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 THE ADVANCEMENT OF TRAIN-SET WHEELS

MANAGEMENT SYSTEM BASED ON ISO 55001 AND

THE IRIS STANDARD

By

BONGANI BENEDICT NYATHI

A dissertation submitted as partial fulfilment for the

MAGISTER PHILOSOPHIAE

In

ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT

In the

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT

At the

UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG

Supervisor: Mr. A. Rooney

Co-Supervisor: Dr. A Wessels
June 2015

Page |
ABSTRACT

The purpose of this research is to systematise PRASA-Rails wheel-set management

system to comply with the ISO 55001 Asset Management Standard and the
International Railway Industry Standard (IRIS). The current management system used
by PRASA-Rail requires an improvement of the following:

Wheel-set measurements techniques and usage of data for decision making for
maintenance execution.
Life-cycle analysis of the wheel-sets and the risk management of the old wheel-
sets that are currently operating, as well as the new stock.
Data analysis processes to make informed decisions based on the condition of
the wheel-sets.
Performance gap identifications for making informed decisions based on the
current and forecast condition of the wheel-sets based on their lifecycle.
Financial planning for capital investment to maintain the wheel-sets at a lower
life-cycle costs.

Inefficient data-capturing techniques have led to an accumulation of unreliable data and

improper management of wheel-sets. The current Computer Maintenance Management
System is obsolete and cannot be integrated into modern maintenance support
technologies for the new rolling stock. Processes of the system needs to be sustained
by creating an asset-management system that will allow for the following benefits:

Lower down-time for maintenance execution, by determining the life-cycle of the

wheel-sets
Eradication of fatalities, by improving the management of the asset caused by
poor decision-making. This is to ensure that the wheel-sets do not cause
derailments, for the protection and safety of commuters
Reduction of maintenance, labour and failure costs achieved through knowing
the condition of the asset and its expected life from the readings taken during
maintenance

For the management of the assets it is important to understand different maintenance

programs such as reactive maintenance, predictive maintenance, preventive
maintenance and reliability-centred maintenance. The maintenance program used by
PRASA-Rail is discussed as part of the framework for asset management. This

Page | ii
includes the risk-based analysis that will be performed for the alignment of the wheel-
sets in accordance with the ISO 55001 requirements.

Maintenance management as encompassed in asset management within PRASA-Rail

is plagued by backlogs which subsequently lead to non-availability of train-sets and
cause delays and cancellations. The reality is that this not sustainable in dealing with
the pressures of the demand for train-sets. It is therefore important that this be
addressed in a cost-effective, efficient and reliable manner in order to meet
organisational objectives of Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety (RAMS).

A short-sighted approach would be reactionary and deal only with the asset
management problem at hand; however, a more holistic approach is necessary and the
methodology of the management of the asset needs to be revisited. The two main
standards that adequately address the management of the wheel-sets are ISO 55001
and the IRIS standard. It is equally important to address other elements such as
maintenance, logistical and operational costs. The direct impact on the management of
the asset is dependent upon these elements and if any one of them is neglected this
may lead to the premature termination of the asset within its life cycle. For all these
asset management objectives to be met it is up to an organisation to set aside an
adequate budget which addresses operational, maintenance and logistical costs.

This advancement is to be done so that all the systems of asset management are in
place for the management of the wheel-sets in accordance to the IRIS standard and
ISO 55001. IRIS covers the complete organisation management requirements such as
governance processes, processes for service delivery and supporting processes, While
ISO 55001 covers asset management, there are other asset management aspects such
as asset life cycle activities, assessment of strategic assets and asset renewal
decisions. To improve reliability, availability, maintainability and safety, ISO 5500 and
IRIS will be integrated for the improvement of the railway wheel-set management
system. This includes some requirements in the RAMS (Reliability, Availability,
Maintainability and Safety) standard

The IRIS requirements are stringent and thus PRASA-Rail needs to ensure that all
systems are in place for the implementation of IRIS in order to obtain certification.
PRASA-Rail will be the first company in the African Railway Industry to obtain this
certification, mostly used by European countries, but internationally recognised.

Page | iii
The main objective is to prepare PRASA-Rail for the new fleet of trains (new rolling
stock) that will be delivered in 2015. The findings in this research reveal that there is a
need for improvement of PRASA-Rails systems in line with the objectives of these
standards. Most European companies that have obtained the IRIS certification are now
working towards being ISO 55001 re-certified since PAS 55-1 (which is the previous
asset management standard) is being replaced by it. The aim is to implement both IRIS
and ISO 55001 as an integrated system where both of these standards complement
each other.

Companies such as Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) and Gautrain (Bombardier) are using
modern systems for the management of wheel-sets, which makes it easier for them to
improve their wheel management system. PRASA-Rail needs to use modern
maintenance support equipment for ease of management of the wheel-set.

The development of performance-based standards ensures that an asset is managed

appropriately across its full life cycle (Horstead 2014). It can therefore be concluded
that an effective and stringent asset management system is imperative for PRASA to
achieve its mandate as a passenger rail service provider. This system will
unambiguously define checkpoints and subsequently mitigate any of the above-
mentioned shortfalls effectively. Proper training of personnel to get them acquainted
with the advanced asset management system is imperative. Induction programmes
should be continuous in order to align personnel skills to the business objectives.

Page | iv
DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the dissertation submitted for the MPhil Degree in Engineering
Management is my own original work and has not been submitted, for academic credit
to any other institution of learning.

I further declare that all sources cited or quoted are indicated and acknowledged by
means of a comprehensive list of references.

Student Number: 201286025

Student Name and Surname: Bongani Benedict Nyathi
Date: 5 June 2015

Page | v
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to give thanks to God for giving me this courage since my motto is to be an
absolute best of what God has wrought with his image. I would like to express my
sincere gratitude to my Executive Manager Dr Mtimkulu for giving me this opportunity to
advance myself to a different sphere of professionalism and for his assistance
throughout the complete dissertation. I would like to thank my Supervisor Mr Alex
Rooney for guiding me throughout the entire processes and ensuring that I have
covered all required aspects (by sharing his railway experience).This includes my co-
supervisor Dr Arie Wessels who has assisted me on how I need to prepare myself for
this research before it commenced. In addition, Mr Georg Hettasch from Transnet
Freight Rail and Johan van Biljon from Gautrain (Bombardier) for allowing me to
interview them as part of the research for a better understanding of their process of
wheel-set management.

Many thanks to Mr K. Moonsamy who partly reviewed my thesis, also including Wonder
Mukwata who has also did a review on the complete dissertation. Finally, yet
importantly I would like to thank the Nyathi family with the vision that has been instilled
in me from my Grandmother who always said, you will never achieve anything in life
unless you put your heart and hard work to it, my mother who has always supported
me. My wife Vivian Nyathi and two sons Bonga and Khumo who always reminded me
that I needed to take breaks in-between while I was studying to give them attention.
They also gave a reason to wake up in every morning to go to work and sleep late in
order to be knowledgeable.

The University of Johannesburg through this study, has made It possible for me to work
professionally, equipped with knowledge and improve on my abilities to make a
difference in my work environment.

Page | vi
Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION..................................................................................... 1
1.1 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY ................................................................................... 1
1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY ........................................................................... 1
1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT ........................................................................................ 7
1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY ........................................................................................ 9
1.4.1 Research objectives ................................................................................... 9
1.4.2 Research questions ................................................................................... 9
1.4.3 Research question objectives .................................................................. 10
1.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY ..................................................... 11
1.6 RELIABILITY AND LOGISTICS ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVE
12
1.7 CONCLUSIONS AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER ................... 14

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................ 15

2.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 15
2.2 DEFINING ASSET MANAGEMENT AND IRIS .................................................... 16
2.3 THE RISKS OF NOT APPLYING ASSET MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVELY ........ 18
2.4 THE CHALLENGES FOR NOT BEING IRIS CERTIFIED FOR THE RAILWAY
INDUSTRY. ....................................................................................................................... 19
2.5 ISO 55001 AND IRIS FOR ASSET MANAGEMENT............................................ 20
2.6 ASSET MANAGEMENT STRATEGY ................................................................... 21
2.7 IMPLEMENTATION OF ISO 55001 ...................................................................... 22
2.6 IRIS BUSINESS PROCESS ................................................................................. 23
2.7 OPERATIONAL RELIABILITY AND ASSET MANAGEMENT ............................. 25
2.8 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................................ 26
2.9 CONCLUSIONS AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER ................... 27

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY.................................................................................. 31
3.1 WHEEL-SET MANAGEMENT MODEL ................................................................ 31
3.2 RELIABILITY ENGINEERING REVIEW IN RAILWAY ......................................... 32
3.2.1 Reactive Maintenance.............................................................................. 33
3.2.2 Predictive maintenance ............................................................................ 34
3.2.3 Preventive maintenance........................................................................... 34
3.2.4 Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) ................................................. 35
3.3 MAINTENANCE PHILOSOPHY ADOPTED IN METRORAIL .............................. 36
3.3.1 Scope of work and RCM principle ............................................................ 40
3.3.2 Maintenance Management System in PRASA-Rail (FMMS) .................... 49
3.3.3 Gautrain Wheel-set Management System qualitative data collection ....... 56

Page | vii
 3.3.4 TFR Wheel-set Management System ...................................................... 61
3.4 DATA ANALYSIS FOR METRORAIL (VALIDITY OF DATA)............................... 65
3.4.1 Reliably mathematical life cycle calculations (LCC) for Railway Wheel-set
Management regime ............................................................................................ 69
3.4.2 Engineering Economics calculations based on maintenance ................... 74
3.5 ORIGINALITY AND LIMITATIONS ....................................................................... 82
3.6 CONCLUSION AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER ..................... 83

CHAPTER 4: Findings ............................................................................................... 85

4.1 DISCUSSION OF THE RESEARCH FINDINGS .................................................. 85
4.2 RESEARCH FINDINGS VALIDATION ................................................................. 88
4.3 ANSWERS TO THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS .................................................. 90

CHAPTER 5: Conclusions ........................................................................................ 97

CHAPTER 6: Recommendations ............................................................................ 102

6.1 FUTURE RESEARCH FROM THE DISSERTATION......................................... 106

REFERENCES .......................................................................................................... 107

APPENDIX A ............................................................................................................ 111

Page | viii
LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Number of Trains in Service vs. Regional Requirements (Montana, L,

2013)........................................................................................................... 2
Figure 2: ISO 55001 Elements of an Asset Management System (Woodhouse 2013) .. 3
Figure 3: IRIS minimum and maximum requirements compared to ISO 9001:2008 ....... 4
Figure 4: IRIS Requirements Process (Heinzmann 2014) ............................................. 4
Figure 5: Delays caused by infrastructure and Metrorail coaches .................................. 5
Figure 6: Process flow of mixed research method ....................................................... 12
Figure 7: Tyred Wheel vs. Solid Wheels (Nyathi 2012) ................................................ 16
Figure 8: Generic Asset Management Model according to AASHTO (AASHTO
1997)......................................................................................................... 17
Figure 9: Major Elements of Asset Management System (OECD 2001) ...................... 17
Figure 10: PDCA Risk-Based Asset Management Model (Poland 2013) ..................... 25
Figure 11: Overview of the Wheel shop Asset Management principle in line with ISO
55001 and IRIS ......................................................................................... 29
Figure 12: Seven ISO 55001 important elements (IPWEA 2014)................................. 30
Figure 13: The 'bathtub' curve (OConnor & Kleyner 2012).......................................... 33
Figure 14: Manual Field Gauge (Frhling, R.D. 2011) ................................................. 36
Figure 15: Mini-prof gauge and the output file readings ............................................... 38
Figure 16: Risk Matrix ................................................................................................. 47
Figure 18: FMMS Wheel-set Management Process Flow ............................................ 52
Figure 18: Mini-prof data not integrated in FMMS ........................................................ 53
Figure 19: Mini-prof data integrated to FMMS ............................................................. 54
Figure 20: Mini-prof output file for FMMS .................................................................... 55
Figure 22: Gautrain Management System ................................................................... 60
Figure 23: TFR Management System .......................................................................... 64
Figure 23: MC flange height graph .............................................................................. 66
Figure 24: Motor coaches wheel-sets diameter graph ................................................. 67
Figure 25: Trailer coach wheels flange height graph ................................................... 67
Figure 26: Trailer Coach wheels diameter graph ......................................................... 68
Figure 27: Wheel-set degradation (hollow wear) based distance travelled .................. 71
Figure 28: Wheel-set degradation (flange wear) based distance travelled ................... 73
Figure 29: Operational cost graph ............................................................................... 77
Figure 30: Maintenance cost graph ............................................................................. 79
Figure 31: Logistic cost graph ..................................................................................... 80
Figure 32: Asset Life cycle Model (Brady et al. 2013) .................................................. 82

Page | ix
Figure 33: Condition-based maintenance model (ITSR 2012). .................................... 83
Figure 34: Cost to maintenance interval, quantitative risk curve (ITSR 2012). ............. 84
Figure 35: Asset Management Strategy levels (Sardar et al.2006) .............................. 86
Figure 36: CMMS functions (elatewiki.org 2012) ......................................................... 87
Figure 37: RCM and FEMECA (RAMS) System Structure Analysis (Haugen &
Rausand 2003) ......................................................................................... 93
Figure 38: Interrelations of Railway RAMS elements (Refer BS EN50126-1:1999)...... 94
Figure 39: Asset management life cycle within the RAMS standard (Refer BS
EN50126-1:1999). ..................................................................................... 94
Figure 40: ISO 55001 requirements for wheel-set management systems .................... 95
Figure 41: Asset Management 10 steps Plan (EAP 2014) ........................................... 97
Figure 42: Asset Management Framework (EAP 2014) ............................................. 101
Figure 44: Research methodology mapping .............................................................. 101
Figure 44: ISO 55001 and IRIS integration diagram .................................................. 104
Figure 45: Expected PDCA framework within the Wheel-set management system
(Systems Integration) .............................................................................. 105

Page | x
LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Derailments on TFR, PRASA-Rail & other Railway companies (Poya 2011) ... 6
Table 2: Scope of work for repairs ............................................................................... 40
Table 3: Wheel-set FMECA Worksheet for RCM ......................................................... 44
Table 4: Severity Category Matrix ............................................................................... 47
Table 5: RCM Task Selection Table ............................................................................ 48
Table 6: Wheel-set condemning limits ......................................................................... 65
Table 7: Motor Coach Flange height data nearing 35 mm. .......................................... 66
Table 8: Motor coach wheels diameter near 864 mm .................................................. 66
Table 9: Trailer Coach Flange height nearing 35 mm .................................................. 67
Table 10: Trailer Coach wheels diameter near 800 mm .............................................. 68
Table 11: Wheel diameter degradation after 908 000km (with a hollow of 2 mm) ........ 70
Table 12: Wheel diameter degradation after 604 000 km (with a high flange of 35
mm)........................................................................................................... 72
Table 13: Operational cost table .................................................................................. 77
Table 14: Maintenance cost table ................................................................................ 78
Table 15: Logistics cost table ...................................................................................... 80
Table 16: CMMS and maintenance support equipment ............................................... 89

Page | xi
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Abbreviation Full Name

CASDAM: Caution Assessment System Data Analysis Model
DT: Down Time
EAM: Enterprise Asset Management
FMECA: Failure modes, Effects and Criticality Analysis
FMMS: Facility Management System
IRIS: International Railway Industry Standard
ISO: International Organization for Standardization
ITCMS: Integrated Train Condition Maintenance System
MDWT: Mission Directed Work teams
MPI: Magnetic Particles Inspection
MTBF: Mean Time Between Failures
MTBM: Mean Time Between Maintenance
MTTF: Mean Time To Failure
MTTR: Mean Time To Repair
MUT: Mean Up Time
OHSAS: Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems
PASS 55: Publicly Available Specification
PDCA: Plan Do Check Act
PRASA: Passenger Railway Agency of South Africa (Optimal
management of physical assets)
RAMS: Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Safety
RCF: Root-Cause-failure
RCM: Reliability Cantered Maintenance
RCM: Reliability Centred Maintenance
RSR: Rail Safety Regulator
SANS: South African National Standard
TCO: Total Cost Of Ownership
TE: Transnet Engineering
TFR: Transnet Freight Rail
TPM: Total Productive Maintenance
TQM: Total Quality Management
UFWL: Under floor wheel lathe
UIC: International Union of Railway (International Railway Transport
Industry Body)
UT: Ultrasonic Test
WMM: Wheel-set Management Model

Page | xii
LIST OF DEFINITIONS
Term
Asset Management
Availability
Bogie
Computer Maintenance
Management System
(CMMS)
Condition-Based
Maintenance (CBM)
Down Time (DT)
Facility Maintenance
Management System
Failure mode, effects and
criticality analysis (FMECA)
Flange (diameter, height)
Gautrain
Hollow wear
International Railway
Industry Standard
Lean Maintenance
Management
Magnetic Particle
Inspection
Mean Time Between
Maintenance (MTBM)
Mini-prof Gauge
Definition
In line with the ISO 55000 definition it is the coordinated
activities of an organisation to realise value from its different
assets
This refers to a degree at which a system or an asset is in a
state of operations for a particular required time and is in a
functioning condition.
A chassis carrying wheels, axles, traction motors and braking
system
This is a software package system that is computerised for
the organisations operations and maintenance management
information system such as MAXIMO, SAP and FMMS.
Is maintenance that is performed after one or more indicator
(condition) that shows that equipment is going to reach its life
or deteriorate based on performance.
This refers to a period when a system or an asset is
unavailable for maintenance purposes or due to failure
This is an asset management systems similar to CMMS used
in PRASA-Rail
This is a methodology similar to RCM & RAMS analysis, used
to identify potential failure modes of a system, for the
assessment of risk connected with those failure modes to
carry corrective measures after the analysis
This is an internal ridge (I-beam). The purpose of this flange is
to keep the wheel from running off the rails
This is an operator of the modern metro train that is travelling
between Johannesburg and Pretoria
This wear occurs on the thread surface of the wheels profile,
where the profile is in contact with the rails
This is an internationally recognised management standard
specific for the railway industry which is based on ISO 9001
This refers to eliminating unnecessary maintenance activities
and maximising of the production time by reducing
maintenance time and costs.
This is a non-destructive test (NDT) which is conducted to
detect surface cracks for testing metallurgical steel material
showing discontinuities
The average interval based on time for maintenance
execution of asset that has been in operation for corrective
and preventive maintenance.
This gauge is used to measure the condition of the wheel
profile based on the wear and tear of the surface, it also
measures the diameter
Page | xiii
Term
Operational Reliability (OR)
Passenger Rail Agency of
South Africa (PRASA)
Product Life Cycle (PLC)
Rail Safety Regulator
(RSR)
RAMS Analysis
Reliability Cantered
Maintenance (RCM)
Total Cost of Ownership
(TCO)
Total Productive
Maintenance (TPM)
Total Quality Management
(TQM)
Transnet Engineering (TE)
TFR
Ultrasonic Testing (UT)
Underfloor Wheel Lathe
(UFWL)
Vehicle Identification
System (VIS)
Vehicle Inspection Unit
(VIU)
Definition
This refers to the operations of the systems reliability where
there is a Plan, Do, Check & Act (PDCA) cycle for continuous
improvement of the asset.
This is a South African state owned enterprise, which is
responsible for running Metrorail and Shosholoza Meyl
Services.
This is used to determine the lifespan of a product or a
system during its development, introduction into the market
and operation.
Regulatory body of the South African Railway industries that
oversees (promotes) safety for operations and maintenance
within the railway environment.
This is related to the Reliability Centred Maintenance and
FMECA for ensuring that the system operates as required
until the end of it operational life.
RCM (similar to FMECA and RAMS analysis) is used are to
ensure that all levels of maintenance are optimised for the
function of the asset and further ensures that maintenance is
conducted cost-effectively.
Refers to an analysis used for comparing different systems for
assessing direct and indirect costs of an asset throughout its
operational life.
This is a system used for maintaining and optimising the
quality of systems, processes and equipment
This consist of an organisations efforts to continuously
deliver products that are of high quality and that includes
services rendered to customers
Rolling Stock manufacturing and maintenance for various
railway companies
Railway operator for freight vehicles such as locomotives and
wagons
This is a processes used to detect internal cracks on different
material of the steel
This lathe is used for cutting and maintaining the profile of
wheel-sets without removing them from a motor and trailer
coach
This is a tagging system used to identify a train-set before it
passes thought the vehicle Inspection Unit
This system does an automatic inspection on various systems
on the wheels profile, its diameter, the brake disc and the
back-to-back distance (the distance of two wheel centres
measured from one back to another back of the wheel
mounted on the axle).
Page | xiv
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

This chapter identifies and explains the research problem. It also covers the research
methodology, with questions and the objectives of those questions.

