Efficient technologies in railway transport. Vadim Shmal

is far from being exhausted. A new requirement for information systems is the economic assessment of decisions made.

      Thanks to the “AS-Model” system, for the first time, an integrated approach to the formation of the optimal option for passing trains based on a comparison of the cost of infrastructure sections has been provided. Within the framework of this development, planning tasks are solved, both long – term (capital investments) and short-term – for technological aspects of operational work in the form of an optimal, cost-calculated plan for passing car traffic through the network.

      And of course, the development of technology is impossible without modern information management systems. A special place among such projects of the company is occupied by the “Unified intelligent control system and automation of production processes in railway transport – ISUZHT”. The main purpose of its creation is to increase the economic efficiency of the Russian Railways holding through the implementation of coordinated management and a unified information model describing end-to-end production processes. The essence of the project is to create an automated decision support center that allows you to manage production processes in real time, planning, modeling and predicting the development of situations in general.

      The result of the work carried out will be the achievement of the target parameters set by the holding’s Development Strategy until 2030.

      The state is the sole shareholder of JSC “Russian Railways”, and, of course, the solution of state tasks is the main priority. At the same time, the company, as a commercial organization, is obliged to work profitably. It should have resources for development, opportunities to offer customers new attractive transport products.

      To solve these problems, a program was developed to optimize operational and investment activities. The achievement of the program parameters is ensured through the implementation of measures aimed at improving the efficiency of the use of traction rolling stock, the introduction of landfill technologies, increasing the level of routing, the quality of work of marshalling yards, increasing labor productivity, improving procurement activities, etc. Particular attention is paid to the issues of reducing unproductive losses arising at the junctions of interaction between production units. Here, the company uses both technological and economic incentive measures, for example, through a system for monitoring the execution of work orders between production units.

      The company will have to solve the issues of further efficiency improvement through the introduction of new technologies, technical and management solutions in the organization of the transportation process. Reserves are actively used in expanding the possibilities of combining professions, in organizing the work of locomotive crews in one person. The quality of repair of infrastructure facilities is improving, including through the use of progressive repair methods, tightening the conditions for commissioning. Serious attention is paid to the efficiency of using low-intensity lines.

      The main principle is that every ruble spent and invested should benefit and work for the efficiency of the industry.

      The implementation of the tasks set by the Structural Reform Program has shown that the company is able to develop and adapt to the needs of the market. This is demonstrated by the analysis of the performance indicators of Russian and foreign railways. The load load on the network of JSC “Russian Railways” is the second in the world after China, and it is almost 9 times higher than in Germany. With the length of the network two times less than in the USA, Russian railways provide cargo turnover comparable to first-class roads in North America, where there is practically no passenger traffic, and passenger traffic volumes are 2 times higher than such passenger-oriented systems as the railways of France and Germany. It is obvious that Russian railways have their own unique path of development, taking into account the scale of the technological, technical, economic and social challenges facing the industry.

      1.2 Vertical traffic control development based on scientific and technical achievements and informatization

      Historically, the railway transportation process management system consisted of 4 levels: divisions of the Company’s central office – relevant services in the railway administration – departments in railway departments – railway stations. Each of these divisions, starting from the transportation services in the departments of roads, was in dual subordination: functionally – to the department of transportation Management, and administratively – to the heads of the railway and departments. Such a management mechanism led to contradictions in solving the company’s strategic tasks set at the central level and tactical ones at the regional level.

      To eliminate these contradictions, the implementation of new solutions in the transportation process management system, on June 2, 2009, the Board of Directors decided to create a Central Directorate of Traffic Management – a branch of JSC “Russian Railways”.

      The formation of a vertically integrated transportation process management structure in the context of the continuation of the structural reform of the development of the Russian Railways Holding corresponded to the target model of the railway transport services market approved in May 2007 at a meeting of the Government Commission on the Development of Industry, Technology and Transport.

      The creation of the Central Directorate of Traffic Management (hereinafter referred to as the Central Directorate) completed the transition from a four-level train traffic management scheme to a three-level one, primarily due to the concentration of the dispatching apparatus of regional directorates, while interacting with the other directorates of the production unit, the Central Directorate concentrates in its hands the entire complex of functions related to the organization and management of transportation throughout their cycle.

      In the context of the ongoing changes in the transport market, throughout the entire period of the Central Directorate’s activity, the technological tools used were constantly improved, the management system was consistently developed.

      The centralization of train traffic management allowed for the introduction of end-to-end technologies and the application of landfill traction control principles.

      It should be noted that the improvement of the management principles in the Central Directorate has allowed to create an effective structure that responds promptly to changes in the transport services market.

      The development of a competitive sector in the field of freight car operations required new solutions to improve the efficiency of transportation. In this regard, the formation of park management technology has become the most important direction for the Central Directorate.

      The result of this work was a Unified network technological process, which reflects the key principles of optimizing the use of rolling stock. In order to implement the technological solutions provided for by the unified network technological process, with the active participation of the Central Directorate, the necessary changes to the transport legislation were formed and initiated. Some of them have already been reflected in various regulatory legal acts.

      The improvement of the technology and management system of the transportation process allowed the directorate to successfully fulfill the tasks set by the Company. After the completion of the branch formation stage, positive dynamics is noted in key volume and quality indicators.

      Being one of the key divisions, the Central Directorate actively participated in the development of the Development Strategy of the Russian Railways Holding for the period up to 2030. Strategic initiatives have been developed to improve transportation activities, which provide for a whole range of production issues, and their implementation will give significant technological and economic effects.

      Thus, in accordance with the control parameters of the state of the Russian Railways holding for the period up to 2030, one of the key indicators of the quality of the transportation process – the share of cargo shipments delivered on time – should be 95 percent.

      The presented draft Program has been developed taking into account strategic