Alignment

• Product Focus - GEDO IMS

• Interview with Trimble Rail’s

Matthew Moss

• KOREC News

• Enhancing safety on site

with new technology

This issue

continued overleaf.... continued overleaf....

Contact marketing@korecgroup.com now to request a copy of our newly launched KOREC Rail calendar!Stop Press

Issue 1 2019The Rail newsletter from KOREC

Train of thought:PRODUCTIVITYKOREC’s rail specialist, Matthew Lock, will be introducing each of our rail newsletters. In our first issue, he’s focusing on Productivity.

At KOREC we want to provide our customers with the best solutions for their requirements, to enable them to become more productive, more profitable and to make their lives easier. One definition of a solution is “a means of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation” and that’s where we come in. We can listen to your issues and requirements, then pick the products and services from our “toolbox” and blend them together to present you with a solution.

Over the years we have had some fantastic products. When I started in sales with Spectra Precision at the beginning of 2000, robotic total stations were being used widely by two customer groups in the UK. Not the land survey companies they were originally designed for, but the police and rail companies. Why? Because they both needed to survey fast, in all weathers, day or night – speed and

Matthew Lock

Product FocusGEDO IMS UpdateIt has been just over a year since we launched the Trimble GEDO IMS and we have seen significant interest in the productivity and safety benefits the system brings. Because of the GEDO IMS workflow and the fact that it is just a single TMD, measuring track geometry and the surrounding infrastructure is faster and easier than ever before.

For survey, adding a scanner to the GEDO IMS allows a highly accurate and detailed point-cloud to be captured at just over 2,000 metres per hour and then processed through GEDO Scan Office software. The user-friendly functionality of the office software allows the production of deliverables such as clearance cross-sections quickly and easily. There are also smart routines such as:

• Track Detector Tool which generates adjacent tracks from the point-cloud. This means you don’t have to necessarily measure the adjacent roads, saving time, money and improving safety.

• Shape Tracing Tool allows the user to input a cross-section template or digitise one, click on the point-cloud then the software will automatically draw the required point, perfect for creating the platform edge or cable troughing.

• Collision Detection Tool enables a 2D or 3D wagon to be run along the track to check it does not clash with the surroundings. Not only is this useful in platforms, tunnels and areas of limited clearance, but it can also be used to check the proximity of surrounding vegetation as well as assist with validating new designs.

• OLE Detector Tool (new) traces the overhead wires and generates a height and stagger report as well as the location of the masts,all at the click of a button.

The GEDO IMS is also proving highly effective on rail construction and renewal projects. A laser profiler can be added to the system along with the Alignment Module on the field

The Trimble GEDO IMS - one year on

The Rail Newsletter from KOREC

PRODUCTIVITY continued...

Enhancing safety on site with new technology

KOREC NewsKOREC rail photo competition

After receiving so many great rail pics in our KOREC photo competition, we decided to launch a contest dedicated to rail! We’ll be using the best submissions in our new 2020 dedicated calendar as well as awarding them a great prize.

Congratulations to our first winner, Steve Canon of SEP Rail Services who has won a KOREC jacket for this great shot

combining old and new as the steam train, Union of South Africa passed straight through the work site!

Our fantastic Alignment front cover shot is courtesy of a previous winner, Network Rail’s Mark Woollacott.

Email your entries to marketing@korecgroup.com or post on Twitter using #KORECRailPhotoCompetition nnn

KOREC webinars

Our KORECGroup YouTube channel is the place to find all our useful videos along with recordings of our webinar series which includes everything from training pointers to in-depth instrument analysis. Top of our list for rail is a useful round-up from our own Matthew Lock covering software updates and hardware tweaks for all the Trimble GEDO technology, a real time demonstration in Trimble GEDO Scan Office and a look at handling that data in Trimble Connect.

Find it at https://bit.ly/2kjs6KO nnn

KOREC on the road

If you missed us at RailTex and RailLive, you can still catch up with our KOREC rail team at the Welsh Transport Conference in Cardiff on November 28th.

Looking ahead, not to be missed in 2020 is InnoTrans, the world’s largest trade fair focused on the rail transport industry. As ever, there will be a large Trimble presence at this event in Berlin, 22-25 September (www.innotrans.com). nnn

Congratulations Steve Canon!

