Introduction

Network Rail was set up to look after the infrastructure of the railways. This means the upkeep of tracks, bridges, tunnels and so on. This case study is about the planning that went into a major repair. The Leven Viaduct on the north-west coast was built in 1857. It had been weakened by the action of the sea and time. Network Rail was only left with two choices. It could repair it or re-route all trains around it. The first choice was costly. The second choice would put a big strain on the West Coast mainline. The choice was therefore made to repair the viaduct.

Operations planning

All big projects require careful planning. This is even more true of engineering projects. Network Rail set a budget. It also set some key targets. These included:

• staying within budget

• not needing maintenance for at least 25 years

• no future line closures.

The success of the plan would also be judged by other factors such as:

• safety issues during the project

• good relationships with communities

• the amount of trouble caused to rail users.

Other key issues with such a huge project were the weather, health and safety and the environment. One of the main issues was to obtain the correct steel. This had to be made by special order.

Roles

Major projects such as this require many job roles. These include, for instance, planners, engineers and builders. A number of these could come from within Network Rail. Some had to be brought in from outside.

Critical path analysis

Major projects such as this one require a large number of steps. Some steps cannot take place until the previous step is finished. For instance, new track cannot be laid before old track is taken up. Some steps can be carried out at the same time as others. For instance, track can be lifted at the same time as repairs to brickwork are taking place. Critical path analysis means drawing a network to show which activities depend on others and which can take place at the same time. This allows planners to construct the most efficient sequence for the work. With the Leven project, the task was so complex that spreadsheets and other computer programs were used to help plan the path.

Planning

Critical path analysis has to be carried out in detail. It can be costly and take up a lot of time. It is worth it because of the complete 'map' it provides. This shows planners where each process should take place. The planning allowed the project to complete without any problems.

Conclusion

The repair was finished in 16 weeks. This was half the time it was first thought it would take. This was mainly due to the detailed planning. Good planning led to efficient working. The repair cost £14 million. This is money well spent as the viaduct should be good for another 140 years.