1.1 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study is to determine challenges that are faced in the reliability of
the train-set wheel-set management system in PRASA-Rail (Metrorail). In this study,
the focus is on improving the wheel-set management system by using the requirements
spelt out in ISO 55000 and the new international railway standards that PRASA-Rail will
be adopting, such as IRIS.

The aim of this study is to determine where ISO 55001 and IRIS meet for the
improvement of the wheel-set management system within PRASA-Rail and which can
be applied to any railway organisation faced with the same challenges. IRIS covers the
complete organisation management requirements such as governance processes,
processes for service delivery and supporting processes, While ISO 55001 covers
asset management, there are other asset management aspects such as asset life cycle
activities, assessment of strategic assets and asset renewal decisions.

1.2 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Metrorail is the provider of passenger and commuter rail services in South Africa and
owned by PRASA, under the division of PRASA-Rail Operations Department. It
transports over two million passengers daily in five different regions, namely
Johannesburg, Tshwane, Durban, Cape Town and Eastern Cape. The core function of
the PRASA-Rail Maintenance organisation is improving maintenance for the day-to-day
operations of the Metrorail services. Rolling Stock Maintenance is executed at the
rolling stock depots located in the regions named above.

Maintenance of rolling stock can be categorised into two types of maintenance (Cheng
& Shawing 2003), which is failure-based maintenance, and life-based maintenance.
Failure-based maintenance is rooted in corrective maintenance and life based in
preventive maintenance. Cheng & Shawing (2003) explain that maintenance can never
be avoided especially when an unpredictable failure of a component occurs and that
the cost of maintenance is dependent upon the efforts made in performing preventive

Page | 1
and corrective maintenance. In the railway industry, the final output of the selected
maintenance strategy must have a positive reliability factor, in which failures are
reduced, maintenance is improved and there are benefits in passengers safety and
comfort during operation, i.e. customer satisfaction.
Figure 1 below shows that from the year 2011 there were too few train-sets running due
to different component failures. One of the causes of not meeting the train-set demands
was the unavailability of the wheel-sets and the need to improve the wheel-set
management system. An improvement occurred when some interventions were made
such as introducing the mini-prof gauge (which is used to measure the profile of wheels
such as flange and diameter) and accreditation of more companies to do maintenance
on the wheel-set. This intervention was, however, not enough and more is still
necessary to improve the wheel-set management system.

Figure 1: Number of Trains in Service vs. Regional Requirements (Montana, L,

2013)

A good maintenance strategy plays an important role in decision making in reliability

engineering management in rolling stock. For the improvement of the management of
the wheel-sets, Lean Maintenance should be applied to reach an optimum level by
reducing maintenance cost, improving availability and quality of the fleet (Wegner
2009). For maintenance, the cost of material and personnel costs are minimised. For
vehicle availability, the availability is maximised for operation. For quality, the reliability,
safety (security) and comfort of the railway vehicle need to be improved. When the life
expectancy of an asset is high and different equipment functions are required, the
downtime decreases during preventive maintenance (Montana, L, 2013) when asset
and lean maintenance management is applied.

Page | 2
The primary objective in PRASA-Rails rolling stock depots is to optimise the system by
introducing standards and processes in an internationally recognised-integrated system
for the management of assets. Those standards are ISO 55001 and IRIS. PRASA-Rail
adopted the ISO 55000 asset management standard, as the methodology for the
optimal management of physical assets (in this case rolling stock). Below is the process
flow of ISO 55001 (Figure 2).

Figure 2: ISO 55001 Elements of an Asset Management System (Woodhouse

2013)

PRASA is in the process of advancing their business processes IRIS standard. IRIS is
a global system commonly used for the evaluation of business management systems
and more focused on asset management when compared with ISO 55001. IRIS is
based on the ISO 9001 framework, and the evaluation and certification process can
only be done by an IRIS approved certification body which is certified by an IRIS
representative as an auditor. IRIS is not used for financial, technical or contract-specific
requirements and performance data of a company such as projects and its products.

Below are the minimum and maximum requirements of what IRIS covers as compared
to ISO 9001, 2008 (Figure 3):

Page | 3
Figure 3: IRIS minimum and maximum requirements compared to ISO 9001:2008
(Heinzmann 2014)

ISO is generic when covering certain processes or management strategies and other
aspects but IRIS focuses on all business management expertise inclusive of the
requirements or in line with ISO requirements strictly for Railway.

Below are the requirements that are covered by IRIS (Figure 4):

Figure 4: IRIS Requirements Process (Heinzmann 2014)

Page | 4
The suburban railway wheel-sets management system needs to be enhanced in order
to improve the reliability factor of the train-sets within a quick turnaround time by
reducing delays and cancellations of train-sets due to failures (Figure 5).

Figure 5 shows the delays caused by Infrastructure conditions and different Metrorail
train-set failures. The improvement of the complete system, which includes the
improvement of the wheel-set management system, can contribute to reducing failures
such as derailments and other related contributing factors. When different systems in a
train-set have fewer faults, the MTBM will increase and the Down Time will decrease.
The results will cause a higher availability percentage, and this will show improvement
in the operational reliability of train-sets (Refer to section 3.4.2, with mathematical
models, in chapter 3). This will indirectly reduce the maintenance and operational costs.

Figure 5: Delays caused by infrastructure and Metrorail coaches

To improve reliability, availability, maintainability and safety, ISO 5500 and IRIS will be
integrated for the improvement of the railway wheel-set management system. This
includes some requirements in the RAMS (Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and
Safety) standard. Adopting these internationally recognised standards will aid in better
decision making for the improvement of reliability within PRASA-Rails current fleet.
This will also be an alignment in preparation for the rolling stock renewal programme
i.e. the new rolling stock (new trains).

Metrorail faces the challenge of making available sets of trains and wheel-sets for
operations and this is attributed to the following factors:

Page | 5
 Long lead time for the delivery of the wheels by the repairer (inventory
management). Refer to Figure 1 showing the number of trains not meeting
demands due to long lead times.
Sets staged on the yard awaiting wheel change-outs (poor management stock-
outs). Refer to Figure 1 showing the number of trains not meeting demands due
to train-set awaiting wheels change-out.
Safety risks of tyred wheel-sets, which have a high impact on the availability,
reliability, and operability of the railway vehicles. Tyred wheel-sets damage the
infrastructure during derailments, causing fatal accidents. Below is a table
showing a number of derailments that occurred between 2008 and 2011 (Poya
2011). The direct costs of these derailments sum up to an amount of R123.5
million, which includes damage caused to the infrastructure (Poya 2011).

Table 1: Derailments on TFR, PRASA-Rail & other Railway companies (Poya

2011)

This problem requires an optimised wheel-set management system for a good

maintenance strategy to improve reliability and availability of train-sets. The goal is to
establish a good reliability factor management scheme to monitor the performance of
the wheels that are running in PRASA-Rails current fleet, by identifying how service-
affecting failures occur. RAMS analysis data (BS EN 50126-1:1999), will be collected to
determine the following factors in line with reliability engineering management for the
management of wheel-sets, consistent with the following asset management
requirements:

RCM & Failure Modes (FMECA)

Field data
Product Life Cycle
Life cycle Cost
MTBM, MTTF and MTTR

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 Down time (DT)
Availability
Maintainability
Preventive maintenance as part of wheel-set management system
TCO for cost analysis and decision making

This information is required to indicate a solution and provide a better decision-making

tool for the wheel-set reliability management for the current challenges affecting the
day-to-day running of train-sets.

1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Three role players were used in this research, PRASA-Rail, Transnet Freight Rail and
Gautrain. These organisations serve three different markets and draw different
clientele. PRASA-Rail is for passengers and commuter services, TFR is for freight
services and Gautrain offers an exclusive passenger service similar to PRASA-Rail.
Although the bulk of the research was carried out within PRASA-Rail, it is important that
a similar measure be applied to other rail operating environments in order to test the
sustainability of the issues addressed in this dissertation.

Companies such as PRASA-Rail, TRF and Gautrain all use certain standards and
processes for the management of their assets, including railway wheels. To improve the
management of an asset it is important to follow guidelines, standards or processes
that are clearly defined. Due to the diversity among practices that are currently applied
(in PRASA-Rail, TFR and Gautrain), it is not possible to set a universal rule that is
applicable to their systems (TCRP 2005). In order to better or improve different systems
it is important to adopt a standard that will have a positive impact on the management
of assets.

The challenge faced by most rail companies in South Africa is not following the same
standards. This is because most standards are created in Europe and America. These
standards are generated based on those continents climate conditions. For them to be
adopted in South African there needs to be a validation before they are adopted.
Standards such as the ISO 55001 and IRIS are stringent and can be used as guidelines
because they are based on improving business and technical processes for improving
the life cycle of an asset. Although there might be areas that require special attention
because processes differ from company to company it is important to follow one
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universal standard, so that when lessons are learned it will be easy to improve systems
in another rail company by adopting the same principles.

The results on the background of the study are evident enough that there is a need for
the improvement of both business processes and asset management. Gaps and
improvement in asset management practices are measured in four categories (Adlam
2012):
Data
Processes
Information systems and tools
Asset management plan and risk management
In order to achieve the goals in advancing the way in which assets are managed it is
imperative to ensure that planning is done consistently. To address those gaps these
are some of the steps to be taken (Adlam 2012):
Define different levels of service.
Accumulate accurate and detailed asset data.
Develop predictive modelling based on the life cycle of the asset.
Determine the total cost of ownership in order to save different costs that are
affected by the management of the asset.
Implement asset management and management of risk.
The author of TCRP (2005) has shown that different rail companies use different
standards to manage their assets. This demonstrates that some rail companies have
overlooked some elements of ISO 55001 and IRIS standards. Adlam (2012) has
described what needs to be done in order to close the gaps in the management of the
assets, more especially the wheel-sets. So based on the background of the study it is
evident that there need to be advances in the systems and processes in line with the
ISO 55001 and IRIS standards. In order to achieve a positive outcome, this had led to
the question asked under section 1.4 which is the scope of study.

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1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope of the study entails research questions and objectives.

1.4.1 Research objectives

The objective of this dissertation is to refine the wheel-set management system for the
reliability and availability of train-sets through improved maintenance of the wheels-set.
This improvement will be done in compliance with ISO 55000 and IRIS as part of the
overall asset management regime. A comparison between ISO 55000 and IRIS will
elucidate what is required to achieve compliance in both cases.

These standards (ISO 5500 and IRIS) together with the RAMS standard (which is part
of the IRIS standard) will be adopted in the solution. These standards include
engineering management guidelines for the improvement of reliability of systems within
the railway industry with ISO 9001 being the foundation of improvement.

The proposed solution will also be addressed with the RSR. This will ensure that there
is compliance and improvement of the maintenance strategy to eliminate problems
regarding safety as IRIS recommends ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007
standards. Various railway companies use similar systems and those systems will be
looked at as part of improving the reliability of the system as a whole. The principles of
RCM will be included as part of improvement and implementation.

1.4.2 Research questions

This research study addresses the improvement of reliability management, for the
suburban railway wheel-sets in Metrorail (PRASA-Rail). The study investigates different
methodologies used in the railway industry by adopting internationally known standards
as part of a reliability engineering management and asset management regime. These
strategies will add value to the current challenges that Metrorail is faced with in the
management of this asset that is safety critical and service affecting, which may have a
negative impact on the efficiency and reliability of services rendered to commuters.

This study will answer the following research questions as part of the solution to the
challenges outlined in the study background and the problem statement:

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Question 1: What are the complimentary attributes between ISO 55000 & IRIS, and
how will they be applied as part of a solution to improve the life cycle of
the wheels-sets?

Question 2: Why is the management of wheel-sets important as part of reliability

engineering management and how can the life cycle of the current wheel-
sets be determined based on the wear rate (by focusing on the current
wheel-set management applied in Metrorail)?

Question 3: What are the challenges faced by Metrorail, which have a negative impact
on the reliability of the wheel-sets and the maintenance regime used as
part of the wheel-set management system improvement?

Question 4: What changes need to be made to improve the reliability management of

the wheel-sets in line with the ISO 55000 and IRIS requirements in order
to improve the availability of the wheel-sets?

1.4.3 Research question objectives

In order to answer these questions, the following factors and objectives were
developed:

Objective 1: To differentiate between ISO 55001 and IRIS standards on what is

covered in asset management and applying the applicable factors for the
improvement of the life cycle of the wheel-sets.

Objective 2: To develop service-affecting indicators caused by wear and tear during

operations and apply a better reliability strategy (wheel-set life cycle
model) in accordance with ISO 55000 and IRIS standards.

Objective 3: To develop a solution to close all gaps, by differentiating maintenance

levels, improving reliability and applying better maintenance strategies in
line with the applicable maintenance regime.

Objective 4: To implement changes in line with the asset management standard and
process flow to improve the reliability management system (these are the

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 expectations must be met for the management of wheel-sets within
PRASA-Rail moving forward).

1.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

The methodology used to conduct this research is both quantitative and qualitative.
These mixed methods are necessary because the statistics gathered from quantitative
research are not enough to reveal the challenges faced. It is important for the results to
be interrogated further in order to see a broader picture as well as to identify the root
cause of the problems encountered and this can be done through qualitative research.

The mixed method is where the researcher decides to do the following (Fischer 2013):
1. Purpose: Confirmatory and exploratory
2. Specify an unequivocal question for data to be analysed to address the mixed
method design
3. Collect multiple data that is both qualitative (data that is based on specific
measurement) and quantitative (data from in-depth interview, field notes and
open-ended questions).
4. Analyse the data (qualitative and qualitative analysis used separately or in
combination).
5. Evaluate and conclude (mixture of numbers and description).

Below is a process flow of a mixed research method (Figure 6) that will be used as a
guideline in line with the points stated above:

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 Figure 6: Process flow of mixed research method

The objective of this methodology is to study different wheel management systems that
are used in various rolling stock companies (such as Gautrain and Transnet) by:
Collecting data that can be used for decision making for the improvement of
wheel-set management.
Carrying out a comparison of wheel-set management processes used in
Gautrain, Transnet Freight Rail and PRASA-Rail.
Extracting data from Metrorail with the integration of IRIS standard, ISO 55000
standard and conducting life cycle calculations.
Interpreting and analysing the data for the improvement of the wheel-set
management system.
Concluding by using guidelines and indicators spelt out in ISO 55000 and IRIS.

1.6 RELIABILITY AND LOGISTICS ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT PERSPECTIVE

In engineering management, it should be understood that reliability and logistics

engineering management play a big role in the engineering sector, and this must be
clearly defined. The most important areas in engineering management are design,
manufacturing and maintenance. When a design is developed, it needs to conform to
specification and there needs to be ease of manufacturing and maintenance. It must be
designed to have a high reliability factor in order to save costs over the life cycle of the
product.

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Reliability engineering is a tool that provides a theoretical and practical solution
(Kececioglu 2002), where factors such as the probability and capability of components,
parts and systems are to perform a specific function in various environmental conditions
and for a certain operational time. The operational failures need to be specified,
predicted, tested and demonstrated. The results obtained should be fed back to
engineering, manufacturing, quality control, inspection, testing, purchasing and sales
for the implementation of corrective actions to improve reliability.

The IRIS standard focuses on all the departments that are involved in the rail sector
and not limited to asset management only. For systems to be improved the basic
principles of reliability engineering and logistics engineering management need to be
clearly understood because for any new system that requires an improvement, there
need to be clearly defined objectives and the consequences of not improving that
system should be outlined.

Reliability engineering management must be fully utilised in a maintenance-based

organisation, because the only way to improve the efficiency of an operating product is
to apply the basic principles of reliability engineering. The maintenance plan of the
rolling stock depots needs to change in order to improve the reliability of the fleet. In
order to improve efficiency, maintenance teams in rolling stock depots must streamline
routine tasks by cutting down the time taken to perform maintenance (Silvester 2009).
This is achieved when routine maintenance takes place overnight. This planned
improvement will provide an organisation with more capacity to maintain and add value
to the fleet efficiencies when the resources are channelled towards the reliability of the
service. This should be in line with the IRIS requirements.

For the improvement of reliability management, the following rolling stock maintenance
management key points should be acknowledged:
Depot management and operation
Maintenance strategy and methodology
Equipment reliability monitoring and improvement systems
Documentation control
Training
Incident investigations and recovery
Workflow and productivity improvement
Spares management
Maintenance information systems management
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This is an overview of what maintenance engineering and reliability engineering
management entail. By looking at the abovementioned points, it is easier to find out
which areas need improvement for reliability engineering management.

1.7 CONCLUSIONS AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER

There is need for the improvement of the wheel-sets management system within
PRASA-Rail in order to manage the wheel-sets. This is achieved by complying fully with
the asset management standard for the improvement of operational reliability and for
the availability of the assets through system and process improvement, including the
process to optimise people with skills for the execution of maintenance. All the gaps
need to be identified and closed by improving various processes in line with ISO 55001
and IRIS standards for the improvement of railway wheels management system as part
of asset management.

Business management processes for an asset management plan should be

communicating into the design and operations of the asset. They should adopt a risk-
based model for managing the asset, in line with business requirements for the
improvement of the assets life cycle with a visual map of the following (Poland 2013):
Processes and procedures that are being used
Decisions points within those processes and the actions thereof
Interface with other processes with different system integration for ease of
decision making for maintenance execution and doing cost analysis.

The literature review in Chapter 2 entails how asset management and IRIS is viewed by
different authors. It also includes the incorporation between ISO 55 000 and IRIS
standard in line with PRASA-Rails strategy. This will be used to improve the asset life
cycle and the core function of the organisation as a whole but focusing on the asset
management aspect for the improvement of the wheel-sets management system.

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 INTRODUCTION

This section covers different asset-management methods that are in line with ISO
55001. The integration between IRIS and ISO 55001 will be discussed to differentiate
the two standards. Different aspects of asset management will be reflected upon as
part of the literature review. Similarities will be identified for a better understanding of
asset management, the application of the asset management practices and IRIS.

Currently PRASA-Rail uses a lengthy process for managing the wheel-set exchange
program. A new wheel-set management system will be developed based on the gaps
that will be identified during this research. PRASA-Rail must to comply with ISO 55001
regarding the management of the assets. However, there needs to be an optimised
system that covers all aspects of reliability engineering and engineering economics
where costs such as maintenance costs, production costs and labour costs are
reduced, by employing an integrated system that covers all aspects of improving
reliability.

PRASA-Rail has made an assurance that their systems cover the requirements of the
Rail Safety Regulator, where safety plays the most important role in the management
system of wheel-sets. PRASA-Rail has developed solid wheels, which covers mainly
the following factors:
Safety: preventing derailments from occurring
Life cycle of the wheels: preventing the wheels from getting loose
Reduced maintenance and labour costs: preventing major maintenance repairs
of wheel-sets

This decision was motivated after a number of derailments were encountered by

PRASA-Rail caused by tyred wheels, whereby tyres became loose due to heat
dissipation and expansion between the interface of the tyre and rim. The interactions
result in the Gibson rings loosening from the tyres and causing derailments.

PRASA-Rail is currently running a wheels replacement program where tyred wheels

that have reached their life span are replaced with solid ones (Figure 7). Even though
there is a wheel-set replacement program-taking place, there needs to be an optimised
wheel-set management system for managing both tyred and solid wheels concurrently,

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as this is part of the problem statement of which some aspects were covered in chapter
1.

Figure 7: Tyred Wheel vs. Solid Wheels (Nyathi 2012)

2.2 DEFINING ASSET MANAGEMENT AND IRIS

Transit asset management as defined by Rose et al. (2013) is a strategic process

where an organisation procures, operates, maintains, rehabilitates and replaces an
asset to manage its performance by reducing risk and cost over its life cycle. This is
done to provide a safe, cost-effective and reliable service to customers. PRASA-Rail
can build a framework for the improvement of their asset more especially the
management of the wheel-sets.

Asset management as defined by Luke and Manley (2014) is a coordinated activity of

an organisation to realise the value of an asset by maximising the operational
efficiency, managing the risks, maintaining different levels of service and sustaining the
condition of the asset throughout its life cycle.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO

1997), defines asset management as a process that is rooted in the programming and
budgeting life cycle. Components such as data collection (analysis), performance
modelling (for decision-making purposes), implementation (of the decision made),
monitoring and feedback are important in asset management and are driven by
policies, budgets and goals (Figure 10)

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 Figure 8: Generic Asset Management Model according to AASHTO (AASHTO
1997).

