News
Issue #2002 - 46 (December 2002)
(Updated Dec. 10, 2002)

APPLICATION SOLUTIONS & APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT

Swiss Federal Railway Improves Maintenance Response By Deploying Mobile Workforce Automation - Better return on investment for corporate data

Swiss Federal Railway (SBB) has embarked on an ambitious project to deploy mobile workforce automation to improve maintenance response times and rail punctuality. 

Better return on investment for corporate data
To maintain its vast railway infrastructure and keep track of assets and staff resources, the SBB has built the largest geographic information system (GIS) in the country. A team of 50 people maintains the SBB's Database of Fixed Assets (DFA), which holds location details for 200,000 fixed assets. This data is used to manage planning, maintenance, asset purchasing and overall performance, and is valued at 60 million Swiss francs ($35 million U.S.). Maximizing return on investment means ensuring that this resource is up-to-date and accurate and is widely available for decision-making purposes.

Providing mobile workers with access to DFA information
The SBB has taken the next logical step to exploit its valuable assets through innovative use of IntelliWhere LocationServer to provide mobile workers with access to DFA information in the field. Authorized SBB staff can use personal digital assistants (PDAs) to access DFA information any time, anywhere. A full network overview is available, as well as infrastructure information such as track length and positioning of signal points. The system can also assign jobs to staff by crosschecking availability and resources.

Improved workforce management and performance
The value of this system becomes obvious when time-critical disruptions occur. For example, if a tree falls on the track, the repair team is notified on their PDAs. The system provides the team with comprehensive information, such as the best route to the site, graphical system data from the DFA, and precise information on the damaged equipment. This major workflow simplification for maintenance personnel resolves problems faster and results in fewer delays for passengers.

Better asset management to bring about cost savings
The SBB anticipates significant cost savings with such a high-performance asset management tool. As the SBB's IT Manager PL-DFA, Urs Ribi, said, "Minimizing track downtime and improving punctuality is very important to the SBB. Every minute counts. IntelliWhere LocationServer is revolutionizing our network maintenance operations by simplifying our workflows and improving our responsiveness. With better asset data and a means to share it instantly over the whole network, we envisage cost savings due to more informed decision making for asset management."

For more information: http://www.intelliwhere.com

MobileInfo Comments and Advisory: This is a good case study that Amtrak and other transit agencies should investigate.

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