UK Chapter

Creating digital twins for operational and strategic decision support at scale

Dr Nicolas Le Glatin, OpenSpace

Tuesday, 12^th March 2019, London
1700H Doors open, 1730H-1830H Event

The use of digital twins to provide operational and strategic decision support are gaining popularity as computing networks, integrated databases, visualisation technology and improved software tools enable their use. Visual data fusion platforms can be used to unite the disciplines of design and operation of spaces, putting the movement and experience of people at the heart of the process. The platform integrates a variety of data sources to allow practitioners to unify the lifecycle of the asset from dynamically evaluating, refining and communicating designs at an early design stage through to monitoring, analysing and forecasting the usage once the space is operational.

This presentation will cover the use of visual data platforms, in particular, OpenSpace to conduct advanced real-time pedestrian simulations to 'fill in the gaps' between known data points in order to deliver a complete overview of the system.  This modular approach allows for early decision making to be conducted before more complex and expensive system-of-system modelling is to be undertaken. Visual data platforms can combine in-depth operational insight with strategic tools delivering whole life-cycle benefits, to the following capabilities: 

 ·       Design - Evidence based design decision making derived from operational data

 ·       Operate - Real-time current system performance data, e2e across the network

 ·       Optimise - System-of-system performance, maximise retail opportunities & improve customer experience

 ·       Innovate - Discover & test new scenarios, business models and service designs

As part of Innovate UK’s First Of A Kind in Rail competition “Demonstrating tomorrow’s stations and a greener railway”, this presentation will discuss OpenSpace’s use as a data-driven simulation for the Thameslink core stations. This digital twin will, for the first time, will provide Thameslink Programme with a holistic picture of station operations delivering true insight into the operation (e.g. dwell time performance), movement and behaviour of people and their integration into the rail network.

Dr Nicolas Le Glatin is the founder and CEO of OpenSpace and an expert in the application of People Flow modelling & simulating technology. With  a  keen  eye  for  what  is  needed  to  meet  the  industry’s  needs  for  rapid,  intuitive  and  powerful simulation  tools,  Nicolas’s  career  has  seen  him  drive  some  of  the  most sophisticated  crowd  flow modelling  tools  in  the  industry (e.g. Legion) and real-time  optioneering  tool  to optimise  circulation  spaces.

The meeting will take place at Nova North, 11 Bressenden Place, Westminster, London SW1E 5BY (Arrive at the lobby and identify yourself at the security. Someone from SNC-Lavalin will escort you to the 3rd floor).

There is no charge for attendance and the event is open to non-members but places must be booked in advance. To book, obtain directions or to ask any other questions, please contact RIG Organiser, Michael Morua on m.morua@fnc.co.uk or 07763 455171. Please let me know of any special requirements before the event.

The International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) is an international professional society for systems engineers whose mission is to foster the definition, understanding, and practice of world-class systems engineering in industry, academia, and government

The INCOSE UK Rail Interest Group has been formed:

• To provide a forum for those interested in Systems Engineering in rail to network in a less formal environment, to exchange good practice and to provide mutual support in an area which can require some sustained perseverance;
• To promote, improve and share the practice of Systems Engineering within the rail industry;
• To foster connections with other professional bodies within rail and thereby promote cross fertilisation of knowledge and experience across sectors and community disciplines; and
• To promote awareness of INCOSE UK and encourage membership within the rail industry. 

Route Migration Strategies – Who Needs Them!

We invite you to a free-to-attend talk on Systems Engineering Methods with respect to Rail industry Route development.

The talk will take place on Tue 26 March 2019, 1800 to 2000 hrs at Network Rail – Square One, Manchester (address below).

Non-members welcome!

Practitioners of systems thinking use the viable systems model (VSM), the minimum combination of systems laws to describe the necessary functions and conditions required for any organisation to independently survive and thrive within a changing environment by understanding and reacting to complexity inside and outside the organisation.

Existing viable systems can be diagnosed using VSM to identify  weaknesses predict issues and risks. New systems can be designed using VSM to improve efficiency, effectiveness and the ability to cope with complexity, thereby increasing the chances of surviving in a dynamic environment.

Two systems thinking practitioners, Dr. Niki Jobson (DSTL) and Jonathan
Higginbottom from Southampton City Council will discuss the “why, how and what” to use VSM in your work.

