Helicopters and live track engineering from Network Rail
AN active worksite powered by solar energy will be the showpiece on NR’s presence at Rail Live 2022.
Alongside the Network Rail Village (based in Zone K), which this year will be powered by clean energy supplied by a solar panel array, a team led by NR’s Wales and Western Region will be running a live track engineering demonstration throughout the two days of the show.
Two 100-metre sections of track will be lifted, ballast removed and replaced, and the track then replaced and tamped. The new ballast is being provided by NR’s Whitemoor Rail Recycling Centre, providing an excellent example of NR meeting its commitments to environmental sustainability.
The NR Air Operations team will also be present once again at Rail Live 2022, with two helicopters and examples of its drone fleet. The team will be on site to show visitors the aircraft, explain how they are used, and answer questions.
Inspecting the railway by air improves performance, reliability and safety, with no disruption to activities on site or to services for passengers. Images taken by the air ops team are available to all NR staff to access from their desks, improving efficiencies and keeping staff safe.
NR’s rail-based vehicles will include a recently acquired Class 153 unit, which is being used to monitor track condition and provide data to inform maintenance plans. Colleagues from Supply Chain Operations are also providing a Mobile
Maintenance Train for display.
These trains are effectively ‘a workshop on wheels’ and make working on the railway quicker, safer, and more efficient, as well as less disruptive for passengers and freight.
For the first time, this year’s exhibitors will include supplier management and procurement teams from across NR, who will be available to talk to current and potential future suppliers.
Other exhibitors will include colleagues from NR’s Business and Technical Services team, including NR Training (which is planning to demonstrate its virtual reality training room) and the Asset Information Services team (which provides infrastructure monitoring services).
The Safety Task Force team will be present, with demonstrations of the latest technology designed to support safe working. There will also be examples of road fleet vehicles on display.