Case Studies


Train Owner Case Studies

Door
Diagnostics

The Door Diagnostics Unit (DDU) enables
remote monitoring of train doors through
the use of inductively coupled telemetry.
It is a low cost solution that delivers “health indicators” on the doors that allow effective
and targeted interventions to be made.
Instrumentel designed a remote
monitoring solution based around
their proven Diagnostic Hub,
which is in use on multiple fleets
in the UK for condition monitoring.

ScotRail
Data into information

Eurostar required a solution for the supply
of materials that would reduce time, procurement activities and storage optimisation. Unipart Rail’s kitting system significantly reduced the
time taken to complete the overhaul operation.

Eurostar
Re-usable kitting solution

Hinged
Light Diffusers

Northern Rail had a number of reported
driver complaints about draughts
in the driver’s cab of the Class 150 vehicles.
Unipart Rail provided a solution to the
challenge through the design of a new diffuser panel.

Code
Conversion Unit

The new Unipart Rail Code Conversion Unit
has been proven in service to improve
reliability, reduce power consumption,
reduce mass and reduce potential
failure modes.
Unipart Rail, in conjunction with SV dampers
from Finland, were set the challenge of
developing a new damper to replace the
existing Woodhead and Pegasus units,
fitted to BT 10 bogies.

Dampers
for B10 Bogie (MK3 Fleets)

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

TPWSfour© For ETCS
equipped trains

Unipart Rail’s TPWSfour and AWS systems, which are designed and manufactured in house, are equipped with the latest Evo control unit are fully compatible with the rail industry standards and ETCS requirements and have proven high levels of reliability in service.

Train Operating Company Case Studies

Freightliner
SmartServe Solution

Freightliner approached Unipart Rail as they
were opening a new depot and were looking for
an innovative solution that would support
their maintenance activities. Unipart Rail’s SmartServe solution provides a flexible and scalable solution that can be fine-tuned to customer requirements.

Unipart Rail’s World Class depot stores facility
was operational in less than 3 months,
delivering fantastic results including 98% stock accuracy, 97% availability and 50%
reduction in defects.

Northern Rail
Depot Stores Management

Unipart Rail have increased the efficiency
and effectiveness of South West Train’s stores, enabling them to improve their service to production and reducing visits to the stores by 54%.

South West Trains
Lean Depot Stores

Irish Rail
Transforming the Supply Chain

Following a diagnostic, a programme was developed to work with Iarnród Eireann employees to deliver improvements across the Supply Chain and develop their own Lean internal capability.

Metro Trains Melbourne PTY ltd approached Unipart Rail’s Expert practitioners to complete a  diagnostic across their total supply chain, using their structured and standardised approach.

MTM
Supply Chain Diagnostics

Sydney Trains engaged Unipart Rail to
undertake a diagnostic study at their light maintenance depot stores operations.
Results included costs savings of 20% and increased material availability to 98%.

Sydney Trains
Depot Stores Diagnostic

HVAC
Carrier

The design challenge for Ferrartis was to
improve the structural integrity of an
existing storage frame for train air
conditioning units and to be able to
stack the frames 5 units high.

The transportation of train seats from the
supplier in Spain to the UK required a more secure means of transport to prevent the
items being vandalised or damaged in
transit as well to increase the number
of units that could be shipped in a
haulage vehicle.

Ultima
BRC

Ferrartis were asked by a client to design
and manufacture a free standing storage
unit to accommodate 8 train axles that
needed to retain its stability when
unevenly loaded.

Axle Storage
for space saving

Brake Disc
Carrier

Ferrartis were approached by a client to
design and supply a quantity of brake disc
carriers which would be able to
accommodate 10 discs. The issues the
client had to resolve were a shortage of
storage space, the discs needed to be
protected better during transport and
they needed to be easy to remove
from the carrier when required

The challenge was to design and manufacture
a bogie stacking system in which the bogies
sat independently of each other and where
the wheels could be revolved in situ to
satisfy new rail industry standards. If the
wheels cannot be regularly turned this
could lead to brinelling of the bearings,
ultimate failure and expensive replacement.

Titan Bogie
Storage

Yarra Trams
Visualisation Hub

The imminent move to a new head office
building presented an opportunity for a
dedicated visualisation room for this
purpose, with the aim to cascade this
model throughout the business.

Chiltern Railways
Wildlife Garden Project

We established a project to improve the
area to both encourage wildlife to return,
and to provide an area where depot
colleagues could take breaks away from
the working environment in a calm and
pleasant space.

TrackPan Installation at
Perth Train Depot

A bespoke solution for waste water management for a customer installing a new train wash facility in Perth train depot.

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

TPWSfour© For ETCS
equipped trains

Unipart Rail’s TPWSfour and AWS systems, which are designed and manufactured in house, are equipped with the latest Evo control unit are fully compatible with the rail industry standards and ETCS requirements and have proven high levels of reliability in service.

Compressor Service/
Refurbishment

Compressors were a completely new product stream for our business, but our skills in creating new overhaul processes, test procedures and developing staff skills meant that this was a straightforward challenge for us.