The talk is free and anyone interested in systems thinking and systems engineering is invited to attend

Living Business Models through Systems Dynamics; A core Systems Engineering Capability

Living Business Models (LBMs) exploiting the system dynamics method are quantified, time-based simulations of any enterprise, function, issue or project. They not only replicate changes over time to system-performance but also changes occurring to all elements of the system generating those results. Building on rock-solid theoretical principles, the process and tools required are not technically complex. Indeed, building LBMs is easier, faster and more reliable than attempting the same task with the spreadsheet tools most often employed for time-based business modelling. With INCOSE promoting adoption of model-based systems engineering (MBSE), LBMs offer an opportunity to extend system engineers’ influence and contribution in many aspects of enterprise management.

The event will include an interactive demonstration, connectivity permitting. So please bring a laptop or tablet, if you wish to take part. This talk was presented at the Annual System Engineering Conference in 2018.

Kim is an experienced strategy professional, teacher and publisher of online courses and teaching resources on business modelling – fast becoming a main-stream capability for executives, consultants and business students. He is the author of the prize-winning Competitive Strategy Dynamics (Wiley, 2002), a major strategy textbook Strategic Management Dynamics (Wiley, 2008), and summary e-book now widely used in MBA and executive teaching – Strategy Dynamics Essentials (Kindle, 2011). He is also co-founder of Strategy Dynamics Ltd, which publishes "serious games" and other dynamics-related learning material for management, and the user-friendly modelling application, Sysdea.

Current and future Systems will become ever more dependent on digital technology, wireless connectivity and access to shared data. As this type of system architecture grows so the dependability of the system, whether this is delivered through Service Availability, Intrinsic Reliability or Safety Integrity, depends increasingly on protection against the threat of cyber attack whether malicious or random.

In rail this is becoming ever more the case due to:

• Dependence on Digital technology for train control
• Geographic spread and interconnectivity of network elements
• Linking of legacy systems to new systems

Features once controlled directly such as signals and points are now potentially networked and open to attack. Increasing level of wireless technology and even IP in signalling and communications opens the Train Control system to infiltration. Entertainment and advertising systems are potentially on same network as train control which opens a path to system disruption. Current UK TRUST/TD-net system is already in the public domain and once central data is linked could provide path to Train Control.

There have been numerous recent examples of major cyberattacks on public infrastructure e.g. NHS. Rail has not been immune to these forms of attacks with a whole range of occurrences on railways causing financial loss, actual loss of train control, threat to the security of customer details and intellectual property, and denial of service. To counter the threat Network Rail has developed a Security Assurance Framework.

This presentation outlines the threats and countermeasures to be deployed

Steve Denniss is a Technical Director at WSP. He provides systems expertise and leadership worldwide on major mainline, metro and light rail projects. He has extensive knowledge of the application of new and novel technologies and currently leads System Assurance on the Digital Railway and HS2. He has led Cyber Security assurance at the whole system level.

Klaudia Pawlowska is a digital railway engineer and is a member of WSP’s Specialist Services Group. A graduate of the Universities of the West of Scotland and Strathclyde, she began her career with J.J. Campbell and Associates before joining WSP in 2017. She is now investigating the grounds for cross-industry deployment of smart technologies. Her major professional interest is cyber security in various industry sectors; she is determined to contribute to wide application of cyber security principles across industries. 

There is no charge for attendance and the event is open to non-members but places must be booked in advance. To book, obtain directions or to ask any other questions, please contact RIG Organiser, Karl King on k.king@fnc.co.uk or 07403 293935. Please let me know of any special requirements before the event.

In order to gain ASEP or CSEP it is necessary for INCOSE UK members to sit the certification examination.

INCOSE UK are hosting a paper version of this examination in Bristol at 10am on 4 June 2019.

The examination is based on the INCOSE SE handbook V4 and consists of 100 questions.

Duration is 100 minutes.  

For background information on the certification process please reference INCOSE UK guide - U1 and The INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook V4.

It is necessary for candidates to be INCOSE UK members in order to participate in the exam. For more details and fees contact profdev@incoseonline.org.uk

Further Details TBC

The meeting will take place at the offices of WSP in Manchester, from 10:00 – 16:00. The address is

No 8 First Street Manchester  M15 4RP.

