Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your technology questions are answered. Harold asks, how will artificial intelligence affect the railway industry?
Harold, you came to right place. I’ll answer your question by citing research reports from McKinsey & Company, International Union of Railways (UIC), and Startus Insights. Let’s start with the McKinsey report, titled: The Journey Toward AI-Enabled Railway Companies.
Prominent AI Use Cases in the Railway Industry: McKinsey Report Findings
According to McKinsey, railway companies are focusing their AI efforts on approximately 20 use cases. It should be noted, the McKinsey identified over 100 potential use cases! The top 20 use cases are related to four key performance indicators: on-time performance, customer engagement, safety, and operational performance. The table below summarizes the use cases by category:
| Table 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE USE CASES IN THE RAILWAY INDUSTRY | ||
| Business Activity | Description | AI Use Case |
| Railway Undertakings | Activities that are directly & indirectly related to delivering the final product | Crew trainingSafetyOnboard operationsRolling stock maintenanceTrain station operationsRolling stock procurement & inventory management |
| Infrastructure Management | Activities that are directly & indirectly related to the infrastructure needed to deliver the final railway product | Network planningNetwork traffic managementNetwork constructionNetwork maintenance Rail safetyNetwork procurement and inventory management |
| Passenger Experience | Customer facing activities related to the operations of the railway company | Booking and ticketingCustomer railway journeyPassenger informationIn-station additional revenue |
| Support Functions | Essential non-operational activities | HRFinanceIT |
Of course, not all use cases have equal priority. In the table below, the five most common use cases are listed on the left, and the five least used on the right. The other 10 are in the middle.
| Table 2 A | Table 2B |
|---|---|
| Top 5 AI Use Case in Railway Industry | Bottom 5 AI Use Cases in Railway Industry |
| Crew and shift management | Network infrastructure digital twin |
| Rail predictive maintenance | Real time disruption management |
| Real time intermodal information | Talent training |
| Energy efficient management | Autonomous trains |
| Security fraud | Software development |
The Keys to Successful Incorporation of AI in the Railway Industry: UIC Report
We now turn to the findings by the Union of International Railways; UIC per their French acronym. The UIC researchers claims that the railways with the most successful AI abilities share certain characteristics. For example, these railway companies dedicate research and development teams to their AI efforts. Furthermore, they establish cultures of innovation and investment in partnerships to develop new technology. Yet a third reason is that they build capabilities to implement use cases; and take a business-driven approach (rather than solely relying on IT departments) to drive development. UIC researches say, there are six specific keys to success: strategic roadmap, skills, agile operating model, technology, data, and adoption and scaling.
Who Are the AI Disrupters in the Railway Industry: StartUs Insights Report
According to StartUs Insights, a consultancy specializes in discovery of intelligence trends, innovation, and engagement with the world’s most promising startups, scaleups, and technologies, there are 20 AI startups impacting the railway industry. I’ll refrain from listing them all, and instead highlight three that best exemplify the AI story in railways.
Let’s start with rail safety and the startup called RMT. RMT is based in Italy. RMT specializes in automatic recognition of defects on rail infrastructure, and employing AI to detect physical defects. Energy efficiency is the wheelhouse of RailVision Analytics, a Canadian startup dedicated to improving energy efficiency via algorithms that reduce unnecessary braking, throttles, and train handling adjustments. Last, there is Cervello. Cervello is an Israeli startup. Cervello says it provides railways with “… comprehensive security solutions and in-depth visibility of the operational network and infrastructure.” With Cervello misleading commands are identified. Moreover, Cervello produces a contextual view of the affected assets and operational impact.
Time to go but not before ending with this famous lyric from the O’Jays: …” People from all over the world join hands start a love train, love train …”
Until next time,
Yogi Nelson
Blockchain & AI Forum 