The Tyne and Wear Metro’s control room has been upgraded, and its layout improved, in an £8.8 million project.

The control room now has some of the most advanced technology in the railway industry, with the upgrade including the renewal of the system that manages key parts of Metro’s infrastructure. Among the items renewed were the high-voltage power supply and the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System (SCADA), which monitors power, fire and intruder alarms, lighting, lifts, escalators, and tunnel drainage pumps.

The new digital technology installed provides faster, more effective fault finding and helps reduce disruptions to Metro services. The new SCADA system incorporates the latest SCADA and RTU (remote terminal unit) products already in use across the UK’s mainline network, with the RTUs feeding live data into the SCADA. Together, these provide the Infrastructure Controllers with a continuous real-time view of the network, and also calculate the network’s live power load.

Instead of relying on incomplete or delayed information, operational staff can now see the network’s real-time state and make decisions based on what is actually happening.

Sella Controls carried out the project on behalf of Metro operator Nexus, which has over a hundred years of experience in Traction Power SCADA in the rail industry.

Earlier this month, the Tyne and Wear Metro received its second consecutive Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) Gold Award for its continued commitment to health and safety.

“This major upgrade of our control room technology is a vital investment in Metro’s long-term future. I’m delighted to say the project is now complete. The new SCADA system transforms how we monitor key assets, including the power supply, and allows us to respond more effectively when issues arise, which means less disruption for customers.“What we have installed is the very latest digital technology, which is the most advanced currently in use in the UK railway industry. It enables us to remotely manage the high and low voltage power supplies and other key things like lighting, lifts, escalators and fire alarms.

Paul Welford, Major Projects Director, Nexus