Russia: The fleet of the national operator Russian Railways includes 20 Sapsan high-speed EMUs and 283 Lastochka regional EMUs of various modifications. Until April 2022, their maintenance was the responsibility of Siemens Mobility, but the company decided to leave the Russian market, so the task of continuing to maintain the trains had to be resolved as soon as possible.
To accomplish this task, it was necessary to ensure the transition to domestic maintenance software used in maintenance. One of the most important projects was the transition to a key information system ensuring the management of the entire maintenance process, and it was implemented by VSM-Service in cooperation with NIIAS, an R&D institute of Russian Railways.
Realities of 2022–2024
Railway transportation is inextricably linked with a high level of maintenance of rolling stock. To maintain safe operation, trains require constant monitoring and scheduled maintenance.
Over the last few decades, the world’s leading railway companies have been relying on computerised maintenance management system (CMMS). These systems automate maintenance processes, train condition monitoring and fault recording, thereby reducing the likelihood of human error and increasing operational efficiency. With such systems, it becomes possible to keep accurate records of materials and equipment used and to plan their purchase rationally, significantly optimising business costs.
Until April 2022, Siemens Mobility was responsible for the maintenance of the Sapsans and the Lastochkas. Upon the termination of its activities in the Russian Federation, measures were taken as soon as possible to further ensure the maintenance of the high-tech rolling stock.
The Sapsans high-speed EMUS maintained by VSM-Service. Source: VSM-Service
From June 2022, VSM-Service has been ensuring comprehensive train maintenance. Its first task to be solved was the urgent replacement of ERP and CMMS systems that ensure the automation of processes. One of these systems was CMMS CORMAP, an IBM Maximo-based system used to manage maintenance and control repair processes.
Russian specialists were faced with the task of not only maintaining the continuity of rolling stock maintenance, but also developing a new system that would meet the new realities. Existing maintenance process requirements became the catalyst for the development of new solutions.
Map of the GROM information system (enlarge). Source: VSM-Service
GROM information system
The management of VSM-Service decided to commission NIIAS, a research and development institute for IT deployment, automation and communications, to develop software for the automation of production processes.
The task team was led by S. Ponomarenko, General Director of VSM-Service, and P. Popov, Deputy General Director of NIIAS and Head of the St. Petersburg Branch of the institute. Other experts involved were D. Yakkonen and P. Kiselev from NIIAS and Y. Utkina, chief engineer for automation of work processes, and M. Shevchenko, chief engineer and head of department, from VSM-Service. They developed a completely domestic maintenance management information system called GROM (literally, Multifunctional Repair and Maintenance Schedule in Russian).
Sergey Ponomarenko, General Director of VSM-Service
“We are proud that in such a short time, we were able to create a fully-fledged system for automation of the maintenance of high-speed rolling stock, which is not inferior to foreign analogues. I am sure that our experience will be useful, so we are ready to share it with colleagues both in the Russian Federation and abroad”.
As the system was meant to organise the planning and control of the maintenance and repair of the Sapsans and Lastochkas, this project was not just a response to the challenge of import substitution, but also an opportunity to develop a system that would suit the Russian conditions and user requirements.
When developing GROM, VSM-Service analysts used the experience gained during from the operation of CORMAP to take into account the needs of field staff and to develop convenient and functional solutions for the new Russian system.
With the prompt transition from European to domestic software, the company could ensure continuity of operations without compromising the quality of the services provided.
System design based on user experience
GROM’s modular structure allows it to be tailored to specific models and types of rolling stock, covering the maintenance from an entire train down to individual components such as an air conditioning unit.
The system is fully managed by the company, allowing for the changes to be made as quickly and flexibly as possible to meet emerging needs for different trains and types of maintenance. The ability to integrate with other systems and an adaptive approach to processes have enabled GROM not only to replace foreign analogues, such as SAP, COSIMA and RailAgent, but also to outperform them.
NIIAS experts have designed a user interface with an intuitive navigation and control system. The UX design and action sequence make it as easy and quick as possible for employees to perform their tasks, which is particularly important for maintaining high levels of work efficiency. The system features intuitive workflows that allow employees to navigate through tasks quickly and minimise preparation time.
GROM user interface (enlarge). Source: VSM-Service
The UI design is available in two themes: light and dark. During the development, the developers relied on user experience in a similar system, and the implementation decision was made with the participation of the system’s end users.
Integration with other systems enabled by modular structure
GROM provides the capabilities required to effectively manage EMU maintenance:
- Asset Management to track location, mileage, engine hours and component condition, making it possible to timely schedule repairs and manage available assets.
- Maintenance Scheduling to automatically generate work orders using configurable counters and component status data such as mileage, engine hours and operating time, eliminating the possibility of scheduling errors.
- Fault Logging to record unscheduled maintenance, track causes of faults and collect statistics for further analysis.
- Report Generation to download any information from the system for analysis and decision making.
- Document flow optimisation to eliminate paper documents and Excel files, while the mobile version speeds up the process of fault logging.
With the modular architecture, the system can also be integrated with external systems, such as 1C: Managing Our Company, a warehouse accounting system.
Main effects of GROM implementation
GROM has already been implemented at 13 VSM-Service sites, and the main effect has been to reduce the time required to process work orders by about 10% compared to last year’s figures. Increasing the speed of finding information about faults has also led to greater number of work orders processed, resulting in a 16% increase in labour productivity compared to last year. The forecast reduction in administrative costs after the introduction of the mobile application and the complete transition to paperless document management, is 21% of the current year’s costs.
An important consideration when using systems such as GROM is that they provide an accurate record of all transactions, reducing the likelihood of errors and increasing the overall efficiency of the business.
GROM user interface (enlarge). Source: VSM-Service
Extensible functionality of GROM
The functionality of the information system will be further expanded to meet the requirements of the higher level of automation. VSM-Service is currently working on the following functions, systems and versions:
- Mobile application for maintenance personnel, allowing them to transmit information from their workplace in real time.
- Automatic inspection checklists to be collected by type and condition of rolling stock components.
- Integration with diagnostic systems to obtain real-time data on equipment status.
- Subsystem to create and manage process instructions, enabling faster implementation of new work processes.
- Subsystem to control measurements and monitor condition of wheelsets.
- AI to communicate with users and enable predictive diagnostics used to identify faults before they occur.
This approach to the development and implementation of GROM allows VSM-Service to quickly adapt to changing business needs and to progressively extend the functionality of the system.
Maintenance of trains at VSM-Service site. Source: VSM-Service
The uniqueness of GROM and the continuous development of its capabilities make it a key element of VSM-Service’s development strategy in optimisation of operational processes. For the GROM information system, NIIAS created, patented and registered a unique software code in the Unified Register of Russian Programmes for Electronic Computing Machines and Databases. In some areas, the functionality of GROM is superior to previously available rolling stock repair management systems. When implemented, VSM-Service’s further plans will allow GROM to be integrated with other digital systems of Russian Railways. And last but not least, GROM has been developed through the coordinated teamwork of experts from VSM-Service and NIIAS.
Authors:
Yana Utkina, chief engineer for automation of work processes, VSM-Service
Ksenia Shapovalova, head of the digital transformation product group, VSM-Service
Ilya Rybintsev, digitalization advisor to the CEO, VSM-Service, ierybintsev94@gmail.com
Stanislav Mochalin, PR specialist, VSM-Service
Pavel Kiselev, project manager, NIIAS
Dmitry Yakkonen, head of the Centre for intelligent information systems, NIIAS
