Siemens wins Sussex Route substation contract

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Photo: Ian Cunliffe/ CC BY-SA 2.0.
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Network Rail has named Siemens Rail Electrification as its substation contractor for the £118 million Sussex Route Traction Power Supply Enhancement programme.

As more trains use the network, increasing capacity for passengers, so power supplies have to be enhanced to keep up with the demand. With new rolling stock bing introduced and timetable enhancements implemented as planned in December 2018, time is of the essence.

As part of this programme, Siemens’ will design, supply, install, test and commission new power supply equipment and cabling at 15 existing Network Rail substation sites, and construct three completely new ones.

The contract asks for a full turnkey solution, covering both supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and telecommunication requirements, as well as all civil installation and enabling works.

Siemens senior project manager Julian Pointon-Bell commented: “This is a significant project both in scale and technical complexity, but one which will deliver real network benefits.

“Our project team has now been mobilised and initial design work is well underway as we work towards the first major commissioning in February 2017. There will then be a series of phased commissionings as we bring the substations into service, with the final commissioning scheduled for April 2018.”