Shaking up how we measure rail maintenance performance.

Brimble’s Steven Johnson previews his presentation for RTAA Field Days 2024.

Like many in the rail maintenance industry, Brimble is gearing up for RTAA Field Days on 8-9 May 2024.

The two-day event, held at the Chullora Rail Precinct to Sydney’s west, will feature technical talks and live machine demonstrations from a host of organisations across Australia.

Ready to join the discussion is Brimble’s Steven Johnson, general manager of operations East.

Johnson will speak on May 9 at 11.35 am in the Fettlers Shed.

In his talk, Johnson will explore the ideas of quantity versus quality in rail tamping and how maintenance performance is measured.

“When an entire system is optimised for quality and productivity, it is possible to achieve high quantity while maintaining a high calibre service,” Johnson said.

“However, in any highly variable, non-closed system, achieving both quality and quantity is challenging. Currently, operators seem to face a choice rather than striving to achieve both.”

Johnson goes on to explain that current maintenance metrics miss the boat when it comes to achieving desired outcomes.

“A common mantra we hear is ‘What gets measured, gets done’ – essentially, our measurements are driving our behaviours,” he said.

“And in our game of mechanisation, we see simple measures: m/hr for tamping, and m/hr for ballast cleaning, but these measures oversimplify how we determine the success of a system or, in contrast, a service.

“Do we want lots of track tamped, or do we want tamped track that ‘holds-up’ for a long time?’

Johnson explains operators should look beyond the standard “kilometres-achieved’ when it comes to their maintenance goals.

“When we ballast clean, a m/hr measure misses the point, ballast cleaning is a volume game, not a distance game,” he said.

“The ballast cleaning system needs to be designed to achieve a specified through-put; this is a function of distance, but distance is not the output.

“At Field Days, I will explore these ideas and understand if there are opportunities to ensure alignment between the objectives of maintenance work and the way performance is assessed.” 

Brimble are located at stands 41 & 42 during Field Days.