AASHTO (1997) further defines this model as a developing drive to integrate finance,
information management, technical or engineering personnel and planning to contribute
to manage different assets with cost effectiveness.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD 2001) defines
asset management as A systematic process of maintaining, upgrading and operating
assets, combining engineering principles with sound business practice and economic
rationale, and providing tools to facilitate a more organised and flexible approach to
making the decisions necessary to achieve the publics expectations (Figure 9).

Figure 9: Major Elements of Asset Management System (OECD 2001)

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These elements focus more on the reliability benefits that a commuter will obtain from
the operations of the asset, based on different support systems that form part of asset
management. These include inventory data, condition measure, and prediction of
failure to improve performance, data accessibility and life cycle analysis.

Nemmers (2004) defines asset managements main objective as to improve decision-

making processes, so that there is a return on investment achieved for the funds that
are allocated on different assets. For this objective to be obtained all processes of
asset management, such tools and data required from different systems must be
embraced to manage assets successfully.

TV SV (2013) defines IRIS as a standard that is based on ISO 9001 which is a

quality management standard with specific rail requirements. This standard is designed
to ensure that high quality is obtained through assessment guidelines and audits to
create a higher level of transparency throughout the railway supply chain.

Attendu (2008) describes IRIS as a standard that is used to stabilise processes through
standardised requirements where interfaces are improved. This is achieved by reducing
the cost of poor quality in the supply chain through auditing and ensuring that there is
reliability based on the quality of different systems.

2.3 THE RISKS OF NOT APPLYING ASSET MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVELY

The definitions of asset management are clear in identifying various factors that
contribute to the organisations strategic plan and are based on operations,
maintenance and managing risks.

March (2010) states that there are five primary risks that have a negative impact where
there is proper asset management within an organisation and those are as follows:

1. Not knowing what they have: the organisation will find difficulties in tracing
different assets and knowing their condition. This requires a good configuration
management process where assets can be evaluated during maintenance and
all the maintenance activities recorded.
2. Over or under maintenance: During maintenance, there can be problems of
over-maintaining or under-maintaining if the life cycle of the asset being
maintained is not known and there is no FMECA conducted. It is likely that

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 there will be non-value maintenance execution that will have a negative impact
on the cost of maintenance. This will cause an organisation to overspend their
maintenance budget due to over-maintenance. When the maintenance budget
has been depleted, the asset will be under-maintained and this will in turn
compromise operational efficiency. The principles of RCM or FMECA can give
a direction in solving this problem for the implementation of a proper
maintenance plan for asset management.
3. Improper operations: If there is no proper planning for doing maintenance the
assets operational life will suffer. To solve this problem an organisation needs
to know the function of their assets (how the asset should run) and their failure
modes. This will help in mitigating any risks that might affect the asset.
4. Improper risk management: This forms part of the PDCA (Plan Do Control Act)
which is the heart of both asset and quality management, where an asset is
being assessed and controls put in place for identifying and reducing any risks.
5. Sub-optimised asset management system: All the systems supporting the
management of assets such as planning of resources for maintenance are
important. Most important is that employees should execute maintenance for
the asset management in line with the business strategy.

2.4 THE CHALLENGES FOR NOT BEING IRIS CERTIFIED FOR THE RAILWAY
INDUSTRY.

The purposes of the IRIS standard are many. An organisation that is ISO 9001 certified
for quality will have an advantage when they have to be audited but they need to cover
a broad spectrum where ISO 9001 has limitations. IRIS requires an improvement on the
business management system in order to fulfil requirement that are beyond ISO 9001.

Companies such as Gautrain and Transnet freight rail are using ISO 9001 but might
later realise the need for being IRIS certified in order to improve their business
processes to their advantage. The opportunities that will be missed when IRIS is not
used are as follows (Broomfield 2011):
1. The product life cycle cost management process
2. The KPIs for certain processes
3. Internal operational interfaces and responsibilities with all process, procedures
and records
4. The organisations plan to reduce risks
5. Maintenance processes and consistent repair for different assets

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These are some of the key factors that are covered in the IRIS standard, which can be
linked with the management of an asset.

2.5 ISO 55001 AND IRIS FOR ASSET MANAGEMENT

From the problem statement in chapter 1 it is evident that there is a need for an
improvement in the management of the wheel-sets. Asset management as described
by Rose et al. (2013) covers a broad spectrum for the management of any asset from
the day of procurement until its disposal. The core management of an asset by PRASA-
Rail is to ensure that a cost-effective, safe and reliable service is given to all
commuters. From the data shown under the problem statement, it is evident that there
needs to be a process guideline to improve such services.

Luke and Manley (2014) stressed that all the activities of an organisation should add
value for operational efficiency and if these results are not obtained then it will be a
problem to minimise different risks. The solution is that there needs to be a clearly
defined process for the management of the asset. It is only through research that most
of the solutions are obtained to improve a system for any asset.

Nemmers (2004) emphasises that in the future, transportation agencies need to fully
use their asset management in both short-term and long-term decision making in
planning, budgeting and operations.

An IRIS standard deals with the quality processes in the railway industry and was
developed from the ISO 9001 standard. This standard complements ISO 55001 to
ensure that quality is obtained for the management of various processes within the
management standards where there are specific requirements.

Most railway companies still need to improve their systems to ISO 55001 and to be
certified, especially those that were PAS 55-1 (which was replaced by ISO 55001)
certified for the management of their assets. The ISO 55001 standard is aligned with
other major management system specifications and this makes the integration of other
management systems easier. These other management systems include ISO 9001 for
quality management (Van den Honert et al., 2013).

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2.6 ASSET MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

The asset management benefits need to be acknowledged to improve the life of an

asset. Such improvement has the value of reducing operational and financial risk, by
improving the quality of service and performance of assets.

Reduction of financial risk is achieved by improving the return on investment by

improving the management of the asset. This is achievable through making informed
decisions for the management of the asset, through effective cost balancing and
seeking opportunities to improve the life of the asset. When the risk is managed,
financial losses can be reduced and this includes liabilities such as insurance premiums
or fines from any regulatory body. This will result in improved services that will meet the
customers and the stakeholders needs.

Compliance with safety and health standards has a positive effect on any legal and
regulatory requirements, which are in line ISO 55001. Compliance to ISO 55001
ensures that improved operational efficiencies are obtained by improving processes,
procedures and asset performance for operational objectives.

Asset management does not focus on the asset itself but on how much value the asset
can provide to the customer and organisation. The improvement of the assets life
depends upon organisational objectives used for the improvement of any technical and
financial decisions through proper planning for maintenance activities.

There are four important factors that are important for the achievement of the
organisational objectives when ISO 55001 is adhered to and they are as follows:

Alignment
Leadership
Assurance
Value

Alignment involves proper planning which requires good decision making for
maintenance activities. This decision is backed up by the integration of the asset
management processes such as the functional management processes undertaken by
the financial, human resources and information technology department.

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Leadership involves understanding the different levels on which people think during the
execution of maintenance, in order to change the culture within the workplace by clearly
defining their roles and responsibilities. This allows employees to be competent and
empowered regarding asset management and all the processes involved.

Assurance is based on the results of all the output of the maintenance activities
undertaken by the employees. The results have to be presented so that all employees
are aware of the results of their hard work and capabilities for monitoring and
continuous improvement. This also involves making all necessary resources available
so that competent personnel are able to ensure that all asset management
requirements during maintenance are undertaken for operational efficiency.

Value is obtained from the effort made to ensure that an asset functions as required.
This is to ensure that all the asset management objectives are within the organisational
objectives. This requires good decision making in line with ISO 55001 in order to attain
value for operational efficiency.

2.7 IMPLEMENTATION OF ISO 55001

In order to implement ISO 55001 one needs to understand the background of ISO 9001
since all audits use ISO 9001 for quality assurance. These processes have overlapping
requirements but ISO 55001 covers all the aspects involved with the management of
the asset rather than compliance with required processes, which are based on quality
management, which is covered in the IRIS standard. The ISO 55001 standard uses a
framework that entails a process cycle for the entire management systems standard for
the management of the asset. Such a system falls within the PDCA process.

ISO 55001 emphasises the identification and the controlling of risk internally and
externally by an organisation. This involves ISO 9001 for quality assurance by
documenting and preventing risks. All decisions made should take into account how
risk will be managed and controlled. All need to be documented and registered in order
to keep a record of any threat that might compromise operations.

For asset management planning this is important and all technical requirements are
important as an output of ISO 55001. This standard is built in order to ensure that the
asset management objectives are achieved throughout the life cycle of an asset.

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The asset management process has five elements that should be adopted by
organisations. PRASA-Rail is aligning itself to those elements that are covered by a
combination of IRIS and ISO 55001 (Poland 2013):

Organisational strategic plan: Establishing a plan for asset management with

clear objectives that are measurable, monitored and communicated, with all the
risk factors considered.
Asset management policy: Aligning the asset management plan to the business
processes by developing an asset management policy for continuous
improvement.
Asset management strategy: Ensuring the competency level of the personnel
conducting their work and ensuring that information is made available by
providing necessary support and resources.
Asset management objectives: Ensuring that there is process control and
monitoring in all the activities undertaken internally and in outsourced activities.
Performance standards: Assuring that the processes monitored are measured
and evaluated through internal audits, and that there are management reviews
of the outcome.
Process improvement: Recording non-conformance, which must be closed by
having corrective and preventive actions for continuous improvement.

Three factors important in asset management (Dieter 2013) are:

Must add value.

Must have clear visibility.
Must create new opportunities for asset improvement.

2.6 IRIS BUSINESS PROCESS

The roles and duties of the business process owners (according to the IRIS standard)
are to ensure that the following factors are covered (Heinzmann 2013):

Processes are developed fully in compliance with the IRIS standard

The process owners are trained and the processes documented and
implemented.

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 Internal audits are conducted on a regular basis and those auditors must be
IRIS certified to monitor that employees adhere to the required processes.
Root-cause-failure analysis is performed following corrective and preventive
actions for process improvement.
There are indicators which are clearly defined, carried out and reported for
process performance measurement.
More opportunities are created for continuous improvement.

The reason for adopting the IRIS standard is that it does not focus only on asset
management (compared to ISO 55001) but on the entire railway business processes
(Figure 3 & Figure 4). IRIS covers the following three core processes of the business:

Governance processes
Processes for service delivery
Supporting processes

Some of these processes spelt out in the IRIS standard cover SANS 3000 (South
African National Standards, National Railway Safety Regulator Act), OHSAS 18001
(Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems) and ISO 14001
(Environmental Management System).

PRASA-Rail will adopt the IRIS standard/requirements for different business and
technical processes. Other standards will be used as reference documents on
processes where they complement one another. (Refer to Appendix A.)

The IRIS standard covers all processes, except for the following that are covered by
ISO 55001(Refer to Appendix A).

Asset management system

Asset management system documentation
Asset life cycle activities
Assessment of strategic assets
Asset renewal decision
Operation and maintaining of assets
Total performance of the asset
Participation and consultation

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 PDCA of asset management
Management of operational asset
Asset register
Asset categorisation and classification
Outsourcing of asset management

The points listed above will be fully covered by ISO 55001 since the IRIS standard does
not fully cover them. As part of the certification, ISO 55001 and other standards that are
listed on Appendix A, they need to be utilised and must form part of the processes that
will be developed in line with IRIS recommendations and requirements.

2.7 OPERATIONAL RELIABILITY AND ASSET MANAGEMENT

The core function of PRASA-Rail is to transport commuters from one place to another.
That function requires an engineering intervention in order to deliver a reliable service
to commuters. It all starts at a project management level, where a specific design is
made for a certain purpose and that purpose serves a particular function to achieve a
certain goal and performance. For that asset to be reliable there is a need to apply the
principles of asset management in line with ISO 55001 (Refer Figure 10) which is the
PDCA for asset management.

Figure 10: PDCA Risk-Based Asset Management Model (Poland 2013)

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The asset management plan needs to be aligned or fed back into the design and
operation of the asset within the system of asset management. This is attained by using
the risk-based model which is combined with business processes (in line with the IRIS
standard) to define standard work. The business processes need to be clearly defined
and put in place for managing different assets for their life cycle, which will provide the
organisation with a visual map which has the required steps that must occur including
decision-making points and the interface with other processes or systems within the
function of the organisation (Poland 2013).

The PDCA was originally created for quality control, which subsequently falls under the
IRIS requirements. The PDCA framework ensures quality in the physical asset
management and systems. The integration of ISO 55001 and IRIS standards can be
obtained through the PDCA framework. The following factors are required from the
PDCA cycle (Van den Honert et al 2013):

Plan: Leadership and planning for asset management are required.

Do: This is where responsibilities are provided for the implementation of asset
management plans (for maintenance support and operational benefits).
Control: This is where performance and improvements are achieved through
condition monitoring of the assets, which is required for maintenance execution.
Act: This is where the benefits of asset management reviews are measured for
the improvement of asset management.

2.8 DISCUSSION

The asset management strategies or methodologies that are defined in the ISO 55001
have similarities with other asset management models that are define by AASHTO
(1997), OECD (2001) and Nemmers (2004). The principles such as classifying,
analysing, controlling and measuring, which are in line with the PDCA values for
operational stability to manage the life of the assets, are covered in all the models that
are defined by AASHTO (1997), OECD (2001) and Nemmers (2004).

This chapter shows that asset management comprises all systems, methods
procedures and tools to optimise costs, operations performance and the risk of the
asset as a whole including the management of the railway wheel-set. The improvement
of the assets life includes building, maintenance, logistics and asset renewal together

Page | 26
with the machines for maintenance support and material for improving the reliability of
the asset (Gradina 2013).

The PDCA framework is a centre where the IRIS and the ISO55001 standard meet as
discussed in this chapter. This thesis will proceed based on the questions asked and
the framework of the PDCA for the advancement of the management of wheel-sets as
defined by Van den Honert et al 2013.

The variables to measure in this thesis are based on the PDCA and are as follows:

a) The wheel-set management process based on the CMMS

b) The risk-based analysis
c) The life cycle and maintenance intervals of the wheel-sets
d) The costs incurred based on the TCO for the reduction to prevent over-
maintenance and under-maintenance

2.9 CONCLUSIONS AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER

The life cycle management of different assets needs to be adopted to ensure that they
reach their expected design life. ISO 55001 with the integration of the IRIS norm has all
the requirements that are expected from any railway organisation for the management
of the asset. The ISO 55001 standard covers the asset management aspect while IRIS
covers the asset governance aspect. Compliance to all the required processes will
enable the organisation to:

Manage all their assets and monitor the return on investment (ROI).
Save operational and maintenance costs.
Carry out proper strategic planning in line with the business goals.
Carry out decision making and understanding of the process.
Understand business capitalisation and operational cost.
Monitor different asset conditions though a Computerised Maintenance
Management System (CMMS).
Integrate different systems used for maintenance execution.
Understand the asset management cycle and the expectations required.
Understand the life cycle costs and increase efficiency through a preventive and
predictive maintenance model such as RCM.

Page | 27
 Improve personnel skills for the maintenance of the asset and communication
within the organisation.

Railway companies need to invest in information technology as part of ensuring that

maintenance support systems are in place. This is to ensure that accurate diagnosis is
done when booking wheel-sets off service. This intervention helps in reducing
unscheduled downtime by allowing proper wheel-set schedule for maintenance (Ngigi
et al. 2012).

Part of the inspection during maintenance includes mandatory inspections such as

Magnetic Particle Inspection, Underfloor Wheel Lathe and Ultrasonic Inspection (WM
2012). Most depots in PRASA-Rail do not have a wheel shop where intensive heavy
maintenance is conducted. An external accredited company that focuses on heavy
maintenance of the wheel-sets carries out such work. The ISO 55001 and IRIS
standards will be utilised for accrediting depots and the external service providers who
do light or heavy repairs on the wheel-sets. The minimum requirements for the
accreditation of external parties will be IRIS and ISO 55001 once PRASA-Rail is
certified. ISO 9001 will be considered since the IRIS standard was built using ISO 9001
as a baseline (Figure 3 on page 4). In the future, external service providers need to be
IRIS and ISO 55001 certified to do work for PRASA-Rail. Most companies in Europe
are IRIS certified and the local companies such as TFR and Gautrain are ISO 9001
certified. Bombardier as a European company is IRIS certified but Gautrain as a local
company is not. This certification of Bombardier does not automatically mean Gautrain
is IRIS certified. TFR and Gautrain are both not ISO 55001 certified but they need to
align their systems and processes to those standards. They might not see the benefits
of the standards immediately; however, that will later be seen on their performance
indicators.

The accreditation process of the ISO 55001 and IRIS can help with the following points
(Railinc 2013):

The wheel shop (Figure 11):

The processes can help to access higher quality data for wheel-sets that will be
refurbished.
The processes can help to improve resource planning as well as ensuring that
all wheel-sets are serialised (for traceability of any manufacturing or

Page | 28
 maintenance history this included the purchase order traceability for payment
done).

The Wheel Repair Shops (Figure 11):

The processes will help with the prioritisation of work to be conducted by
improving the maintenance planning.
The processes will help register and record the work to be done on the wheel-
sets.

Equipment Owner (Figure 11):

The processes will help with the improvement equipment productivity and asset
utilisation for the repairs that will be undertaken
The processes will help validate billing with a more effective scope of work
The processes will help make more informed technical asset management
decisions for the execution of maintenance possible.

Figure 11: Overview of the Wheel shop Asset Management principle in line with
ISO 55001 and IRIS

Chapter 3 covers the methodology of how data was collected in line with the mixed
method, which is a combination of qualitative and quantitative.

As a summary chapter 3 covers the wheel-set management model where all factors
contributing to wheel-set replacement are stated for the improvement of asset
management. Different reliability engineering programmes and reviews are discussed
and the one adopted by PRASA-Rail is further explained and explored in detail. The
maintenance philosophy explains the history of the decisions made previously and to
date for the improvement of the wheel-set management system where the RCM of the
wheel-set is detailed and the decision-making matrix clarified through the fundamentals
for FMECA.

Page | 29
Different maintenance management systems adopted by Transnet Freight Rail and
Gautrain (Bombardier), which were obtained through an interview as part of this
research, will be discussed together with the one adopted by PRASA-Rail, to identify
gaps for the improvement of the wheel-set management system.

As part of improving the life of the assets, reliability-engineering calculations are

completed, with the data taken from PRASA-Rails database and Engineering
Economics calculations for the improvement of the asset management of the wheel-
sets in line with the ISO 55001 and IRIS requirements. Chapter 3 is in line with PDCA
risk-based asset management model (Refer Figure 10). This will ensure that the
elements of ISO 55001 and IRIS are covered.

Figure 12: Seven ISO 55001 important elements (IPWEA 2014)

Page | 30
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter contains data that has been used as a support for the findings and other
information gathered. As explained in chapter 1 the methodology is a combination of
both qualitative and quantitative, where data is both measured and observed.

3.1 WHEEL-SET MANAGEMENT MODEL

The replacement of wheel-sets for maintenance depends on a wide range of factors

and parameters (Serco Rail Technical Services, 2012). Such parameters are as
follows:

Wheel profile
Wear rates
Maintenance
In-service inspection
Profiling intervals
Unit costs

Therefore, the wheel-set management model needs to be introduced as part of

managing the wheel-sets maintenance and renewal program or process. The key
features that need to be considered as part of managing the wheel-sets are (Serco Rail
Technical Services, 2012):

Asset decision support for planning, in terms of maintenance execution and

production for the availability of service by ensuring that the maintenance
management system is used for any day-to-day maintenance execution.
Improvement of resource allocation based on the demands due to the
improvement of preventive maintenance principles.
Balance between maintenance and renewal of wheel-sets by having a decision
matrix.
Tracking of conditions on the infrastructure by having wheel to rail interaction
meetings for the improvement of the operational series.
Root-Cause-Failure analysis to determine the wear rate on the wheel profile to
improve the life of the wheel-sets.