Trimble Catalyst

Trimble SiteVision - viewing a new platform layout

Trimble HoloLens and hologram showing a rail platform

Low cost, high accuracy, on demand GPS using Trimble Catalyst

Imagine what you could do with a subscription service that gives you pay-per-use access to centimetre-precision GPS positioning on your Android phone or tablet….and with hardware costs so low (just a lightweight receiver), you could equip an entire workforce?

In the rail environment, on-demand, centimetre accuracy can bring untold safety benefits:

• Providing the location of individuals and real-time verification that they are exactly where they are meant to be with centimetre accuracy and importantly, which line they are on.

• The accurate positioning of assets for repair ensuring the right asset is quickly located.

• Increased productivity reducing the amount of time a worker spends on site.

In all of these examples, the key is Trimble Catalyst On-Demand, an easy to use, lightweight, centimetre accuracy GPS that’s an affordable option for whole teams.

Key benefit: Affordable, high-accuracy positioning for every site worker.

Handheld, high accuracy system using augmented reality using Trimble SiteVision

Just released, SiteVision is a high-accuracy, augmented reality system that uses Trimble Catalyst (see above) to provide its positioning information. The end result is a handheld 50mm solution that enables users and clients to visually understand how information such as new bridge/rail designs, existing underground services and OLE and future landscapes will look over time, all without the need to interpret drawings or maps.

But what can it offer the rail industry? In a nutshell, safety. All on screen information can be reviewed from any angle or position on site, away from the track. Applications are endless from the fast location of assets to the visualisation of new bridge or OLE designs to undertaking safety walkouts, from a position of safety such as an overbridge or in the cess, with everyone looking at the same thing. Additionally, it’s great for visualising the impact of anything from a retaining wall to where new cabling will go during track renewals.

The key to SiteVision is the quality of your existing data - this system allows you to use what you already have in an entirely new way.

We’ve just released a new KOREC video outlining the benefits of this system with the help of Skanska’s Mark Lawton. View it on our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/KORECGROUP

Key benefit: Fast, accurate location of buried assets reducing time on site.

Blend real-world objects with digital content, interactively, and in real-time using Trimble HoloLens

KOREC has also been out and about showcasing Trimble HoloLens at RailTex, RailLive and our own meetings and events. This is a Mixed Reality system that through the use of holographic technology brings models out of the screen for the efficient interpretation of physical and digital information and the spatial relations between them.

We’ve seen a lot of interest from the rail industry for office based, site briefings that allow for engineers to be fully familiarised with a site without having to set a foot on it.

Key benefit: Site familiarisation from the safety of the office. nnn

software allowing the engineer to compare the measured track against a design and export a tamper front offset file while still on track, along with Track Quality and Speed Raising reports. Again, because the GEDO IMS is a single TMD, it can follow closely behind the tamper on site, needs minimal protection staff in the blockade to support it and is robust and easy to use, improving productivity and safety.

The system will continue to be enhanced with new features and upgrades. One of the latest releases sees the ability to check a user defined clearance profile live on site, so checking a train won’t strike a platform is now easier than ever before. nnn

GEDO IMS Update continued...

KOREC Case Study“The KOREC/Trimble teams were always there during

the introduction of the Trimble IMS for the Alliance…

including being on site during the works. They provided a

world class service to the Alliance”Nick Matthews, Programme Engineering Manager Transformation S&C South Alliance

It’s been our rail story of the year – the successful 90mph handback of a 400m stretch of the West Coast Mainline during the replacement of Willesden North Junction. The success of this project was assisted by the willingness of the S&C South Alliance to adopt a range of innovative technology during the blockade including the Trimble GEDO IMS and Trimble SX10 Scanning Total Station.

Throughout the four-day blockade, the Southern Alliance was supported on site by Matt Moss (Trimble Rail Applications Engineer) and Tom Williamson (KOREC Rail Applications Engineer). The adoption of the Trimble technology on this site underlines the S&C South Alliance’s commitment to continuous improvement and KOREC and Trimble were proud to be a part of this great effort that saw the successful hand back of Willesden Junction, on time, at a line speed of 90mph.

Read it at: https://bit.ly/2W1GaqB nnn

productivity were of the essence, and they still are today.