CAMCO Visualisation
Centre

A Visualisation Centre was implemented and CAMCO employees were trained in Lean Tools and Techniques, Visual Management and Effective team meetings.

Freight Operating Company Case Studies

Freightliner
SmartServe Solution

Freightliner approached Unipart Rail as they
were opening a new depot and were looking for
an innovative solution that would support
their maintenance activities. Unipart Rail’s SmartServe solution provides a flexible and scalable solution that can be fine-tuned to customer requirements.

Northern Rail
Depot Stores Management

Unipart Rail’s World Class depot stores facility
was operational in less than 3 months,
delivering fantastic results including 98% stock accuracy, 97% availability and 50%
reduction in defects.

Ferrartis were asked to develop a stacking and storage system for a number of 7 ton electrical generator units.

Samson 9T
Generator Frame

Axle Storage
2 and 4 set

The design and manufacturing challenge was to create train axle storage units that could accommodate 2 or 4 axle sets that offered full protection of the axle and was stackable 5 high.

 

Falcon 2
Rail Lifting Hoist

 

Ferrartis were asked to improve the design and performance of an existing winch which was used on the front of a track maintenance vehicle to lift rails.

 

The storage of wheelsets has traditionally been on racking that does not allow for the easy inspection and rotation of the wheels.

 

Dynamic Wheelset
Carrier Systems

Traction Motor
Stillage

Ferrartis were asked to design a traction
motor cradle that enabled a minimum of
3 units to be stacked and where the frame provided protection to the motor, particularly
the loom area, during transport and storage.
The unit also needed to allow access from 2 directions to enable the frames to be lifted by a fork lift in the storage facility

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

TPWSfour© For ETCS
equipped trains

Unipart Rail’s TPWSfour and AWS systems, which are designed and manufactured in house, are equipped with the latest Evo control unit are fully compatible with the rail industry standards and ETCS requirements and have proven high levels of reliability in service.

Train Builder Case Studies

Siemens
Performance through Engagement

Siemens Traincare staff attended
Unipart Expert Practices 1 week
Lean Academy, to learn how to
implement lean tools and techniques
within their project. Results include
98% increase in material availability.

Our engineers went back to basics
and redesigned the TPWSfour
system to develop its functionality.

TPWSfour
Product Innovation

Sydney Trains engaged Unipart Rail to
undertake a diagnostic study at their light maintenance depot stores operations.
Results included costs savings of 20% and increased material availability to 98%.

Door Diagnostics

Axle Storage
2 and 4 set

The design and manufacturing challenge was to create train axle storage units that could accommodate 2 or 4 axle sets that offered full protection of the axle and was stackable 5 high.

 

Falcon 2
Rail Lifting Hoist

 

Ferrartis were asked to improve the design and performance of an existing winch which was used on the front of a track maintenance vehicle to lift rails.

 

The storage of wheelsets has traditionally been on racking that does not allow for the easy inspection and rotation of the wheels.

 

Dynamic Wheelset
Carrier Systems

UGL Maintrain
Supply Chain Diagnostic

Unipart Rail worked with the UGL Maintrain
team to complete a Diagnostic activity in
order to understand how the Supply Chain operation could be improved.

Siemens
Spares Support Bogie overhaul

Unipart Rail was awarded a prestigious
contract to overhaul Siemens Class 444
bogies at its Production Business Unit (PBU)
in Doncaster. The requirement was to overhaul 450 bogies over a period of 13 months

 

The biggest tram depot redevelopment in Melbourne’s history transformed Preston Workshops into a state-of-the-art facility for new generation E-Class trams.

Yarra Trams
Transformation

Southern
Performance Through Engagement

Southern Railway approached Unipart to
conduct a strategic review of their spares
and storage capacity across all of their four depots, with the objective of generating a
storage strategy that would meet the changing needs of the business, without a major
investment in capital.

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

TPWSfour© For ETCS
equipped trains

Unipart Rail’s TPWSfour and AWS systems, which are designed and manufactured in house, are equipped with the latest Evo control unit are fully compatible with the rail industry standards and ETCS requirements and have proven high levels of reliability in service.

Rolling Stock Maintainer and Overhauler Case Studies

Freightliner
SmartServe Solution

Freightliner approached Unipart Rail as they
were opening a new depot and were looking for
an innovative solution that would support
their maintenance activities. Unipart Rail’s SmartServe solution provides a flexible and scalable solution that can be fine-tuned to customer requirements.

Dampers
for B10 Bogie (MK3 Fleets)

Unipart Rail, in conjunction with SV dampers
from Finland, were set the challenge of
developing a new damper to replace the
existing Woodhead and Pegasus units,
fitted to BT 10 bogies.
Unipart Rail have increased the efficiency
and effectiveness of South West Train’s stores, enabling them to improve their service to production and reducing visits to the stores by 54%.