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WMM (Wheel-set Management Model) analysis of the characteristics of the fleet within
rolling stock needs to be defined in terms of engineering standards (with all the
condemning limits). The WMM is a computerised system, which is a Vehicle Inspection
System (VIS) that is connected to the Computerised Maintenance Management System
(CMMS) for asset management. Collection of asset inventory information (set number,
vehicle number and the wheel-set number) and the condition of the asset (historical
data, inspection data, profile wear, wheel diameter and bogie overhaul) must be done.
The characteristics of the inspection and maintenance intervals are defined (Bevan et
al. 2013) as follows:

Bogie overhaul intervals

Wheel-set re-profiling (machining) interval
Visual inspection and profile measurement
Ultrasonic interval

A wheel-set maintenance management strategy can be developed based on the points

listed above, by developing options where both preventive and conditioned based
maintenance standards are adhered to. There are also costs implications based on the
predicted inspection done during maintenance and the renewal cost (based on the
replacement of old wheels with new) of the wheels.

3.2 RELIABILITY ENGINEERING REVIEW IN RAILWAY

According to Sullivan, Pugh, Melendez and Hunt (2010), there are three types of
maintenance programmes to consider for improving the reliability of systems and they
are as follows:

Reactive Maintenance
Predictive Maintenance
Preventive Maintenance
RCM

Each of the above has its own advantages and disadvantages. The most important
factor to consider is the cost-benefit from programmes and these are the programmes
that should be fully applied in the railway industry, especially in the rolling stock. Most
equipment fails due to poor operations and poor maintenance; the abovementioned
programmes have their own positive impact based on the application of the
Page | 32
maintenance regime or strategy used. These maintenance programmes are used in
PRASA-Rail. The one that is being focused on is the RCM because it incorporates both
preventive and predictive maintenance programmes. The decision-making matrix
consists of a run-to-failure option. This is reactive maintenance in RCM analysis and
that is a low-risk option (see section 3.3.1).

It is imperative to base data analysis on the bathtub curve (Figure 13) because the
results to be evaluated can bring about a final solution of any reliability engineering
management problem. The infant mortality of the bathtub curve can be considered as
having a wheel-set that is new, under warranty on a minimum of two years (OConnor &
Kleyner 2012). The infant mortality stage has a decreasing hazard (failure) rate and the
wheel will be in operation. Later it will be at a constant failure rate point (caused by
wear and tear during operations as its life deteriorates). During that period,
maintenance will be conducted as part of refurbishment to restore the wheels to their
useful life period, until wheel-sets reach a wear-out period, where most components
have reached the minimum condemning limits. Components such as the axle can be
recovered and re-used, while the rest of the components are decommissioned.

Figure 13: The 'bathtub' curve (OConnor & Kleyner 2012)

3.2.1 Reactive Maintenance

Reactive maintenance is the run-to-failure maintenance approach. In reactive

maintenance, there is no recovery mode because there are no efforts or actions taken
to maintain the failed equipment that has reached the end of its design life (Sullivan,
Pugh, Melendez, and Hunt, 2010).

Page | 33
The advantages are as follows:

Low maintenance cost

Fewer employees or staff

The disadvantages are as follows:

Unplanned downtime during the failure of the equipment with increased costs
Labour costs might increase due to overtime
High replacement costs due to failed equipment

3.2.2 Predictive maintenance

Predictive maintenance is a maintenance technique designed to determine the

condition of equipment in service in order to predict failure before it occurs.
Measurements that distinguish system degradation are put in place to control any
system deterioration of the component, by introducing maintenance scheduling for
corrective and preventive maintenance (Sullivan, Pugh, Melendez, and Hunt, 2010).

The advantages are as follows:

Increase equipments life, availability, operability and reliability.

Decrease in equipment downtime due to predictive maintenance.
Decrease labour costs including components/parts replacement.
Aid energy saving.
Costs savings of about 12% when preventive maintenance program is
introduced.

The disadvantages are as follows:

High cost of simulation and diagnostic test equipment

Increase intensive training costs

3.2.3 Preventive maintenance

Preventive maintenance is a maintenance technique where the consequences of

equipment failure are mitigated through a process of preventing failure before it occurs.
Page | 34
That process is achieved through Planned and Conditioned Based Maintenance. This
process is designed to improve and restore the reliability of equipment, which is
achieved by periodically monitoring the condition of the equipment for any sign of
deterioration (wear and tear) with condemning limits. Predictive and preventive
maintenance are interdependent, because with predictive maintenance, measurements
are taken on equipment and with preventive maintenance, an evaluation is done on the
equipment, which is then followed by corrective maintenance actions taken to improve
reliability (Sullivan, Pugh, Melendez, and Hunt, 2010).

The advantages are as follows:

Increases equipments life cycle, availability, operability and reliability

Reduces equipment and process failure of different equipment
Aids with energy saving initiatives
Costs savings averaging at 18%

The disadvantages are as follows:

Failures are likely to occur

There is intense labour to consider

3.2.4 Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM)

RCM is a systematic approach that focuses on evaluating equipment or any resources

by ensuring that the asset continues to operate efficiently and do what it is intended to
do under operations (Refer to section 3.3.1). RCMs focus is to improve reliability and
cost effectiveness through the incorporation of root cause analysis (Sullivan, Pugh,
Melendez, and Hunt 2010). RCM is highly dependent on predictive and preventive
maintenance, but mostly on predictive maintenance. The RCM program is not easy to
initiate, but it is easier if a master equipment list is developed by identifying different
assets/components of a motor coach, the list is then prioritised based on the criticality
to operate. Railway wheels are one of the critical components.

The advantages are as follows:

It is the most effective and efficient maintenance program

Cost are lowered by eliminating unnecessary maintenance activities
Page | 35
 It increases equipments life cycle, availability, operability and reliability
The probability of failure is reduced
It is more efficient than reactive maintenance
The disadvantages are as follows:

The costs of implementation are high including training

3.3 MAINTENANCE PHILOSOPHY ADOPTED IN METRORAIL

The maintenance philosophy used in Metrorail for wheel-sets is RCM, Preventive and
Predictive Maintenance. Keeping data of the profile measured and other critical
readings that determine the life of the wheel has been a challenge.

Various gauges have been used which only give an indication that a wheel-set has
reached its limits. Such a gauge is called a Manual Field Gauge (Figure 14).

Figure 14: Manual Field Gauge (Frhling, R.D. 2011)

The only reading that can be recorded with this gauge is the tyre thickness of the
wheel. The rest such as the flange height (Sh), flange diameter (Sd) and toe radius
(qR) have dimensions (limits) stipulated in the geometric requirements handbook. The
gauge represents those dimensions as an indication (Figure 14) in relation to the mini-
prof gauge with shows all the dimensions (Figure 15).

In 2007, PRASA-Rail decided to use a gauge that was able to give data with more
details because so many wheels were being booked in for the following reasons:

Gauges were not calibrated regularly, resulting in wrong bookings.

There was insufficient knowledge about using the gauge.

Page | 36
When statistics were developed about failures and failure trends of the wheels to make
decisions, it was difficult to motivate for capital funding for repairs because the available
information was not detailed enough.
The statistics only show the diameter of the wheel and other visual physical wear
conditions such as:

Thermal cracks in tyre or rim

Cracked hub or web
Cracked wheel rim
Chipped/shelled/spalled tread and gouged flange
Circumferential groove
Metal build-up on tread
Tread edge rollover
Sharp flange
Overheated wheels
Shifted wheel off the axle
Spread rim
Nick marks

Three or four of these physical defects would appear on the statistics that were
generated, to indicate what was wrong with the wheels. The key information about the
profile wear was not available due to the use of the field gauge. This always resulted in
the sets of coaches being stopped due to wheels having reached their limits. The data
was misleading because of insufficient profile dimensional data, which could not be
taken with a field gauge.

Half the fleet had different sets of coaches booked out of service in the year 2008
2009. Metrorail did not have the budget to get them back into service. A decision had to
be made to look for a solution. The solution was to introduce an electro-mechanical
gauge called mini-prof (Refer Figure 15) that was able to read the wheels profile and
give full dimensional details, but the physical or visual inspection had to still be done
because that gauge cannot measure them. What the gauge is able to measure based
on the configuration is the following key information (Refer Figure 15):

Flange diameter (Sh)

Flange height (Sh)

Page | 37
 Toe Radius (qR)
Hollow wear
Wheels diameter
Other profile-related wear

Figure 15: Mini-prof gauge and the output file readings

A maintenance program had to be drawn up to measure all the sets. About 30% of
wheel-sets were compliant (usable) based on the reading, and could be put back in
service. The remaining badly worn wheels were sent to Transnet for repairs because
the depots had no capacity to effect repairs. That function was outsourced.

Using the mini-prof gauge, made it easier to do maintenance planning and

capitalisation for the funding of wheel-set maintenance based on the data received.
Another challenge was that Transnets turnaround time was slow because they had

Page | 38
wheel-sets from other companies undergoing repairs and this has a negative impact on
the turnaround.

A few companies had to be accredited in the year 2011 due to the demand for repairing
wheel-sets and reducing turnaround time. The accreditation process had to be followed
including all aspects of the Rail Safety Regulator to ensure that there was safety
compliance during the maintenance process, to prevent accidents from occurring due to
poor maintenance of the wheel-sets. There were two categories of repairs and they are
the light repairs and the heavy repairs.

Light repairs:
Light repairs are only applicable on wheel-sets that are to be re-profiled and bearings
changed out. In light repairs the following activities are done:

Cleaning of wheels
Complete wheel-set inspection i.e. dimensional tests and any visual defects
End bearings inspection and removal
Resilient gear inspection
Re-profiling (machining) of the wheel-sets
Dimensional verification i.e. back-to-back, profile and diameter
Non-destructive test (NDT):
UT : Test for detecting internal cracks
MPI: Test for checking external surface cracks that cannot be seen visually only
Pressing on reconditioned, remanufactured or new bearings
Serial number markings with dates and axle serial numbers
Marking a straight line between the tyre and wheel (to see if the wheel is loose
especially on the tyred wheels)
Knock tests on the wheel, checking if the tyre is loose by using a hammer, to
prevent derailments
Wheel-sets storage on rails or conveyer belt mat

Heavy repairs:
Heavy repairs entail pressing new wheel centres (replacing wheels that have reached
their limits), replacing the axles, press fitting of resilient gears and fitting of the U-tube
including end bearings. The process is the same as those listed above and inclusive of
the following activities:

Page | 39
 Removal of the tyres/wheels which have reached their minimum, replacing them
with new wheels and securing of the tyre to the wheel hub by pressing in the
Gibson ring
Replacing of an axle that is worn and or has reached its limits
Replacing a worn-out resilient gear, either by fitting a new one or a
reconditioned one
Heat shrinking of cannon box bearings on the axle
Pressing of the end bearings

3.3.1 Scope of work and RCM principle

Below is a scope of work where light repair activities and heavy repairs can be
identified. It is in line with the conclusions reached in chapter 2 on the literature review
in section 2.7 and Figure 11 for the workshop maintenance that must be done by an
external service provider in line with ISO 55001 and IRIS standard requirements. It has
three sections (Table 2):

Standard work where general inspection is done

Labour section where any labour is done
Where new or reconditioned parts are listed which form part of labour

Table 2: Scope of work for repairs

A. Standard Work (Strip & Quote)

Item Description of work required
1 Clean wheel-set for inspection
Inspect, test, size and quote (complete wheel-set
2
including canon box where applicable)
3 Remove & replace bearings (axle end bearings)
Non-destructive test wheel & axle - MPI (Magnetic
4 Particle Inspection) test (axle surfaces & bearing
seats) -ultrasonic test (rim areas of wheel-set)
Non-destructive test gear wheel - mpi
5
test

Page | 40
B. Additional Work Required (Labour)
Item Description of work required

Remove and replace tyre (retyre)

1
2 Recondition wheel centre

3 Remove and replace solid wheel

4 Re-profile old tyre/solid wheel

5 Profile new tyre/solid wheel

6 Remove & replace wheel on gear end(drive)side

7 Remove & replace resilient wheel gear
8 Remove & replace wheel on non-gear end
9 Convert solid wheel to tyre

10 Recondition old Axle (Centre Portion)

11 Repair axle centre hole (centre bore)

12 Dalic Plate Axle End (Bearing Seats)

13 Remove & Replace Resilient Bushes & Pins

14 Remove, Repair & replace Cannon box (bearings)

Convert Journal type axle to APF including adaptor ( R6 to
15
APD)
16 Building a Complete New Wheel-set (solid)
17 Building a Complete New Wheel-set (tyred)
18 Spin Test Wheel-set

C. New / Reconditioned Parts

Item Description of work required
New tyre bored to size Tyre D 069005126A and 069005126 T2-
1
069005304

2 New Gibson ring D Gibson 866500033, MC Gibson 866500034

3 Old Gibson ring

4 New Wheel Resilient Gear 069004740

5 Reprofiled/Reconditioned Resilient Gear 069004740S

6 Supply new wheel centre
New Axle machined to size R6 069003479FM,5M2AR and Plain
7
069003406FP and 069003406FP
8 New resilient bushes 069004108
9 New Resilient pins 069004473
10 New Cannon Box 068027145
11 Reconditioned Cannon Box 068027145D
12 New axle end bearings R6 069006904 And APF 069006953
13 Reconditioned bearings (REMAN)
14 Remanufactured bearings (RECON)
15 New Adaptors (for bearings)
16 Suspension Bearings (White metal SKF type)

Page | 41
 C. New / Reconditioned Parts
Item Description of work required

17 Cannon box Bearings (Drive End) Timken Pin End 069005491

Labyrinth

Cannon box Bearings (Non-Drive End) Timken Com End

18
069005506
Abutment Ring
New Resilient Gear Wheel Centre (Spider) 5M2A Spider
19
069005049 and 5M2AR 069009541

This scope of work is based on the RCM principle as it is grouped per component.
Procedures and drawing numbers are linked to the parts on sections C
(New/Reconditioned Parts). This scope of work originally entailed a column of PRASA-
Rail benchmark prices for work done by the wheel-set repairers, i.e. accredited service
providers such as Transnet Engineering (which was part of PRASA 10 years ago) and
other companies that are only capable of doing light repairs.

When potential functional failures are identified, the next step is to conduct RCM
analysis by doing an FMECA. The importance of FMECA is to establish the cause-and-
effect relationship among potential equipment failures, functional failures and the effect
of functional failures and to evaluate the criticality of the failure modes (ABS, 2004).
The importance of this information is to determine the following (ABS, 2004):

What kind a failure management strategy is needed and when

What type of failure management is best used to manage failure modes (e.g.,
one time change, planned maintenance) which requires condition monitoring
and preventive measures and followed by run-to-failure as an option)
The importance of failure management strategy, which needs to be given
attention as well.

When doing FMECA the items involved are considered i.e. the systems or subsystem
that will be selected to determine its failures. Once the items are listed, their functions
should be defined and failure modes determined including their failure effect (Table 3).

A Risk Matrix (Figure 16) must be developed or determined together with the Severity
Category Matrix (Table 4) as a decision-making tool which will be used on the RCM
Task Table (Table 5)

This process is important for decision making for the management of an asset such as
the train wheel-set, which is one of the most safety critical components in the railway
Page | 42
industry. The engineering management principles are well understood when made
practical with a decision-making tool such as RCM, which brings about change, and
there is reduction of unnecessary cost incurred during maintenance. The task table
shows that a decision has to be made on some critical areas where redesigning is
required, such as the latest PRASA-rail design for the solid wheels which becomes part
of the solutions as a decision-making strategy for improving the operational services.

Page | 43
 Table 3: Wheel-set FMECA Worksheet for RCM

Functional
Item Function Failure Mode Failure Effect End Effect
Failure
Brakes will be constantly applied and Brake settings must be done on a
the brake blocks will cause hollow regular basis during shedding; all the
1) Incorrect brake
The function of wheels is wear on the wheels. vacuum valves must be tested for
a) Worn settings. 2) Bad
to propel the train or Wheels will not have normal wear leakages including the vacuum piping.
thread on track conditions,
coach from one direction and will get worn gradually. Brake block thickness needs to be
the Incorrect brake
to another. The tyre is Worn or incorrect brake blocks will checked on a regular basis.
profile. blocks or worn
heat shrunk on the hub. cause grooves on the wheels
brake blocks.
damaging the rails or possibly
causing derailments.
Brakes constantly applied on the Brake settings must be done on a
wheel causing heat expansion. regular basis during shedding; all the
b) Ballast not laid correctly will jump on vacuum valves must be tested for
1. Tyre 1) Thermal fatigue
Damaged the tracks during operations, leakages including the vacuum piping.
(Wheel) 2) Ballast 3) Brake
profile damaging the wheel profile and rails.
settings
Wheel Brakes will be constantly applied and
the brake blocks will cause hollow
wear on the wheels.
Degradation of wooded sleepers due Corridors with wooden sleepers need
to different environmental condition to be identified.
and notwithstanding the axle loads All wheels must be checked for
from the wheels in a result causing looseness during maintenance.
1) Spread railway
c) Loose derailment.
tracks 2) Loose
tyre Wheels not thoroughly checked and
Gibson ring
for any signs looseness or wheel
becoming loose due to heat
expansion, in result causing a
derailment.

Page | 44
 Functional
Item Function Failure Mode Failure Effect End Effect
Failure
The hub is part of the Looseness tests are conducted on a
tyre and it became a regular basis.
a) Loose Gibson ring becoming loose due to
complete wheel when 1) Loose Gibson
2.Hub tyre on heat dissipation and in return causing
the tyre is heat shrunk ring
the wheel derailment
on it. It is also fixed to
the axle.
The Gibson ring secures Looseness tests needs to be conducted
Gibson ring sprung because of poor
the tyre to the hub (in on a regular basis.
train operations, due to brakes
circlip form); the tyre is
a) Loose 1) Sprung Gibson applied while accelerating, causing
3.Gibson ring pressed on the flange
tyre ring heat expansion and in return wheel
back with the Gibson
becoming loose and causing
ring press at a certain
derailment
pressure during repairs.
Resilient gear creates a Lubrication needs to be topped up as
propulsion/traction a) Gears Gears will make noise and there will per schedule and gear case seals need
4.Resilient
caused by the traction coupling 1)Worn gear teeth be excessive heat expansion due to to be checked on a regular basis for any
Gear
motor, which is driven failure insufficient lubrication signs of leakages.
by a pinion.
Is connected to the axle
5.Resilient
and connected to the
Gear Wheel a)None
Resilient Gear with
centre spider
bushes and pins
Resilient bushes are
shock absorbers during
the traction on the gears
6.Resilient
i.e. the interface a) None
Bushes
between the resilient
gear and the gear wheel
centre (spider)

Page | 45
 Functional
Item Function Failure Mode Failure Effect End Effect
Failure

The resilient pins are 1) Pins showing The process of fitting the resilient pins
a) Loose Loose resilient pins will cause the bush
7.Resilient slotted in the bushes and signs of being lose must be validated for consistency
resilient to be loose and in return making noise
pins are securing the resilient from their aligned
pins during operations
gear to the hub position

An axle is a shaft that The design integrity of the axle must be

rotates the Resilient a) Fatigue 1) Cracked axle due Axles that have cracked will break and validated, especially the axle load,
8.Axle
gears and the wheel crack to heavy axle loads cause derailments. chemical composition and manufacturing
since they are fixed on it process of that design
The cannon box is fixed
on the centre of the axle
9.Cannon
and it is fastened on the a) None
Box
traction motor adjacent
to the gears
The cannon box bearings Thorough bearing inspection must be
are in the ends on the done to ensure that the bearings are
1) Bearings seize
cannon box, which The bearings will make noise and there always lubricated
10.Cannon a) Bearing due to lack of
causes a smooth will be metal-to-metal contact causing
box bearings seizure grease or grease
operation between the wear in return.
contamination
interface of the traction
motor and the axle
Inspection must be done for any sign of
The APF bearings are 1) Bearings seize
The bearings will make noise and there spillage on the bearings and the service
11.APF End fitted at the ends of the a)Bearing due to lack of
will be metal-to-metal contact causing date needs to be looked verified on
Bearings axle, which are seizure grease or grease
wear in return. condition that the bearings are still within
connected to adaptors contamination
their tolerances
The adaptors are fitted 1) Bearings outer Inspection must be done for any sign of
a) Worn Bearings will be damaged and the
12.Adaptors on the APF bearings and cover will get worn spillage on the bearings and the service
adaptors adaptor bore will be oval
the APF are the interface and causing date needs to be looked verified on

Page | 46
 Functional
Item Function Failure Mode Failure Effect End Effect
Failure
between the Bogies and bearings to seize condition that the bearings are still within
the bearings their tolerances

Figure 16: Risk Matrix

Table 4: Severity Category Matrix

Page | 47
 Table 5: RCM Task Selection Table

Current Current
Item Matrix Severity Corrective Action
Likelihood Risk
1. Tyre (Wheel) The brake blocks composition must be validated against the original approved
specification. There needs to be a wheel to rail interactions with the Infra department for
1 Catastrophic Frequent High
the maintenance interventions of the rail. Worm bake block that have reached their limits
must be removed.
2. Hub 2 Major Probable High Loose tyred wheels must be removed from service and repaired
3. Gibson ring
1 Catastrophic Frequent High Loose tyred wheels must be removed from service and repaired

4. Resilient Gear 3 Moderate Remote Low Worn teeth can be re-profiled or replaced when not repairable.
5. Resilient Gear Wheel
centre spider 4 Minor Improbable Low
Worn teeth can be re-profiled or replaced when not repairable.
6. Resilient Bushes 4 Minor Improbable Low Resilient bushes can only be inspected during removal of wheels from coaches.
7. Resilient pins 4 Minor Occasional Low There needs to be proof that quality checks were done and a certificate
8. Axle 1 Catastrophic Remote Medium The destructive and non-destructive tests must be conducted when repairs are done.
9. Cannon Box 4 Minor Improbable Low It should always be inspected and replace when there are sign of cracks
10.Cannon box bearings 4 Minor Improbable Low They should always be inspected and removed when worn.
11.APF End Bearings 3 Moderate Remote Medium Bearing that are not within their tolerance limits must be remove and replaced
12.Adaptors 3 Moderate Remote Medium Worn adaptors must be removed for repairs

Overview: from the results, which are based on the RCM risk matrix, analysis on item 1, 2 & 3 (Refer Table 5), there is a need for redesign and
improvement on the wheel-set. These results were an initiative for the new design of the solid wheels, which was mentioned on chapter 2 (Refer Figure
7), this risk matrix (Figure 16) became a decision-making tool as part of asset management process.

