IT & SOFTWARE
C
ontinual assessment is a way to en- sure drivers retain the high standards
necessary for rail and for simulators to remain useful, according to the simula- tor centre manager for ScotRail, Malcolm Cook.
Simulators have been in use in rail for a long time, but have become much more prominent across the network as their value has been increasingly recognised by train operators.
Traction-specific vs generic simulators
The differences between types of train are not so extreme as to necessitate multiple simulators, and generic simulators can replicate a certain group of traction types, yet these are often rejected in favour of traction-specific models. This can be due to the motivation to achieve maximum cover- age of people who can gain the most from a traction specific simulator.
“We purchased class 334 and class 170 sim- ulators, because that covered around 93% of all our drivers,” Cook explained.
He added: “I believe it was the right deci- sion to buy traction-specific simulators for ScotRail. We walk into the cab and it is exactly the same as in a real train. All the switches work in exactly the same way, to create a very highly immersive environ- ment for the driver.”
Replicating reality There are three main companies in the UK
68 | rail technology magazine Dec/Jan 12
that manufacture simulators; Sydac, an Australian company based in Derby, Corys TESS, and German company Krauss-Maf- fei Wegmann.
Cook said: “They have all produced very good simulators in the UK rail industry.”
Simulator assessment is often conducted by a driver team manager, but ScotRail’s approach involved investment in a specific
centre staffed by permanent assessors. Six and a half hour assessments are conducted there four times a day, with the effective use of time and technology due to a manda- tory competent management system that requires drivers to attend the simulator.
Cook explained: “That business model has driven the investment in our simulators. We have a bespoke centre; people turn up and we’re always here.”
For an experienced, fully qualified driver with more than five years train driving, at- tendance is mandatory at the centre once
Malcolm Cook, simulator centre manager for ScotRail, and founder of the UK Rail Simulator User Group, talks to RTM about using simulation effectively.
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