IRSE NEWS

This month’s edition of IRSE NEWS brings you all the news about what is going on in the IRSE, with papers and articles on:

§  Automated Testing of Interlockings

§  The Great Carbon Debate

§  Producing a business case for ERTMS

§  Railways and signalling in South Africa

Presidential Programme Paper: ERTMS Level 3 – the Game Changer

14^th March, London

The sixth of our Presidential Programme Technical Papers will be presented in London on 14th March by Henri van Houten (Prorail) and Nicola Furness (Network Rail).  The event takes place at the IET (Savoy Place) at 18.00, with refreshments available from 17.30.

Our railways are full. We need more capacity. ETCS Level 3 should be able to deliver better capacity, reduce costs, improve flexibility and increase reliability in comparison with ETCS Level 2. But does ETCS Level 3 actually exist, or is it still a theoretical concept not yet fully defined?

In this presentation the authors, both of whom are experts in the field of ERTMS, will explore the current status of ETCS Level 3 and share the results of collaborative development work on Level 3 being carried out by Network Rail and ProRail.

Click here for more details.

Australasian Section AGM and Technical Meeting

10^th – 12^th March, Sydney

The IRSE Australasian Section’s AGM and Technical Meeting will take place in Sydney from 10^th – 12^th March.  This year the event has the theme “New technologies – are we ready?”.

For more information, click here.

IRSE Annual General Meeting and Dinner

21^st April, London

The IRSE’s Annual General Meeting will take place on Friday 21^st April 2017 at the IET, Savoy Place, London, following which our incoming President will deliver his Presidential Address.  Refreshments will be available from 17.30, and the AGM commences at 18.00.  All are welcome.

The Annual Dinner will take place in The Savoy, London (adjacent to the IET), at 19.00, immediately after the AGM.  Our Guest of Honour is David Waboso, Managing Director of the UK’s Digital Railway Programme.  WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff is sponsoring the Dinner.

At the time of publication of this e-bulletin, the Dinner is almost fully booked. If you wish to book, please contact Hilary Cohen quickly at the IRSE offices in London (hilary.cohen@irse.org).

Stephenson Conference

25 – 27 April, London

The Stephenson Conference brings together rail researchers and rail industry people from 15+ countries around the world to present and discuss ~70 papers on a wide range of research, coupled with real-life case studies of the application of that research. 

The event also has several keynote speakers, including Mark Carne (CEO, Network Rail), Carlo Borghini (Executive Director, Shift2Rail Programme), and Professor John Miles Arup/Royal Academy of Engineering Research Professor in Transitional Energy Strategies, University of Cambridge (UK).

The 2^nd Stephenson Conference will take place in London on 25 – 27 April 2017.  Click here for more information and booking details.

Convention 2017: USA

25 – 29 September, Dallas/Fort Worth

The 2017 Convention will take place in the Dallas/Fort Worth area of the USA from 25^th to 29^th September.  Details of the Convention (including the programme), the Booking Form, and the Hotel Booking Form are all now available via the link below.  We are offering Early Bird rates for people booking by 30^th June. 

We have produced a “template business case” which you might wish to make use of if you need to persuade your employer to support you attending the Convention, also available via the link below.

For the first time we are also opening the Convention to non-members (at a higher rate). If you know of work colleagues who might be interested in attending, please show them the information about the event.

We are also offering bursaries for younger members – you can find the Application Form via the link below.  Applications for bursaries must be received no later than 30 April 2017.

For all the information and forms for the Convention, click here.

Council elections

Corporate members of the IRSE (Associate Members, Members, Fellows and Honorary Fellows) are reminded to return their ballot papers for the election of Council members by 21^st March 2017.

Switching your membership type

The next subscription year begins on 1 July 2017 and renewal invoices will be prepared during May ready for issue at the beginning of June.  If you wish to change your membership type to or from “e-membership” for the new subscription year, you must register the change by 30 April 2017.  E-membership means that you receive all communications from the IRSE (including IRSE NEWS) electronically, not by post, at a lower annual membership subscription rate.

To switch, go to the IRSE website, log in and go to the Home page, then navigate to “Manage your record”. Select “YES” or “NO” for the “EMember from 1st July 2017?” option near the top of the page, and then click the SAVE button near the bottom of the page.

Are you thinking of taking the IRSE Exam this year?

If you are thinking of taking the IRSE Exam this year, new 2017 Exam Application Guidance (v1) is available on the IRSE website, which you must read in order to understand the process for applying. Click here to see the IRSE Examination webpage.  Downloadable documents, including the Guidance, are available on the right of the page. In the March 2017 edition of IRSE NEWS there is an article about taking the Exam.

IMPORTANT – EXAM STUDY GROUPS:  We know about a number of Exam Study Groups that operate in preparation for the Exam, but not all.  If you led or attended a Study Group in 2016, please let our Professional Development Manager (Judith Ward) know, including details of where it met, approximately how many times, and who the leader/coordinator was. Judith’s email is Judith.ward@irse.org.

The following items will be of interest principally to members in Europe (including UK):

IRSE France : Technical Meeting – “Connected Objects in the Field”

20^th March, Paris

The IRSE French Section is organising a technical meeting on 20th March on the subject of “Connected Objects in the Field” (also known as the “Internet of Things”).  It starts at 17.00, at the Campus Wilson, 9 Rue Jean-Philippe Rameau, 93212 Saint-Denis.

Taking advantage of real-time monitoring technology and maintenance expertise, trackside object can send status data to monitoring centres, to enable predictive maintenance and to diagnose performance issues. The diagnostic systems can incorporate "smart" self-learning or adaptive systems. This presentation will explore the options for applying this sort of technology on France’s railways, the progress made so far, and the expectations for the future.

For more information email irsefrenchsection@gmail.com, or click here.

Minor Railways Section AGM and Technical Visit

12^th – 14^th May, Porthmadog, UK

With the kind permission of the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways, and with the support of PRB Consulting, the IRSE Minor Railways section is arranging a Technical Visit and holding its Annual General Meeting in Porthmadog on 12^th – 14^th May. For more information. Click here.

Reviewing Signalling Principles in Great Britain

The Institution of Railway Signal Engineers has been commissioned by Network Rail in Great Britain to undertake a review of a number of signalling principles. Some of these relate to changes that are relevant to the introduction of ETCS; others are proposed for conventional signalling in order to improve reliability and/or reduce the complexity of the design. 

The need to reduce complexity was prompted, in part, by concerns expressed in the IRSE’s review of the safety of signalling, produced in 2015 as a collaborative work with Network Rail and a number of UK-based signalling suppliers.  The IRSE is pleased to be working with Network Rail on this present review of signalling principles, providing an independent review of the proposals by a number of experts. The work is under way and we expected to complete it by the end of May 2017.

The initial work is aimed at allowing existing processes to be more focused from a safety perspective. However the GB Digital Railway programme is considering building upon this current work to facilitate higher levels of safety and whole-life efficiencies through the application of automated design and assurance processes.