CPA Bulletin

www.cpa.uk.net CPA Bulletin > February 2020 45 rail plant association RAIL PLANT ASSOCIATION: 1 My thanks go to those who helped formulate the article. To coincide with publication, we published a Position Paper titled, ‘The UK rail plant industry in 2019 - coming off the tracks?’ This has been shared with a host of stakeholders from across the industry, government and with leading members of several House of Commons select committees and all party committees with an interest in the UK’s railways. A copy can be sent on request, but also be found on the CPA website at www.cpa.uk.net . The paper follows the arguments that are well known to those in the industry and then concludes with the following recommendations. Recommendation one Develop a Williams style review looking at the railway infrastructure industry - concentrating on efficiency, work patterns and the commissioning process. While Williams is looking at the passenger network, the role of the companies, timetabling, fares and the role of the Department of Transport, the set-up and processes around the development of railway infrastructure were not included in its remit. The review should consider each element of the infrastructure - including future trends and developments in technology and the skills needed. It should consider what works well in the commissioning process and where the industry hasmade efficiency savings while working to schedule. It must also look at where the industry is failing - and why. The review must provide workable, practical solutions that the industry and the government buy into and commit to - especially around the boom and bust cycle. Recommendation two The industry and stakeholders, such as Network Rail and the Rail Delivery Group, must come together and work on equal terms, leading a working group that builds on the recommendations outlined in the proposed rail infrastructure review. If progress is to be made, we need to see the industry, rail authorities and the government, coming together and working as one to solve these issues. The working group must have a clear remit, clear lines of communication and accountability. Above all else, it must work with both the Department of Transport and the Treasury in outlining the challenges and solutions the industry needs. Recommendation three A feature of the 2008/2009 downturn was the number of companies able to keep job losses to a minimum against a challenging economic landscape. As our research suggests, rail plant companies are suffering and losing out on skilled workers - both when work levels fall but also when they return. More work must be done by the industry in pooling resources, looking at transferrable skills and, where possible, work with the wider plant-hire industry in advertising job roles and opportunities for further training and development. The forthcoming CPA Skills Strategy will include RPA members in setting its agenda and development. Recommendation four Regulation and compliance are vital to the safe operation and maintenance of a system as complex as the rail network. Rail plant companies have a proud record of playing their part in ensuring health and safety standards are maintained, with constant monitoring to ensure they meet current regulatory requirements. However, in this safety critical environment, companies are forced to follow an inflexible, rules-based culture of compliance that does not allow for innovation, is often inefficient and adds unnecessary cost and delay to work, adding further to the economic risk companies are working under. To be clear, we are not calling for regulations to be compromised in any way. Safety is paramount, both for operators and users of our railways. But we do need realism and an honest discussion within the industry, Network Rail and the government in identifying where this culture of inflexibility around compliance is having an adverse impact on rail plant operators and adding to the economic burden such companies face. Short and long-term planning In October, the government released details of its £10 billion enhancements programme, which covers both short and long-term rail investment priorities funded by the Control Period 6 enhancements budget. It is, however, noted that most projects will involve considerable design and development work so will not come to fruition as far as our part of the industry is concerned for some years. When I penned the Rail Plant Association (RPA) report for the last issue of the CPA Bulletin, I took a different direction and highlighted in detail the effects of the current downturn in workload. This followed discussions with members who were seeing a clear downward trajectory of their order book, having received little comfort from our friends at Network Rail who predicted it would get worse before it got better.