Operators

Statement of the Operator Group (DB, SNCF, Trenitalia)

Within the frame of the two Railway Packages, the High Speed and Conventional Rail Directives are being brought into effect by the publication of Technical Standards for Interoperability (TSIs) and validated via new and improved voluntary norms. The practical implementation of interoperability via these changes often lags considerably behind the legal framework.

To avoid the risk of each new train and locomotive being the subject of independent interpretations of the requirements and built from unproven prototype sub-assemblies interoperable constituents must be defined, validated and promoted at European industry level. That is why, the main European railways operators (SNCF, DB, Trenitalia) have decided to join their efforts in the MODTRAIN project to reach this objective.

As a starting point the industry will elaborate in continuous collaboration with the operators the necessary functional and physical interfaces, requirements and validation procedures as a reference to deliver the range of interchangeable modules that will make the next generation of inter-city trains and universal locomotives possible. The operators assess, amend and approve these specifications elaborated. At the end of the project open standards will be achieved for the most appropriate train components and their interfaces. The main criteria that will lead the evaluation of the outcomes all along the project duration is an economic and operational analysis.

Therefore, the four main steps representing the main thread on which the implementation plan is based are the following:

The elaboration of a generic Functional Requirements Specification and System Requirements Specification is the precondition for the further technical and scientific work regarding the principal elements running gear / the train control and monitoring system / the on-board power system / the man-machine and train-to-train interfaces.
Standardisation of functions and interfaces shall not stop at the level of the four principal elements (Subprojects). It also encompasses the definition of interfaces of smaller units and components (spare parts).
The interfaces of the modules and components are to be described in terms of open standards (to operators, industry and maintenance service providers).
If it proves to be necessary, acceptance and validation of the innovations generated in MODTRAIN should be underpinned by tests in service after the end of the project.

Through their involvement in all the management bodies and the MODUSER Subproject, the railway operators will have to realise, especially during the first year of the project, as main tasks in all the MODTRAIN technical Subprojects:

The location of modular interfaces to be standardised.
Functional end-user requirements that will be transformed in technical solutions by the industrial partners.
The elaboration of a priority list of modules and modular interfaces to be standardised according mainly to an economic criteria.

Expected savings performed by MODTRAIN come from three roots:

Convergence of Functional Requirement Specifications (FRS) between operators.
Interchangeable modules between different suppliers (effects of scale and competition).
Increase of productivity in manufacturing.

The practical work in the MODTRAIN project follows a guideline to ensure highest benefit just for the next generation of new rolling stock:

The industry takes the existing specifications, transforms them towards a first proposal of FRS for new powered rolling stock: Highest priority has the analysis of existing multinational approved vehicles (e.g. BB 437000, 427000, POS, CISALPINO, E 402, 412, BR 185, 189) that represent the best-practice of existing interoperable motive power.
The industry analyses the differences in functional requirements and elaborates draft FRS and System Requirement Specifications (SyRS) that are covering the harmonised and partly specific needs of the operators and the existing European interoperable railway network.
Main issues are the immediate applicability of the specifications. Therefore the assessment procedures and compliance with existing technical homologation requirements shall be carefully analysed and demonstrated.
The FRS and SyRS become results of an iterative interaction between operators and suppliers and contain the delivery of Functional Interface Specification (FIS) or Form Fit Function Interface Specification (FFFIS) where necessary for the essential target of MODTRAIN: interchangeability of components and modules.
The main responsibility of the Operator Group is consequently the assessment of the specifications, if the various review loops have been successful and the specifications are proven to be compliant with the above mentioned requirements. For reaching this goal, innovation is welcome as a mean for standardisation and modularisation.

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