Page | 48
3.3.2 Maintenance Management System in PRASA-Rail (FMMS)

The maintenance management system used in PRASA-Rail is Facility Management

Maintenance System (FMMS), which is used for asset management limited to motor
and trailer coaches only. Assets that are not covered are plant, infrastructure and real
estate & facilities.

Below is a mapping on what was covered in this research paper as discussed in

chapter 1 as part of the research methodology (Figure 17).

Below is a mapping of what was covered in this research paper as discussed in

chapter 1 as part of the research methodology (Figure 43):

Figure 43: Research methodology mapping

In the Planning Department (Figure 17:18) a job card is created with all the activities
that are to be undertaken when the train-set is issued. Check-sheets form part of the
job card, which covers the complete assets for maintenance execution.

In the shedding department, the job card is discussed with the Shedding Production
Manager and the Planning Department team. The Production Manager then discusses
it with the supervisor and the supervisor with the artisans and other technical personnel.
The teams to execute the maintenance are called Mission Directed Work Teams. After
maintenance is completed, all the maintenance check-sheets and fault bookings that

Page | 49
require lifting at the reliability workshop, are manually recorded in FMMS. Coaches that
need to be lifted are separated from their sets (a set consists of three motor coaches
and nine trailer coaches) and are shunted with a diesel locomotive to the reliability
workshop.

Shunting is usually done at night by removing the coaches that have been lifted and
maintained. Other affected coaches are shunted at the same time and as well as in the
morning for the execution of maintenance (lifting work).

Job cards are printed out for the reliability workshop job execution with maintenance
check-sheets. The job cards are discussed in the same manner in the shedding
department. Affected wheels are verified with a mini-prof gauge and they are removed
from the coaches and are sent to the wheel repairers. All the maintenance faults are
closed out and are recorded in FMMS for record keeping and maintenance plan
execution. FMMS also have different train-sets with all the coaches and the status of
the following:

The last time maintenance was conducted (history)

The next maintenance schedule
The history of every component changed with serial numbers
The faults that were encountered from every set of coaches.

The top 10 faults are manually filtered in an Excel spreadsheet for minimising failure by
improving service delivery and reliability, to do root-cause-failure analysis and as a
result improve maintenance execution.

There are three types of maintenance cycles:

Full Shed : Full maintenance cycle (major service).

Intermediate Shed: An intermediate maintenance cycle, which is different from
Full Shed.
Passenger Safety and comfort. A minor maintenance cycle where the focus is
on safety and comfort (such as seats, windows, flooring, interior panels etc.).

Some rolling stock maintenance companies classify these cycles differently. In all the
maintenance cycles, wheel-sets are inspected, as they are part of the safety-critical
equipment.
Page | 50
FMMS is not an automated system and has major differences with other modern
systems. It requires more configurations so that sometimes it takes longer to be at the
level where it is expected to be and it can be expensive to keep making changes on this
system. This system uses one server that is connected to all regions and if the server is
down, no one can log in. This results in a backlog for jobs to be recorded after
maintenance has been conducted and unreliable information that cannot be justified
because of these difficulties.

The only automation done is the selection and planning of labour, service and the
replacement of materials. Another problem is fault codes. People use different fault
codes to close their jobs. This results in inconsistent information being uploaded. It is
hard to filter faults due to the inconsistent information and makes it difficult for one to
rely on it.

Page | 51
 Wheel-set Management System Process Flow
1. Planning Department 2. Shedding Department 3. Reliability Workshop

Starting Area for Wheel-set Mini-

prof Data
the preparation of transferred from a
sets for maitenance Shedding Supervisor discuses the laptop and
job card in the MDWT meeting cheksheet to FMMS
with Artisans and Process
Workers

Job
Execution by
Artisans FMMS
FMMS
Job Card Printed from
FMMS
Job Card Printed from
FMMS
Maintenance Planner send the
Job Execution Job card to the W/shop
Manager to discuss with the
Superisor
Other Wheel-set
Maintenance Planner gives Maintenance Inspections
Fail
the Job Card to the Shedding Activities Shedding Supervisor discuses the job
Production Manager card in the MDWT meeting with
Artisans and Process Workers
Pass
Phase: Depot Wheel-sets Management Process

Wheel-set Mini-
prof Data Motor or trailer Coach shunted and
transferred from a lifted for the removal of worn
laptop and Wheels to be sent for repairs
cheksheet to FMMS

The Shedding Production Set taken back to

Manager shares the job service Wheels Stored and
card with the Shedding ready to be dispatched
Supervisor for repairs

Page | 52
Figure 17: FMMS Wheel-set Management Process Flow
The mini-prof data was not integrated to the FMMS system when the mini-prof gauge
was introduced in 2009. The results were only printed after an engineering technician
took readings with the laptop and they were printed out (Figure 18) and shared with
the Shedding Supervisor and the Productions Manager. This exercise was lengthy
and from a set of 12 coaches, 96 wheel-sets were manually measured and the
information electronically recorded in the software using a laptop. The only
information that was printed was that of faulty or worn wheel-sets, and the rest of the
information remained on the laptop. It was challenging to establish a trend on the
wear rate because all the sets were manually recorded. One had to transfer the
information to Excel and had to filter all the faults for reporting on the status of the
wheel-sets. It was also impossible to measure the complete fleet since only two mini-
profs were available at the depots. Measurements would require shunting of all the
coaches and the exercise could only be done under the pits where maintenance is
done and not at the yard due to inaccessibility.

User Mini-prof Software Laptop

Results Printer

Figure 18: Mini-prof data not integrated in FMMS

After realising that the data was not reliable for maintenance purposes to determine
the wheel wear trend and plan for a float for wheel-set change-out, it was decided
that a new software program had to be designed to transfer data from the mini-prof
data file in the laptop to the server FMMS. This program was designed in 2010. It
required all laptops used for mini-prof to be configured (Figure 19).

Page | 53
 User
Master Server Controller FMMS Server

Results Printer

User Mini-prof Software Laptop

Figure 19: Mini-prof data integrated to FMMS

The configuration took a long time and the transmitting of data was not easily
transferred to FMMS because if information was duplicated the system required time-
consuming technical intervention when the duplicate data was detected.

The information to be stored had to be in a certain sequence in order for it to be

transferred in FMMS (Figure 20).

Page | 54
 Figure 20: Mini-prof output file for FMMS

The readings stored in FMMS from the wheels profile are the wheel diameter
(taperline diameter), flange height (Sh) and other information such as the date, time,
and coach number. From this it is possible to look at the trend of the wheel wear and
to determine how many wheels need to be available during wheel-set change-out.

The taperline diameter readings from the mini-prof have a tolerance of 2 mm and
those readings are sometimes not accurate. Another cause of inaccurate results is
the thermal expansion on the wheel-set. The readings that are taken when the
temperature is high have a bigger diameter and when the temperature drops the
diameter readings are normal.

Page | 55
3.3.3 Gautrain Wheel-set Management System qualitative data collection

The interview was based on the mixed research method where a qualitative data was
accumulated through an interview. The person interviewed in Gautrain was Johan
Van Biljon in his capacity as Country Business Leader. The questions asked are
open questions where the respondent answers without presented or implied choices.
These questions are non-leading questions and the interview was semi-structured.

Below are some of the questions asked:

a) What type of CMMS is Gautrain using and how is this system used for the
management of other assets such as the wheel-sets?
b) What type of standards does Gautrain comply to, for the management of their
assets?
c) What wheel-set management maintenance support system is Gautrain using
and how is it integrated to the CMMS system?
d) What are the maintenance intervals of the wheel-sets in Gautrain and the
calculated life cycle of the wheels based on distance travelled and wear rate.

This is only a synopsis done to demonstrate the semi-structured element of the

interview conducted. During the interview, notes were taken, and a recording was
made on a mobile device. The notes were minimal so that there was no interruption
of the flow of conversation.

Below is a summary response of the questions that were asked to derive the
qualitative data based on the objective of the thesis.

3.3.3.1. The CMMS system used in Gautrain

Gautrain uses MAXIMO system for asset management and this covers the wheel-set
management. MAXIMO is Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) systems software
produced by IBM mainly used to operate, manage and maintain an enterprise asset
until it reaches disposal stage. Its focus is on the following assets:

Plant and production

Infrastructure (rail)
Transportation (rail)

Page | 56
 Real estate and facilities

Gautrain (Bombardier) use it as part of their asset management tool for their
complete assets. The focus is on the wheel-set management and on determining
how this system is integrated with other systems as part of managing or maintaining
the reliability of the assets.

3.3.3.2. Quality and safety standards

Gautrain uses ISO 9000 for quality management, ISO 14 000 for environmental
management and ISO 18 000 for occupational health and safety. The system that
PRASA-Rail is aligned with is ISO 9000 which is integrated with the IRIS standard
and standards such as ISO 14 000 and 18 000 are by default used and applicable for
safety compliance especially in line with the RSR requirements. Gautrain does not
use IRIS and ISO 55001 certification.

3.3.3.3. Wheel-set technical and safety compliance standard

The standard that is used for technical and safety compliance for wheel-sets is
GM/RT2466 Railway Group Standard 2003, which covers all the important
requirements when doing maintenance as well as the wheel-sets that are in
operation.

3.3.3.4. Maintenance Management System in Gautrain depot (Bombardier)

The wheels management system in Gautrain Depot comprises three sections and
they are as follows (Ref Figure 21):

Automatic Vehicle Wheel-set Inspection System Section

MAXIMO Control Centre
Under Floor Wheel Lathe Section

In the MAXIMO control centre from the Planning Module, a train-set module is
scheduled for maintenance. The train-set will move into the Automatic Vehicle
Wheel-set Inspection System. All the measurements of the brake disks, brake pads,
wheel profile and wheel diameter are recorded and stored in the vehicle inspection
system database server. The server is integrated with the MAXIMO database server
Page | 57
for asset and maintenance management of wheels and other assets that are
maintained. Preventive maintenance is any maintenance work performed on a
regular basis or scheduled to keep the trains running efficiently. The application such
as preventive maintenance module helps the planner to plan and budget for regular
work by planning for the labour, material, service and tools that are needed as per
schedule based on the works order (IBM MAXIMO 2007).

A works order will be printed on wheels and other components that need
maintenance attention. If some of the wheels require heavy repairs then lifting of the
complete train-set module will be done. The wheel-sets will be removed and replaced
with spare wheel-sets. If wheel-sets are worn on the profile and require machining
(re-profiling to the original profile), then the train-set module will move to the UFWL
section.

The UFWL system is not integrated into MAXIMO because it stores all the
maintenance history in its own database. It stores the records of every status of how
much material was machined for economic and life cycle reasons for every train that
requires re-profiling.

The information that is stored gives an indication to the maintenance personnel to do

planning and projection of wheels that are nearing their life for heavy maintenance
intervention.

Apart from the inspection that is done by the UFWL, there are other inspections such
as:

Safety inspection, which is done in line with GM/RT2466 Railway Group

Standard 2003 as mentioned before.
Vehicle maintenance inspection whereby scheduled maintenance is done in
line with Gautrains planning directive on the vehicle maintenance instruction.
Under vehicle inspection there is a bogie system which has wheels as a
subsystem and therefore the following inspection activities are done:
o Bearing inspection.
o Ultrasonic testing for internal cracks on the axles is done for every
200 000 km because of the disk brakes application and to ensure that
if there is a crack there is no propagation that might lead to a fatal
accident during operations.

Page | 58
 o No MPI is done because there are small chances of experiencing
surface cracks that might propagate and cause an accident, but an
accredited service provider called Swasap does such a test when a
wheel-set undergoes heavy repairs.
Operating inspection where the controls and handing are tested by the
operations department during commissioning after maintenance.

Supporting inspection documents could not be shared due to intellectual

property-related obligations between PRASA-Rail and Gautrain.

Page | 59
 Gautrain Wheelset Management System
Automatic Vehicle Wheelset Inspection System MAXIMO Control Center Under Floor Wheel Lathe

Trainset
Trainset module
module
Full trainset module moves UFWL unit

Measures the following:

# Brake Discs
# Wheel Profile and Wheels are
Wheels are cut to
diameter measured for
the required
# Back-to-Back profile cutting
specification
Automatic purposes
Wheels profile
Vehicle UFWL
inspection
MAXIMO
MAXIMO
Information is
stored

Wheelsets trend is
done automatically
in the system
Maximo modules:
Wear comparison is #Assets
done in the system #Contracts
#Deployed assets
#Inventory
#Preventive Maintenance
Gautrain Wheelset Management System

#Purchasing UFWL Server

Works order or Job card is N.B Wheels that require Heavy #Resources
automatically printed of all Repairs work are outsourced to #Safety
the wheels measured accredited service providers #Planning
#Service Desk
#Service Management
#Works Orders

Trainset Back
Results
Results Printer
Printer to service

Figure 21: Gautrain Management System

Page | 60
3.3.4 TFR Wheel-set Management System

The method for data acquisition was conducted through the qualitative method. The
person interviewed in TFR was Georg Hettasch whose designation is Wheel/Rail
Interaction Senior Engineer. The questions asked are open questions where the
respondent answers without presented or implied choices. These questions are non-
leading questions and the interview was semi-structured.

Below are the questions asked during the interview:

a) What type of CMMS is TFR using and how is this system used for the
management of other assets such as the wheel-sets?
b) What type of standards does TFR comply to, for the management of their
assets?
c) What wheel-set management maintenance support system is TRF using and
how is it integrated to the CMMS system?
d) What are the maintenance intervals of the wheel-sets in TFR and the
calculated life cycle of the wheels based on distance travelled and wear rate.

This is only a synopsis done to demonstrate the semi-structured element of the

interview conducted. During the interview, notes were taken and a recording was
made. The notes were minimal so that there was no interruption of the flow of
conversation.

Below is a summary response of the questions that were asked to derive the
qualitative data based on the objective of the thesis.

3.3.4.1. The CMMS system used in Gautrain

TFR uses the MAXIMO system for asset management. This system is not integrated
to the wheel-set management system. The reason for this is that this system cannot
handle the volume of the data that is transmitted from the wheels profiling monitoring
system.

TFR is in charge of running wagons and locomotives in different regions and a large
number of wheel-sets are measured by their system which requires critical data to be
filtered for analysis.

Page | 61
3.3.4.2. Quality and safety standards

TFR uses ISO 9001 for the quality management of their assets and maintenance of
their quality assurance systems. The ISO 9001 certification for an organisation
requires an implementation of quality management system (ISO 9001.com, 2014) of
the business inclusive of the following:

Facilities
Personnel
Training
Services
Equipment

The complete organisation of TFRs quality management system of ISO 9001 covers
all the points listed above for their business. This is in line with the RSR requirements
for the safety element of operations.

3.3.4.3. Wheel-set technical and safety compliance standard

TFR uses a standard called Geometric Requirements for New, Reprofiled and In-
service Wheel-sets. The standard contains all the requirements for compliance of
wheel-sets that are in service and those that are repaired during maintenance.
PRASA-Rail has partially adopted the same standard because Metrorail was once
part of Transnet. PRASA-Rail has its own standard that is incorporated with the TFR
standard. The difference between TFR and PRASA-Rail standard is that the TFR
standard uses AAR requirements whereas the PRASA-Rail is based on the EN
standard. These standards do not differ much but have all the requirements that
address:

Design requirements
Destructive tests (for compositions and hardness verification)
Non-destructive tests (for internal cracks, internal cracks and other related
tests)
Geometric requirements (requirements for the dimensions and accuracy for
the machining of the wheel-sets)
In-service inspection requirements

Page | 62
The only difference between the above standards is the material composition, which
has some elements that are not the same. PRASA-Rail rail uses the same profile,
which is profile 22 (the machined profile of the wheels). All the standards are in line
with the RSR requirements

3.3.4.4. Maintenance Management System in TFR

The wheel-set management system at TFR (Ref Figure 22) comprises the following:
Automatic Train Wheel-set Inspection and Vehicle Identification system
section
MAXIMO Control Centre
Underfloor Lathe section
All the vehicles that are to be maintained pass through the vehicle identification
system and the automatic wheels profile inspection unit. The vehicle identification
unit records the vehicle number, while the wheel profile unit measures the critical
dimensions of the wheels. The information is fed into the Integrated Train Condition
Management System (ITCMS) for storage. The data is filtered and analysed with a
computer or laptop in Excel. The information is shared with the fleet manager for
his/her attention regarding maintenance and if the wheels require heavy
maintenance, they will be sent to TE for repairs.

The information from the ITCMS cannot be stored in MAXIMO because of its volume.
It is automatically filtered into a usable size, with all the useful data that can be
stored. The vehicle number is stored in MAXIMO and other maintenance-related
information such as job cards, material and serialised components.

The data from the ITCMS is transferred into the CASDAM system. This system will in
the future be integrated to MAXIMO. The entire critical dimensions will be filtered into
a usable size in order for them to fit into MAXIMO.

The fleet manager decides from the information that was filtered into the ITCMS
whether a vehicle with wheels that are not compliant, should move into the UFWL
machine or not. If the other wheels require more machining to balance the required
geometry on the vehicle configuration, then they will look for spare wheels that match
the one that is cut to save the life of the wheels.
Once the machining of the wheels is completed, the serial number of the wheels and
their dimensions are recorded into MAXIMO for further decision making on
maintenance.
Page | 63
 Transnet Freight Rail
Automatic Train Wheelset inspection & Vehicle identification Sys MAXIMO control Centre Underfloor Wheel Lathe

Locomotive
and Wagons Locomotive
and Wagons
Locomotives and Wagons moves UFWL unit

Automatic Vehicle
Wheels profile Identification
Vehicle system
inspection

All the information is stored in the ITCMS

UFWL
MAXIMO
MAXIMO

Critical Data is
manually feed to
Maximo

Mini-Prof Data
verification
Integrated
Integrated
Train
Train Condition
Condition Maintenance
Maintenance
System(ITCMS)
System(ITCMS)
Caution
Caution Assessment
Assessment
System
System Data
Data Analysis
Analysis
Information is Model
Model (CASDAM)
(CASDAM)
passed to the Fleet
TFR Wheelset Management System

Manager for a
Information is filtered,
vehicle that needs
where graphs can be
Reprofiling
generated for business
reasons. The data is
processed into a usable size
that can be in the future
Information integrated with Maximo
Information is
is analysed
analysed

Wheel
Wheel that
that require
require heavy
heavy repairs
repairs are
are sent
sent to
to Transnet
Transnet Engineering
Engineering

Figure 22: TFR Management System Page | 64

3.4 DATA ANALYSIS FOR METRORAIL (VALIDITY OF DATA)

The data used was collected over two-years and was captured on the FMMS from
June 2012 until May 2014. It shows the critical dimensions (the wheel diameter and
flange height from a wheel-set). This information shows the number of wheels that
were worn during that period.