South West Trains
Lean Depot Stores

Siemens
Performance through Engagement

Siemens Traincare staff attended
Unipart Expert Practices 1 week
Lean Academy, to learn how to
implement lean tools and techniques
within their project. Results include
98% increase in material availability.

As a result of the Unipart Rail programme, Northern Rail have produced excellent improvements in reliability and availability. These include 50% reduction in open defects and 46% reduction in time

Northern
Performance through Engagement

Due to the old version of TCAIDs becoming obsolete, the route services team worked with Unipart Rail to re-engineer the equipment by removing the older, unreliable circuitry and replacing it with digital components that provide far greater resilience.

Wessex Leaf-Fall Track Circuit Solution

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

CAMCO Visualisation
Centre

A Visualisation Centre was implemented and CAMCO employees were trained in Lean Tools and Techniques, Visual Management and Effective team meetings.

Contractor Case Studies

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

Balfour Beatty
Remote Warehouse

Unipart Rail reduced Balfour Beatty’s
stockholding by 95% and stock value
by over £140,000 within a year, with
availability and performance increasing
at the same time.

VolkerRail
Supply Chain Services

The Unipart Rail team went the Extra Mile
for VolkerRail, providing them with a continuous supply of materials and full support during a Christmas ‘blockade’.

Staffordshire Alliance
Offsite Factory

Unipart Rail developed a ‘one stop shop’
solution for The Staffordshire Alliance to
solve the problems they faced when fabricating and storing complex overhead line equipment.

Babcock
Commissioning Spares

Babcock was delivering the Coleraine to Derry~ Londonderry project in Northern Ireland and needed a reliable supply chain provider to support the entire project delivery.

London Underground
Depot Management

Unipart Rail created a ‘Model Line’ satellite depot for London Underground. The new system provided them with Underground with greater understanding of their ‘product flow’ procedures and the practicality of the depot layout was drastically improved.

Atkins
Feltham Project

The project required improved material controls
to provide a more efficient process for material location and identification when on site.

Atkins
Relocatable Equipment Buildings

Unipart Rail’s specially designed equipment minimises trackside installation time and the carefully co-ordinated logistics process ensures a safe environment for all workers.

Atkins
Feltham Emergency Materials

The Feltham Phase 1 project took place over a 12-18 month period and was segregated into individual work packages, with time bound critical delivery schedules.

Infrastructure Owner Case Studies

Collaborative Working
and 44001

In response to industry and customer
needs, Unipart Rail has been certified
firstly to the BS11000 and then to the
subsequent ISO 44001 standard for
Collaborative Business Relationship
Management Systems.

Network Rail
Partnering Renewals

During the Wigan to Preston Blockade,
Unipart Rail’s procurement and supplier management skills, meant that all materials
were procured, and made available
at the right places, at the right time.

Zero
Maintenance Signalling

Unipart Dorman lightweight signals now are designated ‘self-cleaning’ and require no visits
for signals in locations where they are exposed
to free falling rain. It is estimated that this will reduce maintenance costs by over £4,061,000
over the life of the signals.

Babcock
Commissioning Spares

Babcock was delivering the Coleraine to
Derry~ Londonderry project in
Northern Ireland and needed a reliable
supply chain provider to support the
entire project delivery.

Network Rail
Point Machine Refurbishment

The partnership approach to the point-
machine repair process has achieved a
cost-saving for Network Rail of £750,000
against the purchase of new machines,
an overall saving of 50%.

MTM
Supply Chain Diagnostics

Metro Trains Melbourne PTY ltd approached Unipart Rail’s Expert practitioners to complete a  diagnostic across their total supply chain, using their structured and standardised approach.

WigWag Innovation

Unipart Rail mobilised its Innovation
Centres of Excellence to develop a
complete new WigWag which not only
had much higher luminous intensity,
but also an improved ‘tilt’ mechanism
for local adjustment.

Alstom
Materials Reclamation

When Alstom were planning to de-mobilise
their Peterborough stores, they turned to
Unipart Rail to manage the process

London Underground
Depot Management

Unipart Rail worked closely with Balfour
Beatty to identify their precise material requirements, by helping the customer
to focus on their exact needs, it eliminated
over-stocking and allowed the stores to be arranged in a logical way.

Sydney Trains Order Process

The objective of this project was to reduce
lead time of product from a customer
order being received at the REC to
the material being available for collection
by the customer.

Sydney Trains
Skill Capture

The Rail Equipment Centre (REC) had identified
a business risk due to an aging workforce with either none or very little capture of skills for the manufacture /overhaul of its products..

Atkins
Feltham Project

The project required improved material
controls to provide a more efficient
process for material location and
identification when on site.

Wessex Leaf-Fall Track Circuit Solution

Due to the old version of TCAIDs becoming obsolete, the route services team worked with Unipart Rail to re-engineer the equipment by removing the older, unreliable circuitry and replacing it with digital components that provide far greater resilience.

Atkins
Feltham Emergency Materials

The Feltham Phase 1 project took place over a 12-18 month period and was segregated into individual work packages, with time bound critical delivery schedules.

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