Over the years total stations have become faster, dataloggers and field software have become easier to use, GNSS accuracy has improved, laser scanners have enabled large quantities of high definition survey detail to be captured and track measuring devices like the GEDO allow engineers and surveyors to measure, set-out and tamp the track more quickly and precisely than ever before. Wrapping around the improved hardware is faster, more intuitive and intelligent office software to help surveyors and engineers produce deliverables more effectively.

By linking the GEDO TMD, TSC7 Controller, TX8 3D Laser Scanner and GEDO Scan Office software highly accurate, high quality survey data can be measured and processed very efficiently. You then have your site in millimetre accuracy on your PC, meaning there should be no need to re-visit the site if additional information is required, reducing costs and improving safety. Three wins – reduce site time, reduce costs, improve safety, all by linking the appropriate products together into a solution.

With the advances in technology, we have some fantastic new products to offer the rail industry. Products like the Trimble MX9 for Mobile Mapping and our more recent releases - Trimble Catalyst, HoloLens and Sitevision (see our piece (right) on technology and on-site safety). With them and others, I look forward to seeing what new solutions we can produce to overcome the challenges our industry faces and further increase safety and productivity.

I do hope you enjoy our newsletter.

Matthew Lock MCInstCES AssocRICS, Business Area Manager – Rail and Monitoring.

M: +44 (0) 7974 255 597 : matthew.lock@korecgroup.com nnn

Alignment | Issue 1 2019

The 5 minute interview

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First in the hot seat is Trimble’s Railway Applications Engineer, Matt Moss. Based in the UK, Matt works closely with KOREC assisting us with advice, demonstrations and training.

It’s been a year since the release of Trimble’s GEDO IMS. How are things going in the UK and in comparison to the rest of Europe?

Since the launch in the UK, we have seen the system used in a variety of domains, Track Survey, Track Renewals and Railway Corridor Scanning. The GEDO IMS, in combination with the GEDO Profiler, has performed extremely well increasing efficiency and productivity throughout the renewals process from design validation surveys to core tamping, for example Colas Rail’s various depots have invested time and training for schemes such as Willesden and Angerstein.

Further afield in Europe, markets like Germany, Italy and Poland are picking up this technology very quickly. Similarly, in the US, the GEDO IMS system is being used on several large-scale rail projects covering light rail and freight lines.

We are also implementing the GEDO NovaTrack Design software which gives us the full continuum concerning track survey and survey control installation, new alignment smoothing and 3D machine control for ballast, tamping and as-builts.

Network Rail has a strong commitment to trialling innovative technology as part of its ‘Putting the customer first’ ethos. What should the rail industry take a closer look at?

Using Trimble’s TX8 in conjunction with the GEDO IMS solution, I would like to see Network Rail’s Gauging Engineers investigate and approve the use of on track scanning for Platform Gauging. In various countries around the world, we see the use of mobile scanning on track measuring devices.

Closer to home, London Underground are taking scan data sets from various sources and importing them into Trimble’s GEDO Scan Office for 3D Analysis. In particular, they are focusing on the Collision Test using a 3D Wagon. This modern approach in the world of point cloud analysis allows the end user to calculate the front

and rear throw together with the wagon centre in three dimensional space. From this, LU can create labelled cross-sections very quickly, enabling them to make immediate decisions where pinch-points arise.

You work all around the world with Trimble customers – which achievements have particularly made an impression on you.

In France we have worked with several track construction companies. Further, French survey companies have also invested in the GEDO system for all their track surveying. In North America we have been engaged in and are currently involved in several rail schemes where the GEDO Vorsys and GEDO IMS and GEDO Track are being implemented. We also have systems in India and Australia, Russia and the Benelux countries.

What has now become very apparent is that Trimble’s GEDO portfolio, from the low-end to the high-end solutions, is becoming the standard. In France, a customer has a contract to maintain various high-speed rail lines. They are using four high-output trains and four GEDO Vorsys systems to do this. With their experience on major TGV construction projects in France and Morocco, their GEDO Vorsys systems were a natural choice for use on their maintenance contract. They also have depots using the low-end solutions, such as GEDO Doc and Profiler, where they can measure to objects adjacent to the track, recording horizontal and vertical offsets with respect to track centre-line or rail.

