The Hindu Business Line : Taking the load off the system

The first part of this article, which looked at the role of technology in Indian Railways, particularly passenger services, appeared in eWorld dated October 1. In this second and concluding part, we look at technology in logistics.

IT can give companies a decisive edge, especially in the logistics sector where the entire supply chain is increasingly being managed electronically.

Intelligent IT systems support all aspects of a logistics company's work and afford customers complete transparency and control throughout the supply chain.

FOIS, other projects

For Indian Railways' freight services, the Freight Operations Information System (FOIS) was conceived in the early 1980s. The initial version was based on TRACS software procured from Canadian Railways and modified by CRIS. The initial project estimate of Rs 1,098 crore, a large part of it for upgradation of communication networks to support data channels, was significantly reduced later on as the cost of communication technology got reduced. The latest estimated cost of the project is Rs 423 crore.

The Rake Management System (RMS) module was installed at 237 locations by 2002. The Terminal Management System (TMS) module has been implemented in over 350 locations, of the planned 550. In addition, for large freight customers, a pilot electronic payment gateway was introduced in 2005.

In respect of finance/stores computerisation in the mid-1990s, a decision was taken to convert batch-mode EDP applications to modern transaction procession systems. AFRES/PRIME (Financial Management and Payroll) applications based on a distributed approach, with servers envisaged at each location, have been developed and are under implementation in a few Zonal Railways.

MMIS developed

An MMIS (Material Management Information System) has also been developed to replace the batch-mode inventory control systems, and is under implementation in eight Zonal Railways and five Production Units. The Personnel Information System, FAS (Freight Accounting System), and OSS (Operating Statistics System) are under development. Centralisation of financial/payroll systems is being developed under a new project at a cost of Rs 65 crore.

The MIS project was conceived in 1998 to provide an MIS system for all Indian Railways departments. Vigilance MIS rollout has been completed, while part rollout of other modules has been done for designated zonal railways. It has been decided to get the system converted to centralisation under the Ministry of Communications and IT. Approximately Rs 40 crore has been spent on the MIS system so far; the estimated cost of the sanctioned works is Rs 90 crore.

Control Charting and Crew Management Systems are important operational requirements. Individual divisions on Indian Railways have developed local applications for Control Charting and Crew Management. In order to consolidate these efforts, the software for the centralised systems is being developed by CRIS. Total investment on these systems is estimated to be over Rs 120 crore.

Among other applications, parcel management pilot, claims management system and health management pilot are also under implementation by CRIS, involving an estimated cost of Rs 6 crore. The workshop management system too is under implementation: in the first phase, 15 workshops are being covered; phase II will include 16 other major workshops. Moreover, a diesel locomotive maintenance management system is being developed at an estimated cost of Rs 11 crore.

CRIS has also developed office automation applications for a few zonal railways and RDSO (Research Design and Standards Organisation). The Long Range Decision Support System (LRDSS) is a standalone application for long-range operational planning of different types. Presently, the system is being modified to enable data import from FOIS for generating some of the input files, while data for other input files is collected manually.

Special thrust planned

Indian Railways has identified a few activities that will be given a special IT thrust, including the following:

FOIS to be extended to all freightloading points and to interface with customers' information systems, weighbridges, etc. Facility of payment gateway also to be extended gradually to more customers.

A comprehensive information system for the dedicated freight corridors to be conceptualised, developed, and implemented.

Rolling stock to be tracked and traced across the railway network, using suitable technology such as RFID (radio frequency identification) for wagons and coaches and GPS for locomotives.

Comprehensive asset maintenance systems to be developed and implemented for locomotives and rolling stock maintenance, track and bridges and signalling and telecom assets, buildings, other fixed structures, land, and miscellaneous assets. The systems will be interfaced with Indian Railways' central Geographical Information System (GIS).

ERP systems to be used in manufacturing facilities in line with global trends, to streamline operations and reduce costs. Automation of manufacturing and maintenance units to be integrated with IT through extensive use of embedded IT systems.

Product lifecycle management (PLM) systems to automate the production and distribution of design-related information throughout the organisation through the use of Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) tools to be deployed.

An integrated energy management system to be developed and installed to optimise the use of fuel and electrical energy.

A financial management system, presently under execution, to be completed.

Material management and e-procurement systems to be implemented on all Zonal Railways.

A system for personnel management, including employee health management, to be developed.

The telecom angle

Some of the salient areas for the proposed IT infrastructure would include integrated management of data networks for quick and efficient data transmission. Electronic transfer of information requires reliable and high-capacity network infrastructure. The telecom department will, therefore, need to offer data network services for all of Indian Railways' IT applications.

A security system for IT will also be developed, as also a knowledge management system, including a portal to disseminate and share information across the organisation as well as outside it, will be made operational.

A business continuity system for all IT applications will be made operational. Suitable disaster recovery facilities will need to be provided for the purpose. Railways will ensure seamless availability of geographical information.

An initiative to provide extensive office automation system to reduce manual office work such as maintenance of paper records and movement of paper files is proposed to be taken up.

Electronic archival of records along with extensive electronic search capabilities will be provided as part of this system.

Concluded

The author is former MD, Concor.