The Belgian rail network operator Infrabel has signed a new contract with Siemens Mobility to maintain, further develop, and modernize the Operational Control System (OCS), a digital system that ensures trains run safely and smoothly across the Belgian railway network.
The framework agreement, worth 215 million euros, will run for 11 years and is also intended to strengthen digital resilience through a comprehensive cyber-security approach and a new generation of signaling architecture.
Infrabel operates one of Europe’s busiest rail networks, with thousands of passengers and freight trains running every day.
Ongoing updates of signaling software
The OCS software and hardware are used in signal boxes to manage train routes. The system determines which tracks and points a train may use and ensures train movements are safely coordinated. Without such systems, which support thousands of train journeys on the Belgian rail network every day, safe and efficient rail operations would be impossible.
At the same time, by continuously monitoring developments in both the signaling software and the associated hardware, the modernized OCS environment will also be future-proofed through an intuitive interface that improves the operational efficiency of train traffic controllers.
Roll-out of ETCS
By continuously maintaining, updating, and providing technical support for the system, the risk of breakdowns is reduced, and any problems can be resolved more quickly.
The contract also allows the system to be further modernized and prepared for future developments, such as the continued roll-out of ETCS (European Train Control System), the European safety system that continuously monitors train speed.
In addition, the project must implement and prepare for the ERTMS requirement. The ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management System, of which ETCS is the train control component) is set to replace the more than 20 different national signaling and speed restriction systems that currently co-exist in Europe with a single, uniform digital system by 2050 at the latest.
Cyber security
In addition, the contract provides for investment in additional security measures against digital threats and the further strengthening of the systems’ cyber resilience, one of the key pillars of the modernization, and also one of the EU directives
A dedicated security officer will also be appointed. “In this way, Infrabel is preparing for the stricter European security requirements of the coming years”, says the company.
“This contract goes far beyond software and technology”, states Benoît Gilson, CEO of Infrabel. “It is an investment in the future of our railways, but also in Belgium’s industrial and economic ecosystem. In this way, we also support economic activity and employment in Belgium and contribute to the development of local expertise in a particularly strategic sector.”