Below is a table of the condemning limits with original profile nominal dimensions
from the profile 22 template.
Table 6: Wheel-set condemning limits

Flange angle
Taperline diameter(D) Flange height (Sh) Flange thickness(Sd)
dimension (qR)
Min Max Allowable Reject Min Max Min Max
Motor Coach
984 mm 1054mm
29 mm 35 mm 19mm 29-31.5mm 6.5 mm 13.5mm
Trailer Coach
800 mm 984 mm

The data taken is from all the regions:

Cape Town depot (CTN)

Durban depot (DBN)
Gauteng North (Pretoria(GTN))
Gauteng South (Wits/Braamfontein (GTS))

Motor Coach flange height

The flange height table below is for motor coaches that are nearing a wear-height of
35 mm in all the regions (Table 7& Figure 23). All PRASA-Rail motor coach wheels
will have to be profiled and some have to be converted to solid wheels rather than
heat shrinking new tyres (when they have reached their limits). This forms part of the
wheel-set renewal programme and it this depends on the amount of material needing
to be removed during re-profiling (Figure 27 & Figure 28).

Page | 65
 Table 7: Motor Coach Flange height data nearing 35 mm.

Figure 23: MC flange height graph

Motor Coach diameter

The motor coach wheel-sets that are nearing a minimum diameter of 864 mm will
also be reprofiled. This depends on the amount of material that is to be removed if a
wheel-set diameter is nearing 984 mm by 5 mm or 8 mm. A wheel-set can be
machined to its minimum of 984 mm and still be in service. A wheel-set with a
minimum diameter of 983 mm/982 mm can remain in service and should travel a
maximum of 3 000 km before it is taken out of service. (Table 8 and Figure 27).

Table 8: Motor coach wheels diameter near 864 mm

Page | 66
 Figure 24: Motor coaches wheel-sets diameter graph

Trailer Coach Flange height

The approach will still be applicable on the trailer coach wheels to re-profile or press
new solid wheels on the old axle. If the profile cannot be maintained to allowable
parameters and there needs to be a float of wheels available for the wheels change-
out (Table 9 and Figure 25).

Table 9: Trailer Coach Flange height nearing 35 mm

Figure 25: Trailer coach wheels flange height graph

Page | 67
Trailer coach diameter

More trailer coach wheel-sets will be replaced in 2015. More wheel-sets will be
required for most trailer coaches that are nearing their limits (Table 10 and Figure
26). This means that more trailer coaches will be stopped due to wheel wear (or
defects). The only way to mitigate the wheel shortage is to have a float of new solid
wheel-sets available while others are fitted with new centres on old axles as part of
the wheel-sets replacement program and for the availability of trailer coaches. This
will build capacity for operations.

Table 10: Trailer Coach wheels diameter near 800 mm

Figure 26: Trailer Coach wheels diameter graph

Overview

The data taken from FMMS makes it easier to make comprehensive engineering
management decision on wheel-sets and for maintenance planning. The engineering
managers from all regions need to be able to use the data to ensure that availability
and reliability expectations are always met by enforcing good maintenance practices
and improving them, as part of engineering management.

Page | 68
3.4.1 Reliably mathematical life cycle calculations (LCC) for Railway Wheel-
set Management regime

The aim of the mathematical models below is to give an indication based on reliability
engineering management focusing on the Wheel-set Management System Regime.
This is part of PRASA-Rails development of a wheel-set management strategy.
Through this process, one would have an indication of how to plan for current and
future wheel-set use, considering a projection of when the wheel-sets need to be
overhauled. The determining factors of the wear rate that give an indication on the
life expectancy of a wheel when it is new and considering the type of material that is
being used, are the axle load and rail condition. The formula to calculate the life cycle
was obtained from Balcombe (2010) and the data for a wear rate of 0.28mm on the
average of 10500km travelled distance were obtained from Mtimkulu, (2008). Below
are the LCC calculations based on the hollow wear, which aim to demonstrate the life
of the wheel-set from when it is new until its disposal.

3.4.1.1. Hollow wear (2mm wear calculations)

i) Useful life (New wheel) diameter: 1054 mm

ii) Useful life (decommissioning size): 984 mm
iii) Distance travelled: can be any travelled distance from 10 000km to 1 000 000 km
(this can be done in iteration) but in this case we will consider 100 000 km
(distance travelled by the wheel)
iv) Kilometre wear rate: Based on the 5M2A wear rate of 0.28mm/month (10500
average kilometres travelled. Considering 2mm hollow wear (it can be based on
any wear cause on the flange as well)
To Determine in which month will 2mm wear be obtained: Wear = 0.2 8mm 7.4
month
Wear = 2.074(approx.) mm
Then how many kilometres the wheel could have travelled to reach a wear of 2
mm:
Kilometre wear rate = 7.4 month 10500 (average kilometres travelled in 1
month)
= 77 700 km (wear rate) reaching a 2.074 hollow wear.

Page | 69
v) Kilometres turn rate :wheel cannot be turned (machined) if it has reached a
nominal wear but can be turned if it has reached 2mm hollow wear for an
example, we will consider 77 700km wear as a tuning rate in kilometres.

vi) Profile material amount: This is the amount of material to cut when re-profiling a
wheel and therefore there will be 5mm cut for 2mm hollow wear.
Formula:

Size (diameter) =Useful life (Dtaperline)-( )[[ ]x

[p ]... (1)
100 000 100 000
= 1054 - ( 77 700 ) [[ 77 700 ] 5]

= 1054 1.287 (1.287 5)

= 1052.713 - 6.435
= 1046.278 mm (after re-profiling)

Table 11: Wheel diameter degradation after 908 000km (with a hollow of 2 mm)

Kilometre Reprofiled
Kilometre Size (Taperline
Distance Travelled profiling material
wear rate Diameter in
(km) (turn)rate amount
(km/mm) mm)
(km/mm) (mm)
0 1054.000
100000 77700 77700 5 1046.277992
200000 77700 77700 5 1038.555985
300000 77700 77700 5 1030.833977
400000 77700 77700 5 1023.111969
500000 77700 77700 5 1015.389961
600000 77700 77700 5 1007.667954
700000 77700 77700 5 999.9459459
800000 77700 77700 5 992.2239382
900000 77700 77700 5 984.5019305
901000 77700 77700 5 984.4247104
902000 77700 77700 5 984.3474903
903000 77700 77700 5 984.2702703
904000 77700 77700 5 984.1930502
905000 77700 77700 5 984.1158301
906000 77700 77700 5 984.03861
907000 77700 77700 5 983.96139
908000 77700 77700 5 983.8841699

Page | 70
 Figure 27: Wheel-set degradation (hollow wear) based distance travelled

Overview

From the results on Table 11 and the graph in Figure 27, the wheel-sets will reach
their minimum diameter at 908 000 km on average and will last for seven years and
two months in service before reaching the end their life based on the hollow wear.

3.4.1.2. High flange wear (35mm flange height)

The calculations are based on the high flange of 35 mm, which does not often
happen or is experienced by most wheel-sets in other regions. This is dependent on
the conditions of the rail track and whether there are grease points on curved tracks
(to reduce flange wear), skew bogies, or improper back-to-back distance of the
wheel-sets that eventually cause high flange wear. Below are the LCC calculations
based on the high flange:

i) Useful life (New wheel) diameter: 1 054 mm

ii) Useful life (decommissioning size): 984 mm
iii) Distance travelled: 100 000 km (as per assumed km distance travelled by the
wheel and iteration)
iv) Kilometre wear rate: Based on the 5M2A wear rate of 0.28mm/month (10500
average kilometres travelled). Considering 35 mm flange height wear with a wear
of 6 mm from a flange height of 29 mm.
To determine in which month 6 mm wear will be obtained when the wheel has a
flange height of 35 mm:

Page | 71
 Wear = 0.28 mm 22 month
Wear = 6.16 mm (approx.)
Then how many kilometres the wheel could have travelled to reach a high wear
of 2 mm:
Kilometre wear rate=22 month 10500 (average kilometres travelled in 1 month)
=231 000 km (wear rate) reaching a 6.16mm flange height
wear.

v) Kilometres turn rate :wheel cannot be turned (machined) if it has reached a

nominal wear but can be turned if it has reached 35mm flange height (6 mm wear)
an example, we will consider 231 000 km (wear rate)wear as a tuning rate in
kilometres.

vii) Profile material amount ::this is the amount of material to cut when re-profiling a
wheel and therefore there will be 8 mm, cut for 35 mm flange height wear (6 mm).

Formula:

Size (diameter) =Useful life (Dtaperline)-( )[[ ]x

[p ] (1)
100 000 100 000
= 1054 - (231 000) [[231 000] 8]

= 1054 - 0.4329 - (0.4329 8)

= 1053.5671 - 3.4632
= 1050.1039 mm (after re-profiling)

Table 12: Wheel diameter degradation after 604 000 km (with a high flange of 35
mm)

Kilometre Reprofiled
Kilometre Size (Taperline
Distance Travelled profiling material
wear rate Diameter in
(km) (turn)rate amount
(km/mm) mm)
(km/mm) (mm)

0 1054.0000
100000 231000 231000 8 1050.1039
200000 231000 231000 8 1046.2078
300000 231000 231000 8 1042.3117
400000 231000 231000 8 1038.4156
500000 231000 231000 8 1034.5195
600000 231000 231000 8 1030.6234
Page | 72
 Kilometre Reprofiled
Kilometre Size (Taperline
Distance Travelled profiling material
wear rate Diameter in
(km) (turn)rate amount
(km/mm) mm)
(km/mm) (mm)

700000 231000 231000 8 1026.7273

800000 231000 231000 8 1022.8312
900000 231000 231000 8 1018.9351
1000000 231000 231000 8 1015.0390
1100000 231000 231000 8 1011.1429
1200000 231000 231000 8 1007.2468
1300000 231000 231000 8 1003.3506
1400000 231000 231000 8 999.4545
1500000 231000 231000 8 995.5584
1600000 231000 231000 8 991.6623
1700000 231000 231000 8 987.7662
1800000 231000 231000 8 983.8701

Figure 28: Wheel-set degradation (flange wear) based distance travelled

Overview:

From the results in Table 12 and the graph in Figure 28, the wheel-sets will reach
their minimum diameter after travelling a distance of 1 800 000 km on average, which
represents 14 years and two months in service, before reaching the end of their life
based on the flange wear. The life of the wheels may deteriorate quicker than
expected (based on these calculations) because of railway conditions and other
contributing factors, which were discussed at the beginning of this chapter. The life
should be known when the life cycle of the wheel-sets is calculated for asset

Page | 73
management in line with the PDCA risk-based asset management model in chapter 2
(Figure 10).

3.4.2 Engineering Economics calculations based on maintenance

This section contains the data analysis that is in line with the objectives of asset
management. The formulas used in this section are from Kumar (2004) and some
changes were made for the definition of certain input data that was obtained from
Mtimkulu (2014). Some data from the LCC calculations was used as part of the
calculations in this section.

3.4.2.1. Reliability engineering maintenance costs

LCC is the most important financial measure used for decision- making in purchasing
of capital assets and it aids in evaluating their costs. Life cycle cost is associated with
a product to define its longevity, starting from the feasibility study associated with
requirements, analysis, design, production, manufacturing, operation, maintenance
and the disposal of that product. The LCC model is used to assist in decision making,
budget planning, and various activities that occur in the life of the equipment as far as
technology is concerned.

Mathematical models have to be developed for cost estimation elements in this

section. This is done to ensure that all factors are included for reliability engineering
management purposes to have projections of when the assets are mostly likely to be
maintained when considering other decision-making characteristics as far as
maintenance is concerned.

Woodward et al.(1997) define the focus of life of an asset as a major influence on life
cycle analysis and define the following five determinants of an assets life
expectancy:

Functional life: The period over which the need for the asset is expected
Physical life: The period over which the asset may be expected to last
physically, to when replacement or major rehabilitation is physically required
Technological life: The period until technical obsolescence dictates
replacement due to the development of a technologically superior alternative

Page | 74
 Economic life: The period until economic obsolescence dictates replacement
with a lower cost alternative
Social and legal life: The period until human desire or legal requirement
dictates replacement

From this explanation the determining factors of the LCC of an asset should be clear.

3.4.2.2. Mean Time Between Maintenance MTBM set

When Full Shed maintenance is done every two weeks on a train-set (which has
three or four motor coaches and eight trailer coaches) this is on every 15th day of the
month and every 5250 km (Tsm). The train-set is out of service for a day and that is
350 km (MPTP) a day. When the train-set is out of service for corrective maintenance
and lifting is done in the reliability workshop, the train-set will not be in operation for
two days and that is 700 km (MCMT). The train-set operates 10 500 km every month
on average. This means that the train-set would have covered 126 000 km (T)
annually. The availability of the train-set must be determined in order to improve the
maintenance strategies applied by an organisation. The formulas used for this
section.

MTBM (Mean time between maintenance)

T (Mean time between maintenance for duration)
M (T) (Failures resulting in unscheduled maintenance)
Tsm (Time between scheduled maintenance)

MTBMset = .... (2)
()+

126000
MTBMset= 126000
4+
5250

MTBMset= 4500 km

Page | 75
3.4.2.3. To calculate down time (DT):

DT (Down Time)
MCMT (Mean corrective maintenance time)
MPMT (Mean preventive maintenance time)

(())+( )

= ............................(3)
()+

(4 700) + (24 350)

= 126000
4+ 5250

= 400

3.4.2.4. To calculate operational availability:

Ao (Operational Availability)

Ao = .(4)
+
4500
Ao =
4500+ 400
Ao = 0.91836
Ao = 91. 84%

3.4.2.5. To calculate operating cost of the set (Motor Coaches and Trailer
Coaches):
We shall calculate the operating cost for 10 years. The operating cost of the
set per kilometre is R 15.00 at an interest rate of 5.5%.
Cou (Cost per km)
Ao (Operational Availability)
Co = Ao T Cou........ (5)

PV (Co,n)= ............................................................(6)
(1+)
( 0.918 126 000 15)
PV (Co,n)=
(1+0.055)1

PV (Co,n)=R 1 644 568.72

Page | 76
 Table 13: Operational cost table

Year PV (operating cost)

1 R 1,644,568.72
2 R 1,477,566.74
3 R 1,258,316.02
4 R 1,015,733.76
5 R 777,172.80
6 R 563,641.33
7 R 387,467.80
8 R 252,473.58
9 R 155,935.07
10 R 91,289.16
Total R 7,624,164.99

2000000.00

1500000.00
PV (Operating Cost)

1000000.00 PV(Operating cost in Rands)

500000.00 Linear ( PV(Operating cost in

Rands) )
0.00
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
-500000.00
Year

Figure 29: Operational cost graph

3.4.2.6. To calculate Maintenance cost of the set (4 Motor Coaches and 8 Trailer
Coaches):

To calculate the maintenance cost, we shall make an estimate that on average the
cost of both corrective maintenance (Crw R 21 000.00) and preventive
(Cs R 39 000.00) combined are R 60 000.00 per month (on one set). Cs is 65% of the
total cost and Crw is 35% of the total cost per month. The cost for general overhaul
(GO) on a set which consists of four motor coaches (R 3 745 000 per coach) and
eight trailer coaches (R 1 605 000 per coach) is R 27 820 000.00

Crw= Average cost for corrective maintenance in the reliability workshop.

Cs = Average cost for preventive maintenance in shedding.
i,n= 0, if there is no maintenance carried in period n and 1, if the general
overhaul is carried out in period n.
Page | 77
COH,i= Cost of general overhaul at a certain period

CM = [(() ) + ( ) + (=1 , , )].....................(7)

CM = [(4 21000) + (24 39 000) ) + (0 27 820 000)]

CM = (84000) + (936 000) + (0)
CM = R 1 020 000.00

Present value of maintenance cost for 10 years considering a G.O to be done

on the 8th year.
1
CM,n = [(() ) + ( ) + (=1 , , )] (8)
(1+)
1 020 000
CM,n =
(1+0.055)1

CM,n = R 966824.645

Table 14: Maintenance cost table

Year PV (maintenance cost)

1 R 966824.6445

2 R 916421.464

3 R 868645.9375

4 R 823361.0782

5 R 780437.0409

6 R 739750.7497

7 R 701185.5447

8 R 18792111.43

9 R 629981.8465

10 R 597139.191
Total R 25815858.93

Page | 78
 20000000

15000000

10000000
Series1
PV

5000000 Linear (Series1)

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
-5000000
Year

Figure 30: Maintenance cost graph

Note: on the 8th year a general overhaul is done and the i,n value will change:

CM = [(() ) + ( ) + (=1 , , )].......................(9)

CM = [(4 21000) + (24 39 000) ) + (1 27 820 000)]

CM = (84000) + (936 000) + (27 820 000)
CM = R 28 840 000.00
Furthermore:
CM,n = R 18 792 111.43

The cost will increase in the eighth year because of the full general overhaul on the
complete train-set. The costs will decrease after the eighth year because of the
normal activities for preventive and corrective maintenance.

3.4.2.7. To Calculate logistic costs

Logistics support costs are associated with the maintaining of spare parts, facilities,
test equipment and other costs such as transportation costs. The spare parts
contribute significantly to the portion of the total support costs. The renewal and
maintenance of spares, including testing of those equipment costs R 2 187 578.60
per annum on average for a single train-set.

Cs (spares renewal, maintenance and equipment testing costs)

1
CL = Cs... (10)
(1+)
Page | 79
 1
CL = 2187578.6
(1+0.055)1

CL = 2073534.2182
Table 15: Logistics cost table

Year PV (logistic cost)

1 R 2073534.218
2 R 1862971.827
3 R 1586532.264
4 R 1280675.407
5 R 979888.7503
6 R 710660.233
7 R 488534.0025
8 R 318328.2043
9 R 196608.8137
10 R 115100.8117
Total R 9612834.532

250000

200000

150000
PV of maitenance cost
100000
PV

Linear (PV of maitenance

50000 cost)

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
-50000
Year

Figure 31: Logistic cost graph

3.4.2.8. Total cost of ownership

A single motor coach is priced at R 6.000 000.00 (there are four motor coaches in a
train-set). The price of a trailer coach is R 2 800 000.00 (there are eight trailer
coaches in a train-set), so Cp is 46 400 000. This is the procurement cost of the
complete train-set. CMF is the maintenance and support equipment cost for the
execution of maintenance on the complete train-set which here is an average of
R30 000 000.00 (Overhead cranes, special tools, trusses, testing equipment, etc.).

Page | 80
TCOo = Cp +
=1 [Co,n + CM,n + CL,n] + CMF.....(11)
TCOo = 46 400 000 + [7 624 164.99 + 25 815 585 + 9 612 834.532] + 30 000
000
TCOo = R 119 452 584.5

The TCO for a complete single train-set will be R 119 452 584.5 over a period of 10
years.

Overview:

For a better understanding of TCO, familiarisation with the asset life cycle model
(Figure 32) is essential as this helps engineering managers and overseers to support
their organisations overall business mission. This asset life-cycle model lays the
foundations for required activities that become part of asset management which
occurs over the lifetime of the physical asset through the design, construction,
operations, maintenance, repair and disposal process (Brady et al. 2013).

For the operations of the full train-set, the TCO of the train-set has to be determined
This enables decision making and planning for capitalisation possible including the
resources and the skills required to support an asset through its operational life. The
wheel-sets become part of this planning within the TCO. They are the high
contributors of operating the train-set as part of specialised asset management
business processes and practices for maintenance executions and reliability
improvement (Brady et al. 2013). The TCO requirements are in line with the PDCA
risk-based asset management model, which was discussed in chapter 2, as part of
the requirement that needed to be measured (Figure 10).

Page | 81
 Figure 32: Asset Life cycle Model (Brady et al. 2013)

3.5 ORIGINALITY AND LIMITATIONS

The originality of the information in FMMS might not have given a true reflection of
the wheel-sets that were nearing their limits due to the following challenges:

Mini-prof gauge is either broken or taken away for repairs or calibration.

Using a mechanical gauge go-no-go gauge acceptance limit criterion and the
results not captured in FMMS due to the limitation of the gauge which does
not give dimensions but indications whether wheels can be placed in service
or not and the information could only be captured in the check-sheet.
Mini-prof gauge not configured correctly and information not loadable to
FMMS due to the output file.
Network is down and therefore unable to log on to FMMS for the loading of
data and in return creating backlogs.
Wheels from different sets are not measured because the mini-prof is
manually operated and the technician can measure on average two sets a
day.

Privileged information regarding the maintenance intervals of the wheel-sets and the
calculated life cycle of the wheels based on distance travelled and wear rate, could
not be made available due to it being intellectual property which could not be
disseminated.

