme

• Understand the technology involved in a CBTC deployment
• Understand how the signalling principles and technology interact to deliver a safe solution 
• Understand the practical challenges to deploying CBTC technology
• Understand how CBTC technology combined with business change deliver benefits realisation on a major programme

Sam Etchell, Head of Engineering, Major Projects, TfL

16.10

Project workshop 1 - Charting the course

• Delegates dive into the intricate world of railway signalling, forming teams and tackling a real-world scenario. They brainstorm innovative solutions, laying the groundwork for a safer and more efficient signalling system.

Run by Harvinder Bhatia, Head of Central Engineering, TfL

17.05

Day four finish

09.00

Registration

09.10

Welcome

Chair: Harvinder Bhatia, Head of Central Engineering, TfL

09.15

Project workshop 3 - Red Light, Green Light, Go For It! Presenting and Polishing Signalling Designs

• Teams confidently present their detailed signalling proposals and receive feedback. Through this collaborative review, they gain valuable insights to refine their designs and ensure optimal safety and performance

Run by Harvinder Bhatia, Head of Central Engineering, TfL & Andy Bourne, Senior Technical Director, Arcadis

12.00

Lunch

12.30

Travel

14.00

Technical Visits available:

Stratford Market Depot

Romford ROC & Elizabeth Line Control Room

Alstom in Hatfield

• Technical visits have minimum and maximum numbers. Please choose your preferred option when registering for the course. You can only attend one technical visit. We may need to transfer you to a different technical visit depending on demand

08.45

Registration

09.00

Welcome

Chair: Arvind Bali, Principal Engineer, Network Rail
Chair: Martin Fenner, Director, Flare Technology

09.10

Session 6: Pursuing high reliability

Phil Dubery, Director, CPC Systems Limited

10.05

Session 7: Case Study - Elizabeth Line

• Understand the background and reasons for the three signalling systems used on the Elizabeth Line.
• Understand programme management approaches to software maturity and risk management through the Crossrail Programme experience delivering and opening the Elizabeth Line. 

Chris Binns, Director, Binns Rail Consulting Limited

11.00

Break

11.20

Session 8: Asset Management of Modern Systems

• Attendees will gain an appreciation of the problems associated with newer signalling systems, learn some asset management concepts & terminology, and benefit from the experience gained with TfL's systems including its newest additions on the Elizabeth line.

Lynsey Hunter, Regional Asset Manager (Signalling), Network Rail

12.15

Lunch

13.15

Session 9: Cyber Security

Richard Thomas, Principal Consultant, AtkinsRéalis

14.10

Break

14.20

Project workshop 2 - Drilling Down to Details

• Teams refine their chosen signalling approach, delving deeper into technical specifics and optimising infrastructure plans. They prepare to face expert scrutiny and emerge with a robust strategy.

Run by Martin Fenner, Director, Flare Technology

16.20

Day five finish