Digitally Enabling Electrification

The aim of the Digitally Enabled Electrification project is to develop an integrated digital electrification delivery solution for Overhead Line Equipment (OLE). It will do this by analysing and streamlining current practice and requirements for the data exchange interfaces and process involved. This promotes the Government’s £310bn infrastructure plan, Construction Strategy for the use of Level 2 Building Information Modelling (“BIM”) by 2016, intelligent asset management as identified in the Rail Technology Strategy (“RTS”) and the 'asset themes' within the Network Rail Technical Strategy ("NRTS"). In order to drive the ability to reduce infrastructure and operations costs, the project will research and leverage emerging digital technology available to establish and map the survey, design, manufacture and on site assembly, and delivery processes and enable integration of each from the currently fragmented sub processes. Digital models can then be used to inform decisions, reduce design and construction risk and, once commissioned, will enable effective asset management of not only the OLE elements but also the related civils, power supply and programme management. The team will include Laing O'Rourke (a major UK civil engineering enterprise and manufacturer), Atkins (a worldwide consulting firm), Imperial College (leading on surveying technology and data integration) and DHP11 (software developers for infrastructure and utility organisations).