How does the UK rail industry compare with the rest of the world concerning the implementation of new technology in track measurement, renewals and maintenance?

The UK became one of the leading countries in introducing new technology. The speed with which this new technology was adopted has been really impressive in a such a traditional market. Therefore, the UK is continually implementing new techniques and workflows in a similar way to other countries which have modern railway networks.

Over the last twenty years we have seen the UK progress from 2D five point-laser and tape surveys to full 3D co-ordinated track surveys using total station, GNSS and laser scanning.

Regarding track renewals, we have also seen a migration from 2D laser dozing to 3D machine control by either total station or GNSS.

And now we have witnessed a sharp up-take in the use of Trimble’s GEDO portfolio where our track measuring devices (TMD’s) are becoming the norm. The GEDO systems have performed outstandingly in a variety of environments giving

contractors the confidence to invest in equipment and training. Our UK dealers have provided expert on-site technical support and training which is paramount in an industry where the demands for effective productivity are essential.

What’s been your standout moment working for Trimble?

Several years ago, High Speed 1 (Eurostar London to Paris/Brussels/Lille) transferred its London Station from Waterloo International to St Pancras International as part of a line-speed enhancement. The new route would allow the Eurostar trains to run at 300km/h, and therefore be the fastest trains in the UK. Prior to the calculation of a new track alignment design, a rail survey would have to be carried out. Matthew Lock, KOREC’s Business Area Manager for Rail and myself were asked to demo Trimble’s GEDO Vorsys system and this led to the first ever sale of the solution in the UK. Following on from the new track installation, the high-speed line has also been maintained for the last few years using GEDO Vorsys.

Periodically, Plasser and Theurer’s 09-XXX tamping machine has design tamped the track using lift and slue values using measurements from GEDO Vorsys. As an example, the line speed of 300km/h requires the vertical alignment (top) to be maintained to 9mm tolerance and the three-metre track twist to 6mm tolerance, which are tighter or equivalent to the construction standard for the classic network.

Trimble’s GEDO Vorsys has consistently provided data throughout and when combined with GEDO Office software, has contributed to the hand-back documentation. nnn

Matthew Moss has been with Trimble for eight years and in the rail industry for over 20, travelling the world and providing vital feedback on what other countries are doing. The good news? He finds the UK to be receptive, imaginative and world leaders when it comes to the

adoption of technology.

KOREC Rail...in pictures

2019 has seen us at Railtex and RailLive. Next stop is the Welsh Transport Conference in Cardiff, 28th November

Trimble’s HoloLens technology attracted a lot of interest at this year’s Railtex Exhibition

Full house at the @NCL_RailAcademy. Great to be engaging with the future of the British Rail Industry!

Key industry players attended the launch of Trimble’s GEDO IMS at the National College of High Speed Rail

Testing our Trimble MX9 Mobile Mapping system on an RRV, collecting high quality point-cloud and images at speed!

Another great entry in our KOREC rail photography competition submitted by James Halpin at PBH Surveys

Contact us:Stay in Touch

T: 0345 603 1214E: info@korecgroup.com www.korecgroup.com

For further information on any of the products or services mentioned in Alignment,

please contact your nearest KOREC Sales Consultant or visit our website

IRE: 01 456 4702

Technical news

New!

Trimble GEDO Profiler v2

Trimble has recently updated the Gedo profiler with a new distance measurement unit which improves the speed and accuracy of measurement.

Rail software updates – the highlights

Trimble GEDO Office – Manage your digital rail survey and design data, create tamping files compatible with UK machines and export track quality reports.

• Monitoring Module – Compare multiple Gedo TMD surveys to understand how the track has moved in alignment and elevation.

• Export your survey measurement data in 3D dxf format.

• Export surface models in Trimble Business Center format to act as the basis for creating 3D machine control files.

Trimble Gedo Scan Field – Makes the most of the high performance Trimble TSC7 and T10 controllers. This software manages the data capture with the Gedo TMD and 3D laser scanner.

• TX8 Static Sweep – This allows the TX8 to perform a static 360-degree scan during a normal Gedo TMD scan, perfect for requirements for a more detailed pointcloud such as at the entrance or exit to a tunnel.

