ProRail Innovates Message Exchange

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In order to innovate, you have to be in a position to exchange information efficiently. This was the experience of ProRail, the head of the Dutch rail infrastructure. Quickly solving disruptions to the rail infrastructure demands state-of-the-art communication between ProRail and its maintenance contractors. They each have their own systems and processes that must be seamlessly aligned. This has been achieved: BizTalk Server now operates as the platform for message exchange, while iWay links ProRail's SAP system and BizTalk Server.

Growing mobility is making ProRail's tasks complex and challenging. Take, for example, the allocation of the limited space on the rail network. ProRail ensures fair and optimal distribution of the rail capacity – sometimes as decision maker, sometimes as intermediary. Safety is always foremost. Should a disruption occur, ProRail coordinates emergency and repair services. The 6,500 kilometres of railways in the Netherlands are some of the most frequently used in the world – which means there is continuous wear and tear on points, overhead contact wires, bridges, viaducts, and level crossings.

Ensuring everything stays in top condition is handled by three expert maintenance contractors: BAM, Strukton Railinfra, and Volker Stevin Rail en Trafic. Even the slightest problems can have major consequences. A malfunctioning point can seriously disrupt the course of trains. Train drivers, conductors, service managers – everyone involved in rail traffic must track down disruptions as quickly as possible and report them to the appropriate departments. ProRail plays a pivotal role in this. Reports of disruptions arrive at ProRail's control and reporting center and from there are distributed among the three regular maintenance contractors. "Until recently, this happened the old fashioned way: lots of phone calls, e-mails and notes to pass on the status of the disruptions," says Martin Zoontjens. Based in ProRail's ICT Management Department, he is closely involved in the modernization of message exchange. With the OPC+ project in place, cooperation between ProRail and the three maintenance contractors has taken on a new form. ProRail is looking to make the relationship with the maintenance contractors more business-like and to improve performance in terms of reliability, availability, maintenance and safety, while at the same time ensuring a better price/performance ratio. In practical terms, this means that OPC+ should result in a 20 percent reduction in disruptions by 2006.

Loosely Coupled Systems

An important component of OPC+ is enhancing message exchange. ProRail wanted disruption registration and the repair process to occur with a minimum of human intervention. Everyone was to have access to the same information in order to avoid misunderstandings. Automation of the exchange of messages and the processing of messages throughout the various systems (Straight Through Processing) were the obvious choices and were to occur using the Loosely Coupled Systems (LCS). LCS includes exchanging information between existing, independent systems on the basis of message traffic, so that the parties involved can continue to use their existing systems, which considerably simplifies the integration process. "The LCS concept is without a doubt the blueprint for the coming five years." says Zoontjens.

Microsoft BizTalk Server was selected as the messaging platform. The iWay Software SAP Adapter links BizTalk Server and ProRail's primary SAP system. "We looked at alternative adapter solutions and the possibility of developing one ourselves. However, the iWay Adapter turned out to have the greatest functionality, as well as being highly flexible. Of course the price also played a role. In just two days, the link was in place and the application managers and developers were trained to use the iWay Adapter," added Zoontjens.

With its new system, ProRail hopes to better monitor the management and performance of the maintenance contractors. The system is now operational for the disruption registration and function repair processes, and ProRail is also looking into other processes that could be integrated on the basis of the LCS concept.