Aberdeen oil and gas technology firm Petrotechnics has been signed up to help improve the safety of rail workers as part of a national initiative by track owner and operator Network Rail.
Petrotechnics specialises in software to improve frontline operational performance and risk management in hazardous industries.
Announcing its latest contract yesterday, its said its Proscient system was to be used to increase safety and improve productivity across 20,000 miles of railway by reducing the risk of delays, engineering overruns and spiralling maintenance costs.
Working in partnership with the US technology giant Computer Sciences Corporation, Petrotechnics’ input forms part of Network Rail’s Planning and Delivering Safe Work programme, which is introducing safety improvements across the UK rail network.
Proscient is expected to standardise the management of essential maintenance and repairs to cut the amount of time railworkers spend on the tracks and reduce the risk of injury and fatalities to staff. The value of the contract was not disclosed.
Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne, who joined Network Rail in 2014 after a 30-year career in the oil and gas industry, said: “Safety is at the heart of what we do.
“Our vision that everyone goes home safe at the end of every day is something we must achieve.
“The Planning and Delivering Safe Work programme is one of the key strategic programmes that will help us to deliver this vision by improving decision-making, conversations and behaviours for safer, more effective working.”
He added: “Proscient is essential to this programme as we believe that this deployment will allow us to reduce current levels of complexity and focus on considering and controlling operational risk more effectively.
“With tremendous expertise and capabilities, Petrotechnics was the best choice both for the technology solution and as a strategic partner.”
Petrotechnics executive vice-president Iain Mackay said: “Petrotechnics is proud to be working with Network Rail to get more work done with less time and resources, while reducing risk to its people and assets.
“No matter which hazardous industry we look to, resources and time is becoming increasingly constrained and this must all be managed in the context of optimising work and reducing risk.”
Petrotechnics, which has offices in Aberdeen, the US, Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Singapore, received a £6million funding injection from the Business Growth Fund (BGF) two years ago, with BGF taking a minority stake in the firm.
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