• Scan cross-sections can now be viewed live in the field, perfect for checking clearances on site.

Getting the most out of your Trimble GEDO system – Advice

The Trimble GEDO system is used by customers worldwide for a broad range of railway works from scanning to check clearances to comparisons of current track position against an alignment and the

production of tamping files. If you are a GEDO user and would like to maximise your productivity please contact Matthew.Lock@korecgroup.com / 07974 255597.

Did you know? ( Construction )

On a follow up tamp you can import your data back into GEDO office and run speed raiser reports to both construction and maintenance standards.

Did you know? (Survey)

You can import an alignment into an existing GEDO scan project and check clearances not only against the as built data but against the design alignment.

SnakeGrid update

For any surveyors or construction professionals in the rail industry using SnakeGrid, please do take the opportunity to update your Trimble Access field software and TBC office software. They now support the HS2 transformation too. nnn

The KOREC team Matthew Lock – Business Area Manager – Rail and Monitoring

Specialising in rail for over ten years, Matthew is the first port of call for all enquiries on Trimble’s rail related products from the MX9 Mobile Mapping System to the GEDO Track Measurement Device. He’s active on LinkedIn managing both his own account and the KOREC Rail Group. Contact him on 07974 255597 or at matthew.lock@korecgroup.com

Tom Williamson – Rail Applications Engineer

It’s an expanded role for Tom who many of you will already know from his time as our Technical Support rail expert. He’s now also looking after service plans, CPD and training. Don’t forget to follow him on LinkedIn, email him at tom.williamson@korecgroup.com or call him on 07966 251781.

Abel Varela Abelleira - Technical Support

Helping out Tom on support is Abel who has used the GEDO system in the past and recently completed further training with Trimble Rail in Germany. Contact him at abel.abelleira@korecgroup.com nnn

Monitoring in RailMonitoring the performance of our rail infrastructure is vital, particularly when it has just been renewed or when third party construction works are going on nearby - it helps keep our railways safe and efficient. Rail monitoring can take many forms, form visual inspection to the NMT, but survey and geotechnical instruments provide a vital service.

As we see more limited track access and strive for a safer railway and faster data capture to aid decision making, we have seen the move away from manual “people-based” site measurements to a more remote, automated solution. This also has the benefit of not requiring regular track access to take repeated measurements.

Understanding what movements are occurring, how large and potentially problematic they are and what is causing them is also vital. That’s where clever software comes in, making sense of the data from all the monitoring instruments, and helping engineers make the right, informed decision.

Trimble 4D Control is a powerful and user-friendly monitoring package that can combine data from a wide variety of sensor types, not just the traditional high-end Total Stations, GNSS and Digital Levels Trimble are known for. We can receive data from crack sensors, piezometers, IPS’s, vibration sensors, weather stations and tilt sensors to name a few. This means using T4D’s charts and graphs, we can utilise multiple sensors to make sense of what is happening to the infrastructure with simple to interpret graphics accessed online via PC, tablet or smartphone.

In conclusion, using a real-time monitoring system offers a number of benefits. It minimises people on the track, improving safety, it is more accurate and precise than manual human observations and provides timely asset data to aid decision making, ultimately saving money. We are seeing an increasing demand to provide flexible and cost effective real-time 3D monitoring solutions for our rail customers to monitor the track, bridges and embankments during and after works. We have a number of these system running on rail and construction projects throughout the UK and can offer systems for hire as well as for sale, all backed up by KOREC’s technical support team. nnn

Matthew Lock Tom Williamson Abel Varela Abelleira

KOREC’s Tom Williamson oversees another monitoring job. On this site Colas Rail used an S9 real-time system for monitoring during a renewals project.

Monitoring an historic rail bridge in Liverpool as part of the Graham’s new road bridge project. Trimble T4D software and two Trimble S9s were used for this project, one in a permanent position, one semi-permanent

Monitoring - integration of Senceive sensors into Trimble T4D

At Intergeo, Trimble announced an update to its real-time monitoring software—Trimble 4D Control. Building on the recently released version 5.0, this update delivers support for Senceive’s wireless monitoring systems, streamlining the configuration process for users and delivering real-time data from geotechnical sensors to one common platform. nnn