Page | 82
3.6 CONCLUSION AND INTRODUCTION TO THE NEXT CHAPTER

The process of qualitative risk is based on the RCM requirements (in line with
FMECA & RAMS analysis for railways). Qualitative risk addresses problems that
cause functional system failure and failures that are unpredictable. This process
requires the organisation to come up with preventive and predictive measures to
improve maintenance processes.

The quantitative risk assessment determines the task period for maintenance. It
focuses on the high-risk failures with low reliability factors or high consequences of
failures. There need to be trade-offs increasing cost of preventive condition-based
maintenance (done often for quality improvement in line with RAMS requirements for
increasing operational reliability) and reducing functional failures (Figure 33)
subsequently by rectifying potential failures that have a cost impact that is less than
functional failure (ITSR 2012). This risk assessment can be applied by analysing
maintenance intervals using cost data for maintenance and failure as seen in this
chapter under reliability maintenance costs. These maintenance costs include
activities such as inspecting, testing, measuring and other maintenance activities.

Figure 33: Condition-based maintenance model (ITSR 2012).

The costs of failure require special attention when the asset degrades after a certain
period. This can be related to the bathtub curve on the wear-out zone (Figure 13)
where the asset or components within the asset are replaced during preventive
maintenance for operational reliability improvement and reduction of failures. The
costs of preventive maintenance decrease because there is an increase in
maintenance intervals.The costs of failure start to increase because the probability of
failure increases (Refer Figure 34). The total cost curve at the lowest point where the
Page | 83
cost of maintenance and cost of failure meet is where activities of maintenance are
balanced off against the risk of failure. The operational, maintenance and logistic
costs done in this chapter are a typical example of the decreasing cost of preventive
maintenance and inspections where average costs of PRASA-Rail were considered.

Figure 34: Cost to maintenance interval, quantitative risk curve (ITSR 2012).

In the next chapter, the research findings will be discussed focusing on the
maintenance regime and its importance to PRASA-Rail. IRIS requirements will be
discussed with the ISO 55001 for the integration of these two standards. Different
asset strategy levels are covered to ensure that there is clear understanding by
engineering managers for the execution of maintenance for the improvement of the
life cycle of an asset. The CMMS plays a major role in asset management support
systems as discussed in this chapter (which in PRASA-Rail is FMMS).

The research findings are covered where a comparison of different systems in

PRASA-Rail, Gautrain (bombardier) and TFR are compared. The research questions
are answered in line with their objectives and the complete dissertation. The asset
management life cycle in line with the RAMS standard is also defined and clarified
because the RAMS standard plays a major role in the IRIS standard.

Page | 84
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS

4.1 DISCUSSION OF THE RESEARCH FINDINGS

The maintenance strategy at PRASA is Reliability Centred Maintenance. It is

important for engineering managers to utilise the principles of the IRIS requirements
to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of maintenance services as well as the
financial performance of PRASA-Rail by reducing failure costs (Heinzmann 2013).
This dissertation has covered all asset management factors that are key for the
improvement of managing different assets and wheel-sets.

It is important to differentiate different asset strategy levels (for asset

management) for the improvement of performance or life of an asset and to
maintain it for its design life (Sardar et al. 2006). Those levels are categorised
as follows (Refer Figure 35):

a) Strategic Activities: This is where the asset management standards such as

ISO 55001 and IRIS are defined for compliance by an organisation for the
improvement of the asset based on the performance requirements for
reliability engineering. An organisation such as PRASA-Rail sets out a
strategic plan during the acquisition of an asset and/or when an asset is in
operation (Figure 35) for the improvement of its reliability as required within
the life cycle of asset management (Figure 10 in Chapter 2). This includes the
reliability life cycle calculations for the management of wheel-sets that were
done in chapter 3 in section 3.4.1 the life cycle should be predicted for various
time periods to optimise maintenance strategies (Lin el al 2013). The
performance of wheel-sets that are in operation (in service) should be
monitored and replacements should be made before any catastrophic event
occurs (since PRASA-Rail uses preventive and predictive maintenance under
the principles of RCM as discussed in chapter 2 under section 2.3).

b) Tactical Activities: This is where a maintenance strategy is defined, as

discussed on chapter 3. Those activities are maintenance strategies t such as
RCM, which is applied for the improvement of the assets, such as the
management of the wheel-sets. RCM incorporates other maintenance
strategies such as predictive and preventive maintenance. The goals of RCM
are to protect train-sets reliability and availability. This is achieved by
Page | 85
 describing components of the RCM process (Web.mta.info 2014) Although
PRASA-Rail does not entirely use the TPM system, some elements are used
including TQM, to prevent equipment breakdown and standardise them
throughout different fleet. The wheel-set management system will require the
same principles to be applied for the improvement of the complete system.
These strategies have made it easier to identify gaps within the wheel-set
management system and other assets within PRASA-Rail.

c) Operational Activities: This is a section where maintenance is performed in

line with the maintenance plan strategy that has to be adopted by an
organisation. All maintenance processes need to be in line with the asset
management processes such as ISO 55001 and the IRIS standard. In chapter
3, the statistics of the wheel-sets nearing their lives was collated with the
objective of knowing the condition of the asset for decision making by
ensuring asset reliability analysis is done, and that the aspect of spares
management is considered by ensuring that the asset is made available for
operations. The life cycle calculations that were done in chapter 3 considering
different wear such as hollow and flange wear are a part of an engineering
management decision-making tool for maintenance planning and
capitalisation for funding spares management (based on the condition of the
asset).

Figure 35: Asset Management Strategy levels (Sardar et al.2006)

Page | 86
PRASA-Rail uses a different CMMS system from Gautrain and TRF, as discussed in
chapter 3. Below is the comparison of PRASA-Rail System with the one of Gautrain
(Bombardier) and TRF (Freight Rail):

The CMMS system is a software program used by different industries for asset
management. As discussed in chapter 3, the CMMS system that is used in PRASA-
Rail is FMMS. Gautrain is MAXIMO and TRF is MAXIMO with an integration of
CASDAM. The CMMS system makes it easier for an organisation to manage assets
for maintenance, traceability and to do various cost analyses for an asset. This is
achieved by recording and managing day-to-day maintenance activities, such as
assigning work and critical data capturing for planning and improvement of a
systems reliability.

There are four important functions of a CMMS (elatewiki.org 2012):

Asset management: Support system for asset and maintenance management

Works order management: Creation of works orders for purchase requisition
and purchase order for procurement of goods or payment for services
rendered
Maintenance: For corrective and preventive maintenance planning for job
cards creating and recording of maintenance activities
Inventory management: Managing different assets through serial number
identification and the conducted maintenance history as well as the location of
those assets

Figure 36: CMMS functions (elatewiki.org 2012)

Page | 87
Other systems that can be integrated to this system are measuring equipment that
records critical data that is important for job execution. That data can be stored in the
CMMS to be viewed by maintenance practitioners for decision making for
maintenance execution. Those systems or equipment are vehicle inspection,
measuring the condition of the wheels and the underfloor lathe for the wheel-set
profiling pre and post data which will be sent to the CMMS data.

4.2 RESEARCH FINDINGS VALIDATION

Table 16 shows CMMS and maintenance support equipment for asset management
from chapter 3 under the wheel-set management system from PRASA-Rail, Gautrain
and TFR.

The standards that PRASA-Rail use are IRIS and ISO 55001. PRASA was previously
using ISO 9001 for quality management and IRIS uses ISO 9001 as a baseline. IRIS
is broader than ISO 9001 because there are systems and elements that ISO does
not cover (refer to the Appendix A for more details) as discussed in chapter 2 in the
literature review. Gautrain (Bombardier) together with TRF are adopting ISO 9001 for
quality compliance and asset management (Refer Table 16).

The CMMS system used by PRASA-Rail is FMMS and it is not as broad as MAXIMO
used by both Bombardier and TFR. TFR also uses a system called CASDAM for
filtering information into a workable size for data analysis purposes. FMMS has
limitations in integrating with other systems, and only covers the complete train-set
and its components (except for maintenance support equipment such as cranes,
testing equipment and facilities). Other functions such as job card creation and
closure including traceability of different systems of train-set are available. The
creation of works orders can only be done on the SAP system by the supply chain
and finance department. MAXIMO and SAP can both work for asset management
within railway for the replacement of FMMS (Table 16).

The VIU makes it easier to do measurements of the wheel-sets automatically and to

transfer the data into the CMMS system for analysis and maintenance execution.
That data is fed into the underfloor lathe machine (UFWL) for profiling of the wheel-
sets in situ on the train-set. Such a system makes maintenance on the wheel-set
easy when cutting is required. Bombardier and TRF use both the VIU and UFWL.
PRASA-Rail relies on the portable mini-prof gauge for measuring of wheel-sets. The
Page | 88
disadvantage is that it takes a long period to take measurements on a full train-set,
because the readings are taken manually by a technician, as compared to the VIU,
which is automated to take readings and takes a maximum of 15 minutes to measure
the wheel-sets of a complete train-set (Refer Table 16).

The operator manually loads data into the FMMS from a laptop. The stored
information is sometimes not reliable because of the errors made on incorrect
measurements taken from the wheel-sets by technicians.

Table 16: CMMS and maintenance support equipment

CMMS AND MAINTENANCE SUPPORT EQUIPMENT

Bombardier Transnet Freight
Company Name PRASA-Rail
(Gautrain) Rail
Items
Applicable ISO 9001 and partly ISO 9001 and partly
IRIS, ISO 55001
1 standard for asset ISO 55001 ISO 55001
management
2 CMMS System FMMS MAXIMO MAXIMO/CASDAM
Vehicle Inspection
3 None Present Present
Unit
Present and files
Portable Electro- manually loaded into
Present and files
4 Mechanical Wheel FMMS through an None
analysed with a laptop
gauge (Mini-prof) automatic system
with a laptop
Underfloor Wheels
5 None Present Present
Lather (UFWL)
VIS system
Present but integrated
6 Integration to the None Present
with CASDAM system
CMMS
UFWL system
Present and integrated
8 Integration to the None Present
with MAXIMO
CMMS

Overview:
With the adoption of IRIS and ISO 50001, PRASA-Rail needs to improve their asset
management system for the wheel-set maintenance management execution since
there are gaps that need to be closed for the asset life cycle improvement. FMMS
should be replaced with a better system such as MAXIMO or SAP that can manage
the complete assets of the organisation including functions for configuration
management, financial management and other functions that require system

Page | 89
integration for system improvement. PRASA-Rail needs to invest in acquiring the VIU
and the UFWL for ease of maintenance and decision-making for the availability of
services for operations as calculated in chapter 3.

4.3 ANSWERS TO THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Question 1: What are the attributes between ISO 55000 and IRIS, and how will they
be applied as part of a solution to improve the life cycle of the wheels-
sets?
Answer 1:
The difference between ISO 55001 and IRIS was defined in chapter 2 as part of the
literature review. IRIS does not cover asset management requirements; however,
ISO 55001 covers all the requirements and processes that an organisation needs to
comply with for improving the life of their asset through asset management. IRIS was
developed in line with ISO 9001 for improving quality within the railway sector and it
covers different elements and different business sectors within the railway industry.

ISO 55001 and IRIS must both be integrated in PRASA-Rail for improving the
organisations asset management system for Total Quality Management. Asset
management is not a computerised system or maintenance management system but
it is a way in which a business is managed for its asset by integrating these two
systems, to form a set of procedures to manage an asset such as the wheel-sets
throughout its life cycle (Harlow 2012). The most important factor that needs to be
considered at all times are the asset management team, whose primary
responsibilities are to gather information and define goals during maintenance
execution. Such responsibilities include managing of material, labour, schedule, shop
and equipment. These functions form a complete tool in line with ISO 55001
requirements.

The definition of asset management needs to be understood. Harlow (2012) defines

asset management as a structured program to minimise the life cycle costs of asset
ownership while maintaining required service levels and sustaining the organisations
drive to improve reliability for the operation of train-sets. ISO 55001 and IRIS
complement each other within the PDCA framework for the improvement of reliability.

Page | 90
Question 2: Why is the management of wheel-sets important as part of reliability
engineering management and how can the life cycle of the current
wheel-sets be determined based on the wear rate (by focusing on the
current wheel-set management applied in Metrorail)?
Answer 2:
Wheel-set management should be taken seriously because wheel-sets are one of the
most critical components that need to be given a great deal of attention. The PRASA-
Rails wheel-sets management system had loopholes which is why the topic of this
research paper was selected by identifying those challenges that were faced to
ensure that all systems are aligned to the IRIS and ISO 55001. Systems cannot
function on their own without a clearly defined standard and procedure for
compliance, to ensure that the input and output of the work done is of good quality for
asset life improvement. The life cycle of the wheel-set was described in in section
3.4.1 in chapter 3, based on the average wear rate for the hollow and flange wear.
This model will be a decision-making tool for maintenance execution and planning,
these are the requirements stipulated in the ISO 55001 standards including the IRIS
standards as part of the PDCA approach. This model will be a tool that is used for
monitoring of the wheel-set and depot engineers will be able to determine the period
that the wheel-sets will be in service (refer to chapter 3 in section 3.4 showing motor
and trailer coach wheels condition status of wheel-sets nearing the end of their life).

A comparison of different railway organisations pertaining to the wheel-set

management system was made in this chapter, and in chapter 3 points of difference
were defined whereby all systems are distinct because Gautrain and TFR are using
the latest systems technology for asset management support and improvement.
From the finding, it is evident that serious attention is required since PRASA-Rail is in
the process of obtaining that IRIS certification which has strict compliance
requirements. The aim of this paper was make recommendations to improve the
reliability of PRASA-Rails wheel-sets as reliability engineering increases the
probability that an item will perform a required function without failure under a certain
conditions within its life expectancy within a certain time (OConnor et al. 2012). The
life cycle calculations of the wheel-sets were demonstrated, to determine the life
cycle of the wheels (focusing on hollow and flange wear).

The reliability mathematical models such as MTBM had to be done for reliability
engineering management as part of a model or tool used for the maintenance cycle
within PRASA-Rail for asset management. There had to be measures in line with the

Page | 91
PDCA risk-based asset management model or cycle and conducting TCO of the full
train-set (complete asset) where the wheels play a major role, to determine how
much PRASA-Rail will spend for maintaining and operating the train-set for a period
of eight to 10 years before it is overhauled. Those results are related to the lifespan
of the wheel-sets that are in service.

Question 3: What are the challenges that are faced in Metrorail, which have a
negative impact on the reliability of the wheel-sets and the maintenance
regime used as part of the wheel-set management system
improvement?
Answer 3:
There are no asset management models used for decision making for maintenance
planning to determine the life cycle of wheel-sets for their operational time in service
or even to determine when maintenance is required. There is more reliance on the
go-no-go gauge than the detailed data obtained from the mini-prof, which shows
more accurate readings of the wheel-set.

The life cycle calculations in chapter 3 were done for decision making, for the wheels
replacement and to determine several wheels required as a float for engineering
managers to put all measures in place and act from those results obtained as KPIs.
The RCM principles had to be set as a decision-making model in line with FMECA or
RAMS analysis. The FMECA and RAMS analysis that were done in chapter 3,
section 3.3.1 were done to make an improvement on the existing wheel-sets from
tyred to solid wheel as part of the solution that will ensure that derailments are
prevented. FMECA is a technique used to resolve problems in a system before they
occur (Haugen et al 2003). The FMECA and RAMS analyses were used in this
process for system improvement using the RCM principles showing a high risk on the
tyred wheels (which are high contributors to derailments) and with the requirements
of introducing a solid wheel that will be a solution to the current challenge. This
decision was made possible with the understanding of doing system structure
analysis carried out by exploding a system into subsystems to its component level.
The aim is to understand the level of failure and breakdown at subsystem and
component level. This depends on the objective of the analysis below as an example
of the tree diagram (Figure 37):

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 Figure 37: RCM and FEMECA (RAMS) System Structure Analysis (Haugen &
Rausand 2003)

The changes made by introducing the solid wheels into the fleet of PRASA-Rail will
bring changes by reducing maintenance costs, labour costs and TCO. This is
because the tyred wheel has more components as compared to a solid wheel, which
makes maintenance and labour costs high. These changes will ensure that the train-
sets awaiting wheels are put back into service to meet the demands of train-sets that
should be in service (which was discussed in chapter 1 section 1.2.).

As part of CMMS, the information that is stored in the FMMS is not reliable (due to
backlogs) because it is manually fed into the system. It needs to be replaced with
MAXIMO or SAP to improve the quality of decision making, which will reduce costs
incurred unnecessarily.

There is no maintenance support equipment such as a VIU and UFWL to reduce

maintenance labour and logistics costs by improving reliability and availability of
train-sets for operations and ease of maintenance in the same process. The changes
that will be made are in line with the IRIS and ISO 55001 requirements and they will
improve the management of the wheel-sets. This intervention will reduce many costs
and improve on availability of wheel-sets which will add value through the availability
of train-sets.

Question 4: What changes need to be made to improve the reliability management

of the wheel-sets in line with the ISO 55001 or IRIS requirements in
order to improve the availability of the wheel-sets?
Answer 4:
Since PRASA-Rail is in the process of acquiring new rolling stock (new train-sets) in
2015, this is an opportunity to ensure that all systems are in place before the train-

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sets are delivered. This IRIS certification including ISO 55001 will cover both old and
new rolling stock processes for asset management and system improvement. This
will help the organisation to align the maintenance, operations and design processes
in line with the RAMS standard. RAMS covers the following factors (Figure 38).

Figure 38: Interrelations of Railway RAMS elements (Refer BS EN50126-

1:1999).

The asset life cycle needs to be in line with the RAMS requirements covering the
total life of an asset from initial concept design to disposal or decommissioning (BS
EN50126-1:1999). This cycle provides a structure for planning, managing,
controlling, measuring and monitoring all aspects of a system and this is in line with
the PDCS risk-based asset management model (as defined in chapter 2). The life
cycle of an asset is illustrated below, where a process flow was taken from the RAMS
standards where the function of asset management was added in line with the
research findings:

Figure 39: Asset management life cycle within the RAMS standard (Refer BS
EN50126-1:1999).

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The ISO 55001 provides systematic management specification while organisations
align their activities and processes to suit their needs, resources capabilities and
main objective of running a business through the management of their asset (IPWEA
2014). ISO 55001 and IRIS are the critical standards that are detailed with
requirements that should be met.

Below (Figure 40) is a structure of the ISO 55001 on which the standard is
configured.

Context of the
organisation

Leadership and
Commitment

Planning

Support

Operation and Control

Performance Evaluation

Improvement

Figure 40: ISO 55001 requirements for wheel-set management systems

The pyramid of the ISO 55001 requirements will be discussed as follows (IPWEA
2014):
Context of the organisation: there should be expectations from the
stakeholder and those expectations are to ensure that the daily demands of
service delivery are met (as discussed in chapter 1), regarding the train-sets
that need to be in service and reducing the number of delays and
cancellations. This is made possible by developing a scope of work of the
asset (as it was done in chapter 3), for the application of the standards for
wheel-set management in line with the management of this asset.
Leadership and commitment: the responsible personnel are governed by a
policy and that policy is to ensure that commuters are given a reliable service.
This is made possible by clearly defining their roles and responsibilities and
knowing their authority in the management of the wheel-sets.
Planning: before planning is done, the asset management objectives need to
be clearly understood. It is made possible by knowing the life cycle of the
wheel-sets through identifying the risks and opportunities for service
improvement (this is in line with the RCM analysis that was done for the
Page | 95
 improvement of the asset). This includes the maintenance interval pertaining
to the life cycle analysis calculations focusing on the wear and tear condition
and maintenance of the wheel-sets.
Support: this includes resources that have to be allocated such as funding,
tools, competency level (training), and awareness of asset management from
a low to a high-level hierarchy within the organisation. Information such as
work instructions, check-sheets, and standard procedures are part of
ensuring that there is continuity of quality within the management of the
wheel-sets. This process includes CMMS, and maintenance support
equipment such as the UFWL and the VIU.
Operation and Control: this requires change management by looking at the
current work practices and improving them for the future within the
management of the asset. This level of improvement includes the elements
listed in the PDCA (in Figure 10, chapter 2 in section 2.4) for operational
stability. The scope of work for the depots maintenance technical personnel
needs be clear for job execution and including outsourcing some of these
maintenance activities for heavy repairs.
Performance Evaluation: the improvement of performance reduces the TCO
through data analysis and maintenance job execution for the enhancement of
the system. This is done for operation and control as discussed above. The
performance can be evaluated and measured by doing the MTBM
calculations, for the availability of the train-set and the TCO for the
management of the complete train-set (as done in chapter 3).
Improvement: this improvement is measured through the nonconformity of the
wheel-sets, when they fail due to poor maintenance practices. These poor
practices result in derailment. The corrective and preventive action assists in
the continuous improvement of the processes within the management of the
wheels in accordance with ISO 55001.