If you would like to attend this meeting, please contact us via email on Michael.Gainford@es.catapult.org.uk

Relaunch event with Professor Alan Smith 6pm – 7.30pm 12 December 2018

We invite you to join us at the relaunching event of the London Local Group with the aim to provide a local meeting point for people interested in Systems Engineering, and stimulate an open dialogue and exchange of perspectives

Featuring a talk by Professor Featuring a talk by Professor Alan Smith, UCL followed by a group discussion on the future of the London Local Group

Venue: 4-8 Endsleigh Gardens Bentham House  221 Hong Kong Room University College London London WC1H 0EG

A large number of route upgrade programmes that include projects covering disciplines such as signalling, the permanent way, stations, overhead electrification, ticketing, traffic management and other capability improvements are planned within control period 6 within the UK railway industry.  These individual improvement programmes shall lead to a step change in capability that require an integrated and united systems engineering process and migration strategy in order to realise their benefits effectively.

Programme management processes align project outputs to benefits so that benefit realisation can be managed, measured and delivered.  The programmatic, technical, time phasing and assurance approach and benefits realisation should be addressed in an effective Migration Strategy.  The Migration Strategy provides the vision and stakeholder agreed guidance to implement and put into service the new integrated capabilities so that objectives are met within the performance, cost, time and risk parameters agreed by stakeholders.

However, implementation of these route programmes is not merely complicated, it is complex with multiple dependencies, interactions and emergent behaviours, requiring expensive and comprehensive testing programmes to mitigate the impact.

This presentation will highlight these areas of concern and provide systems engineering approaches that complement the programmatics so that major risks can be mitigated and benefit realisation maximised.

The System Engineering approaches covered in this presentation are:

1)  Modelling and Simulation;

2)  Architectural analysis; and

3)  Model Based Systems Engineering

The objective is to show how these methods could be implemented in a manner that is consistent with a route’s business and renewals strategy and are easy to communicate to stakeholders.

The speakers are Mike Morua and Karl King.  They are systems engineers and members of INCOSE and are both currently employed at Frazer-Nash Consultancy as Senior Consultants. Both have experience of the development and delivery of large rail projects involving infrastructure, signalling, telecommunications and rolling stock including such complex upgrade projects as ETCS and CBTC systems.  Mike has experience in defence telecommunications and energy infrastructure projects and has worked in the US and Australia.  Karl has worked on major rail projects, specialising in Command Control and Signalling Programmes, including ERTMS, CBTC and Traffic Management for projects such as Crossrail, Thameslink and the Victoria Line Upgrade Programme.  He has also worked on major railway upgrades in the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Germany, USA, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Mozambique, Guinea, Taiwan, India, Kuala Lumpur, Panama, Brazil, UAE and Israel.

The meeting will take place at WSP House, 70 Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1AF (meeting rooms 1-05/06). There is no charge for attendance and the event is open to non-members but places must be booked in advance. To book, obtain directions or to ask any other questions, please contact RIG Organiser, Michael Morua on m.morua@fnc.co.uk or 07763 455171.

The International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) is an international professional society for systems engineers whose mission is to foster the definition, understanding, and practice of world-class systems engineering in industry, academia, and government

 The INCOSE UK Rail Interest Group has been formed:

• To provide a forum for those interested in Systems Engineering in rail to network in a less formal environment, to exchange good practice and to provide mutual support in an area which can require some sustained perseverance;

• To promote, improve and share the practice of Systems Engineering within the rail industry;

• To foster connections with other professional bodies within rail and thereby promote cross fertilisation of knowledge and experience across sectors and community disciplines; and

• To promote awareness of INCOSE UK and encourage membership within the rail industry.

For further information about the RIG, see www.incoseonline.org.uk and follow the ‘Groups’ link.

“The Year of Engineering”

A two-day conference bringing together world-class presenters and practitioners and providing an excellent forum for professional networking. This remains the UK’s premier Systems Engineering event and will feature:

• Keynote addresses will be given on each day
• Technical presentations on contemporary Systems Engineering theory and practice
• Tutorials run by leading Systems Engineering practitioners
• Exhibition of Systems Engineering organisations presenting their products and services
• An academic research showcase poster competition
• The conference dinner, with an after-dinner speaker from the world of armoured defence vehicles.

The ECF will be hosting a meeting for all of its members attending ASEC this year. It will provide an opportunity to meet each other and discuss the Forum's priorities and future plans.