Southeastern’s ongoing programme to achieve improved train performance and better journeys for passengers has seen the rail operator team up with leading provider of sustainable and efficient transport solutions, Siemens Mobility and British rolling stock company, Eversholt Rail.

The programme will see the development of a fully automated vehicle inspection system as part of the rail operator’s focus on improving services and offering enhanced customer experience.

The rail operator’s Ramsgate train maintenance facility will see the state-of-the-art technology installed, which utilises high-sensitivity cameras and optical laser sensors to capture and analyse data regarding the Southeastern fleet‘s condition, including:

• Brake pads
• Collector shoes
• Wheel profiles
• Wheel tread thickness
• Underframe inspections

The data collected by the Automated Vehicle Inspection (AVI) technology will enable the rail operator to deliver a more efficient on-demand maintenance programme, cutting out unnecessary work such as automatic changes after set mileage and moving to a targeted maintenance approach.

The AVI will also provide better safety standards as consistent measurement and component assessments report safety alerts immediately whilst offering a 48-hour forecast for failures.

The programme is set to get started by the end of 2023, with construction planned during 2024 and automated inspection beginning by 2025.

Mark Johnson, Southeastern’s Engineering Director, said:

“We’re always looking at how we can deliver a more reliable and sustainable railway to give better journeys for our customers, and running a fully automated vehicle inspection system certainly helps us to do that.”

“Siemens Mobility has considerable experience with this technology across the rail industry and I’m very much looking forward to seeing what this partnership can achieve.”

John Butler, Siemens Mobility UKI Head of Customer Service for Rail Infrastructure, said:

“We’re happy to be partnering with Southeastern as they introduce this automatic vehicle inspection technology. The technology will provide detailed information on each train in the fleet which can then be used to reduce maintenance time in the depot, ensuring the trains can continue to run reliably.”

Paul Sutherland, Eversholt Rail’s Client Services Director, said:

“We’re delighted to be working in partnership with Southeastern and Siemens Mobility to develop this automatic vehicle inspection technology for use on our fleets of trains. This further investment in our Southeastern fleets demonstrates the importance of providing an improved travelling experience for customers in the South East”.