These requirements will ensure that best practices are attained, and require proper
inspection regimes for different asset groups. This includes the possibility of
introducing a risk-based methodology, as compared to a time-based methodology
because the decisions made might not be informed from a condition-based
perspective (ORR 2012). This is in accordance with the RCM process that was done
in chapter 3 with all the risks taken into consideration.

Page | 96
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS

This dissertation was discussed with the PRASA-Rail executive manager DR. D.
Mtimkulu and some elements were carried out within the PRASA-Rail depots to
improve wheel-set management systems mentioned in chapter 3, namely the life
cycle analysis that was conducted on the wheel wear, i.e. hollow and flange wear. It
was explained that a model had to be developed for decision making for managing
the wheel-sets. The availability calculations should be considered since the
availability of the wheel-sets plays a major role in increasing the reliability of the train-
set for operations and ensuring that train-sets are available.

To be able to comply to IRIS and ISO 55001 gaps have to be identified within the
systems and hence this dissertation highlights solutions towards aligning processes
for compliance and improvement of the wheel-set management system as part of
asset management.

Below is a process that can be considered when covering RAMS life cycle analysis
within the asset management process as discussed in the answer to question 4 in
chapter 4 It is a typical example of what PRASA-Rail is applying when planning for
managing different assets (Figure 41):

Figure 41: Asset Management 10 steps Plan (EAP 2014)

This dissertation has spelt out the problem statement where gaps were identified in
improving wheel-set management in accordance with the IRIS requirements and ISO
55001. Four objectives were identified during the research process, pertaining to the
questions that were being addressed. Below are the conclusions on how those
objectives were met.

Page | 97
Objective 1: To differentiate between ISO 55001 and IRIS standard on what is
covered in Asset Management and applying the applicable factors for
the improvement of reliability for compliance.

Conclusion to objective 1: The IRIS and ISO 55001 standards have the requirements
that are needed to ensure that the wheel-set management process is
being followed according to the norms followed by other international
companies that are IRIS certified. This process prepares PRASA-Rail
to be ready to receive the new trains and align the complete
organisations processes according to those requirements. This can be
achieved by applying those principles for readiness on the existing
fleet (the old rolling stock) to ensure that the certifications are obtained
by aligning the old processes into the IRIS requirements for the
improvement of all the systems within PRASA-Rail. The ISO 55001
will form part of improving asset management within the organisation.
The TCO calculations were done to determine average cost to be
spent over a period of 10 years of a full train-set taking in
consideration that a wheel-set will on average have a period of 10
years in service. This will give direction for engineering managers at
the depots to know their capital costs, the life of the assets, and have
reliability and maintenance decision-making models for operational
and availability improvement of the complete asset and wheel-sets. In
addition, the disposal costs can be generated from the information
used.

Objective 2: To develop service-affecting indicators caused by wear and tear during

operations and by applying a better reliability strategy in accordance
with ISO 55001 and IRIS standards.

Conclusion to objective 2: Chapter 3 described all the service-affecting failures. RCM

analysis was conducted to determine the decision made to move from
tyred wheels to a new design of solid wheels. This is also known as
FMECA, which is a decision-making model, prevalently known as the
RAMS analysis within the rail industry. The PDCA (Refer Figure 10 in
chapter 2) outlines the requirements, which should be met for
Operational Stability by:

Page | 98
 a) Classifying systems in a process flow diagram (this is part of the
IRIS requirement) by mapping different models and their
relationship
b) Analysing the criticality of different systems, the failure analysis
and risk analysis by ranking the impact of the risk with a decision-
making matrix
c) Ensuring that there are control actions in place, by defining the
scope of work, compiling maintenance procedures for predictive
and preventive measures in line with RCM and continuously doing
condition monitoring during a maintenance cycle and ensuring that
there is availability of spares
d) Setting all the measures in place by conducting an overall
equipment effectiveness (OEE) and total effective equipment
performance (TEEP) matrix for the performance of the train-set and
the life cycle of the wheel-set. Conduct calculations such as MTBM
or MTBF and MTTR or DT. This includes knowing the asset
utilisation condition and TCO for future planning.

Objective 3: To develop a solution to close all gaps, by differentiating maintenance

levels, improving the reliability and applying better maintenance
strategies in line with the applicable maintenance regime.

Conclusion to objective 3: Different maintenance methodologies were discussed in

chapter 3 under the Reliability Engineering Review in Railway where
reactive maintenance, predictive maintenance, preventive
maintenance and RCM were described. It was shown that PRASA-Rail
uses the RCM with respect to predictive and preventive maintenance.
An RCM analysis was conducted to alleviate the processes through
the FMECA analysis that forms part of the RCM processes. RCM has
more advantages that were discussed and which are favourable for
increasing the reliability of managing the wheel-sets. This helps in
aligning the wheel-set management system with ISO 55001
requirements and some of the requirements spelt out in the IRIS
standard.

Page | 99
Objective 4: Implementing changes in line with the Asset Management standard
and process flow to improve the reliability management system (these
are the expectations that must be met for the management of wheel-
sets within PRASA-Rail in future).

Conclusion to objective 4: A new wheel-set standard was developed in accordance

with the EN Standard. The life cycle calculations of the wheel-sets
done in chapter 3 are implemented for condition assessment for the
management of the asset. This includes the availability calculations as
part of the systems improvement. The IRIS implementation process
has started after reviewing/improving different processes and
developing other processes that were not compliant with the IRIS
requirement (for readiness with different depots to obtain the
certification).

The complete ISO 55001 will be implemented for the improvement of

the wheel-set management systems to improve the reliability of the
wheel-set.

This is inclusive of the CMMS and maintenance support equipment

that has to be used for ease of maintenance planning and
maintenance execution, which was discussed in chapter 3.

In conclusion, the asset management process discussed and developed in this

dissertation can be successfully applied by PRASA-Rail to improve the wheel-set
management systems and management of other assets. This is because asset
management improvement guidelines are generic and can be applied throughout the
organisation. This process will aid in reducing maintenance cost, labour costs and
improve the reliability of the assets life cycle. This asset management process,
complying with ISO 55001, should be regarded as a tool to ensure that the
availability of all the train-sets is within 92%, as calculations done in chapter 2 have
shown.

Maintenance engineering managers need to understand the asset management

business process for the asset management plan, strategic initiatives and the annual
budget for OPEX and CAPEX for maintenance planning and managing the budget for
maintenance execution (Figure 42).

Page | 100
 Figure 42: Asset Management Framework (EAP 2014)

Below is a mapping of what was covered in this research paper as discussed in

chapter 1 as part of the research methodology (Figure 43):

Figure 43: Research methodology mapping

Page | 101
CHAPTER 6: RECOMMENDATIONS

This dissertation has focused on refining the asset management aspect of improving
the wheel-set management system. The reliability engineering function plays an
important role in asset management. Those factors in this dissertation have
demystified the crucial role of managing and improving the wheel-set management
system.

This research was motivated by the gaps that were identified pertaining to the
challenges that PRASA-Rail was faced concerning the wheel-set asset management
system. PRASA must adopt a modern CMMS system. That system must be
integrated into the system support equipment (Figure 45) similar to TFR and Gautrain
processes.

This dissertation will enable PRASA-Rail to improve the current system for the
benefit of the old and the new rolling stock by adhering to the ISO 55001 and IRIS
requirements.

The aim is not to improve the systems by focusing on a mitigation plan but by
proposing preventive measures for the improvement of all the assets within PRASA-
Rail. The quality of preventive maintenance is dependent on the following factors:

Engineering technical skill and comprehension of the asset-management

design life cycle of a product.
Decision making, quality and quantity of technical data used for maintenance
execution.
Implementation and use of checklist for maintenance system improvement
during the execution of preventive maintenance.
Ease of maintenance execution and feeding of maintenance data into the
CMMS for record keeping and trend analysis for asset life improvement.

The management of assets cannot be allowed to become obsolete and requires

constant research. Qualitative and quantitative research should be continuous in
order to ascertain areas for improvement of the management of the asset.

Proper training and strategic human resource planning is a crucial element when
introducing the new system as it will allow employees to be effectively introduced to
Page | 102
the new system and therefore when training is adequate it will minimise cost-related
or inefficient implementation. All processes may conform to the ISO 55001 and IRIS
standard but they still need the human element in order to see them through.

Stringent budget planning should be done throughout the life cycle of an asset in
order to be sure that every activity that is conducted during operations, maintenance
and logistics management should be costed properly. Budget is a crucial element as
it can be used as an indicator for underspending and overspending which could be
further indicators of under-maintenance or over- maintenance respectively.

Part of budget planning should include the life cycle of a product, which includes
expenditure towards improving the life of an asset which includes:

a. Maintenance: This entails preventive and corrective maintenance for the

improvement of reliability and availability.
b. Logistics: This consists of spare parts, facilities and testing equipment.
c. Operations: This consist of fair price paid per kilometre for operating the
asset.

There are other factors to consider such as tools, overhead cranes and the lifecycle
cost of the product where TCO plays a role in measuring and managing a physical
assets useful life.

It is therefore advisable for an organisation to accurately measure the condition of

their assets to implement diagnostic measures to improve their life cycle.

ISO 55001 and IRIS are two different standards as discussed into the research but in
the literature review, it was shown that these two standards meet in the PDCA model
(Figure 44). This research has proved that these two standards work best within the
PDCA model. It is, therefore, a necessity for an organisation such as PRASA-Rail or
any railway organisation to develop models or frameworks for the improvement of
their assets where both standards complement each other. None of these standards
are inferior for the management of the wheel-sets but they are more beneficial
through their incorporation (Figure 44).

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 Figure 44: ISO 55001 and IRIS integration diagram

The PDCA will be implemented as follows:

a) Plan: From the management of the asset there needs to be intensive planning
that has to be executed based on knowing the condition of the asset by
developing a lifecycle model and prioritising for maintenance planning.
b) Do: This is where the implementation of the maintenance plans are executed.
c) Check: This is where measures taken to identify any possible risks and
failures that can occur through preventive and corrective maintenance. This is
partly Reliability Centred Maintenance where risks are identified and
prevented from occurring.
d) Act: This is where all the benefits of asset management principles are
measured and a decision is made for the improvement of asset management
planning.

It is a necessity for the PDCA framework to be fully utilised to obtain positive results,
which are based on the management of the asset through the integration of ISO
55001 and IRIS standard. As a result, this will aid in the improvement of meeting the
train-set demands, reducing delays and cancellations and reducing the number
derailments.

The expected PDCA framework wheel management system diagram (Figure 45),
where different systems are integrated, is based on the PDCA framework where both
the ISO 55001 and the IRIS standards play a major role. This includes different
processes and systems, which are based on the points that have been mentioned as
part of the solution in this research
.

Page | 104
 Expected Wheel-set Management System
Automatic Vehicle Wheelset Inspection System CMMS Control Centre(Server) Under Floor Wheel Lathe

Train-set Train-set
Module Module
Vehicle Full trainset module moves UFWL unit
identification
unit
Measures the following:
# Brake Discs
# Wheel Profile and Wheels are
Wheels are cut to
diameter measured for
the required
# Back-to-Back profile cutting
specification
Automatic purposes
Wheels profile
Vehicle UFWL
inspection
CMMS
CMMS
Information is
stored
CMMS modules:
#Assets
Wheelsets trend is #Contracts
done automatically #Deployed assets
in the system #Inventory
#Preventive Maintenance
Wear comparison is #Purchasing
done in the system #Resources
#Safety
#Planning
#Service Desk
#Service Management UFWL Server
Works order or Job card is N.B Wheels that require Heavy #Works Orders
Wheel-set Management System

automatically printed of all Repairs work are outsourced to

the wheels measured accredited service providers

Train-set
Results
Results Printer
Printer back to
service
Figure 45: Expected PDCA framework within the Wheel-set management system (Systems Integration) Page | 105
6.1 FUTURE RESEARCH FROM THE DISSERTATION

Wheel to rail interaction: For the improvement of the life of the wheel and rail by
doing simulation studies, focusing on the current rail conditions and the speed
restrictions within the Metrorail line for the improvement of the wheel-sets life. For
the reduction of wheel wear by looking at the complete maintenance management of
the Perway (Permanent Way , or rail road) and optimizing the quality of the grease
points on the curves, the turnouts and other components that are on the Perway.

Metrorail Cast Bogie: For the improvement of the ride quality and comfort of the
bogie. That can be achieved by reduction of the weights and improving the brake
system for the enhancement of the brake efficiency, which comprises primary and
secondary suspension and the type of bogie that is used (such as non-self-steering
bogie and self-steering bogie) which has an impact on the life of the wheel.

Brake Blocks composition analysis: for the improvement of the life of the wheel by
doing a study on the current brake blocks that are used and recommending more
efficient brake blocks that will not cause metal pick-up, thermal fatigue and grooves
on the profile of the wheels.

Page | 106
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53. Van den Honert, A.F., Schoeman J.S., Vlok P.J., 2013. Correlating the
content and context of PAS 55 with the ISO 55001. Department of Industrial
Engineering, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.
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LIRR_CPOC.pdf
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of rolling stock maintenance operations, Oliver Wyman Consulting GmbH,
Dsseldorf.
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Arkansas Industry Computing Inc., United State of America.
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 APPENDIX A

OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Governance Processes
Strategic Business Planning
Vision and mission statement, policies x x x x x x
Corporate strategy and business plan, business goals x x x x x
Maintenance Strategy x
Objectives, Targets and Programmes / RAIL Score Card x x x x x x
Outsourcing of activities x
Organisational Structure x x x x x x
ENG Management Structure x x
Appointments of IMRs and Customer Relationship Representative x x
Appointments of EHS representatives x x x
Management Review x x x x x
Planning and Provision of Resources
Budget and Controlling Processes x
Investment Process x
Accounting, Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable x
Incident related Insurance Claims Management x
Risk and Opportunity Management
Business risks - and opportunities, control of preventive actions x x x x x x
emergency/contingency planning x x x x x
Crisis Management x x
Hazard identification and Risk Assessment x x x
Integrated Business Management System
Quality Management System (ISO 9001, IRIS) x x
Control of nonconforming processes x x
Environmental Management System (ISO 14001) x x
waste management x
Incident Investigation & Reporting x
Occupational Health and Safety Management System (Act 85) x
Incident Investigation & Reporting x
Product Safety Management System (Act 16) x
Asset Management System (ISO 55000) x x
Asset Management system documentation x x
asset life cycle activities x x
assessment of strategic assets x x
asset renewal decisions x x
operate and maintain assets x x
asset total performance x x
Legal requirements x x x x x
Control of corrective actions x x x x x
Audits x x x x x x
Certifications x x x x x
Measurement and analysis of process performance (KPIs ) x x x x x x
Participation and Consultation x x x x

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 OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Continuous Improvement Process (MDWT)

PDCA process x x x x x x
PDCA of Asset Management x
Employee Suggestion Scheme x x
Knowledge Management x
CIP Tools x
Processes for Service Delivery
Sales of Services
Request for Quotation x
Requirements Review x x
Tender Process x x
Pricing x
Maintenance Concept x
Risk assessment x
Contract Review x
Offer release x
Offer tracking and negotiations, finalization x
Lost Order Analysis x
Customer Mandate
Service Level Agreement x
Capacity planning x
Set stabling x
pre-trip Inspection x
post-trip Inspection x
Customer Management
Customer Satisfaction x x
Customer complaint management x
Driver Training and upskills x
Variation Orders x
Emergency communication x
Configuration and Change Management, Traceability
Configuration Management x
Change Management x x x
Control of technical change x x
Supplier Change Control x
Identification and traceability x x
Maintenance planning
Maintenance Shedding x x
Maintenance Scheduling x x
Management of operational assets x x
Asset Register x x
Asset Categorisation & Classification x x
Material Planning
Material for scheduled Maintenance x
Material for unscheduled Maintenance x

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 OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Purchasing of product-related materials and services

Supplier evaluation and approval x x
Supplier classification x
Initial purchases of product-related materials x
Material classification x
Technical Requirement Documents x x
Request for Quotation x
Suppliers offer selection x x
Purchase Ordering x x
Re-purchases of product-related materials x
Parts approval process x
Remanufacturing Review x
First Article Inspections x
First System installation x
Processes for logistics and storage x
Goods receiving x
Incoming goods inspection x x
Inventory and asset Tracking / Inventory control x x
Material consumption / Provision of material / BOM setup x
Material identification and traceability x x
Preservation of Product, Storage standards x x
Internal transportation and transport equipment x x
Monitoring of shelf-life items, first in - first out ( FIFO ) x
Control of nonconforming purchased parts x x
Nonconformity reports x x
Locked storage, quarantine storage x x
Decision making on correction x x
Supplier ranking, development and withdrawal x
Supplier performance evaluation x
Supplier development x
Supplier Feedback & target setting x
Outsourcing of asset management x
Obsolescence Management
active Obsolescence Management x
reactive Obsolescence Management x
Production (general)
Transfer of production activities (extended workbench ) x
Qualification and training of production staff x x x x x
Standardized work places x
Quality inspection and testing x x
Control of nonconforming product x x x x x x
Concession process x x
Abnormal and deferred work x
Changes of manpower, machine, material, method x x

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 OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Scheduled Maintenance & Overhaul

Scheduled Maintenance & Overhaul process x
Scheduled Component Maintenance & Overhaul x
Condition-based Maintenance and Repairs
Pro-active identification of faults repair x
Fault report and corrective repair x
Incident Investigation & Reporting x x x
Heavy Repair x
Component Repair x
Contracted work x
Field Data Reporting and Analysis
Field data collection x
Field data analysis x
Reliability x
Availability x
Life cycle cost x
Field data reporting x
Problem Solving and Design (R&D)
Root cause analysis x
Design Planning and Control x x
Requirements Management x x
Conceptual Design x
Design FMEA x
Design and Development x
Design for Maintenance x
Design for Product Safety x x
Design to Cost (target costing ) x
Design for Environment x x
System Integration ( HW & SW integration ) x
Design reviews, Verification x x
Prototyping x
Design Validation x x
Release, Product Approval and Safety Case / Homologation x
Provision of Technical Publications x
Issuing of technical Information x
Collaboration process with external Engineering Service x

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 OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Work Preparation (ensuring controlled conditions in Production)

Process FMEA x
Planning of manufacturing processes and layout x x
Qualification/validation of manufacturing processes including special
processes x x
Creation of manufacturing documents x x
Control of tools, jigs, fixtures and measurement devices x x x x x
Asset Register x x
Asset Categorisation & Classification x x
Control of Measuring Devices x x x
Control of Equipment, Tools, Jigs and fixtures etc. x
Permit of hazardous equipment x
internal FAI process and release of new production x
Upgrade / Refurbishment /Modernization
Process for Upgrade / Refurbishment /Modernization x
Commissioning
Commissioning process x
Provision of accompanying documents x
Decommissioning
Decommissioning process x
Provision of accompanying documents x
Supporting processes
Provision of Depot Facilities
Provision of depot facilities (buildings, utilities, work places) x x
Preventive maintenance of depot facilities (asset maintenance) x x
performance and condition monitoring x x
Purchasing of non-product-related material, tools and services x x x
Contract management x x x
IT infrastructure x
Cleaning & house keeping x x
Security & access control x x
Work environment x x x x x
HR Processes
Recruitment process x
Roles and Responsibilities, Job Profiles x x x x x x
ENG Roles and responsibilities x x
Employee appraisal, development and training process x x x x x x
Human factors management, incl. Medical surveillance x x
Maintenance Operations Managers self-assessment x
Employee target setting
Employee services and employee satisfaction x
Grading and compensation (salaries and bonuses) x
Retirement process x

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 OHSAS 18001
SANS 3000

ISO 14001

ISO 55000

ISO 9001
IRIS
Process Structure

Control of documents, data and records

Data security x x
Signature Regulations x
Hierarchy of Documents x x
Archiving and storage of documents, data and records x x x x x x
Archiving of files, archive room standards x x
Electronic data backup x x
Document Change Control x x
Control of documents of external origin (standards, regulations and laws) x
Communication processes
Internal Communications x x x x x
External Communications x x x

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