What are the key HOF issues?
Despite the ongoing efforts from industry to improve safety and performance, there is an indication that we are now seeing diminishing returns in investments into improvements that the rail industry makes. It is important that continued progress can be demonstrated and a key part of this will continue to be managing and understanding human performance and the job/workplace and organisational factors that influence that performance. This work has therefore developed a method which can be used by industry to address human performance issues.
What did you do?
The developed method was applied in 6 case studies (3 with train operating companies (TOCs) and 3 with infrastructure contractors) and involved interviewing 37 front line staff and managers, undertaking solutions workshops and completing cost-benefits analyses involving more representatives from the companies involved. The case studies have covered: the train driver task of train speed control and the machine/crane controller task of managing the people plant interface when escorting on-track plant to the worksite.
What were the results?
The key output from the project is a guide that outlines a human factors process for incident reduction. The method outlined in the guide successfully identified solutions to manage human performance for the 6 case study companies involved in the research.
Author: Alice Monk (RSSB)
