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Cybersecurity Awareness

Project tasks

  • PROSE presentation on the current state of the railway industry
  • PROSE presentation on the future development of the railway industry
  • In-depth discussion on TS 50701, security vs. safety and discussion on standards
  • Interactive brainstorming on the gap analysis
  • Consolidation of the results of the gap analysis and prioritisation
  • Analysis of the customer’s security documentation
  • Summary and definition of the next steps and goal

Our approach

The digital transformation of the rail industry is accelerating at an unprecedented pace. With increasing connectivity comes the urgent need to improve cybersecurity frameworks to ensure resilience against evolving threats. A recent industry workshop highlighted key findings on the current state of cybersecurity in railway systems and the expected regulatory changes that will shape the future.

Security in the railway sector has traditionally focused on protecting people and machines. However, cybersecurity has now become a critical factor in protecting IT systems, infrastructure and sensitive data. Despite their relevance, many existing railway standards provide only limited guidance on cybersecurity. Important standards such as EN 50126, EN 50716 and EN 50129 recognise security concerns but do not provide concrete measures. The IEC 62443 series, which emerged in the 2010s, has become a fundamental security framework, but its full integration into railway systems is still a work in progress.

A key challenge in cybersecurity is the human factor. Unclear role definitions in projects can lead to security risks – for example, through software updates that are implemented without sufficient validation and can compromise critical systems. Clear role definitions and structured safety processes are necessary to minimise such risks.

The future of railway safety will be shaped by new guidelines and harmonised standards designed to close existing safety gaps. Several regulatory developments will redefine safety requirements in the sector. The NIS 2 Directive obliges operators of critical infrastructure, including the railway industry, to take comprehensive cybersecurity measures. Companies in the supply chain will also have to prove their compliance in future.

The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) places strict security requirements on manufacturers and suppliers of digital products, including railway technology. IEC 63452 is expected to become a global benchmark for cybersecurity in railway systems and combines elements from IEC 62443 and TS 50701 to create a standardised security framework. In addition, there is a trend towards common cybersecurity services – for example in the areas of authentication, logging and network security to ensure standardised protective measures for critical rail systems.

Customer benefit

Railway operators, manufacturers and suppliers must proactively adapt to these new regulations. Key recommendations include:

  • Identification and inventory of all assets (especially SW)
  • Conducting cybersecurity risk assessments to identify vulnerabilities
  • Establish clear security requirements for suppliers and ensure compliance throughout the value chain
  • Implementing security-by-design principles in the development of new products
  • Strengthen security incident response capabilities to effectively manage threats

By taking a proactive approach, the industry can ensure the safety, reliability and resilience of railway systems in an increasingly connected world.

  

Expert Consulting for the SJ High-Speed Train X2000 Upgrade

Customer: Swedish State Railwyas (SJ), Sweden

Project tasks

  • Upgrade of the drive system
  • Updating the Train Control and Monitoring System (TCMS)
  • Coordination and support for the modernisation of the exterior door system
  • Interior refurbishment of the passenger carriages
  • Test and verification

Our approach

​Swedish State Railways (SJ) is launching a comprehensive modernisation programme for its fleet of 36 X2000 passenger trains, which have been in service for over three decades. This extensive project includes a number of important modernisations designed to improve performance, reliability and passenger comfort. The scope of the modernisation includes a complete overhaul of the trains’ propulsion system to increase efficiency and reduce environmental impact. In addition, the Train Control and Monitoring System (TCMS) will be upgraded to the latest railway technology to ensure better operational control and safety. The refurbishment also extends to the exterior doors. In addition, the interior of the passenger coaches will be extensively renovated to provide a more comfortable and aesthetically pleasing travelling experience. These improvements are aimed at extending the service life of the trains and adapting them to current technical and ecological standards.

PROSE is playing a central role in the realisation of this ambitious project by consulting SJ and its suppliers with a range of services. Our approach is based on a comprehensive project management strategy that includes project coordination and technical planning. We are also involved in rigorous testing and inspection phases to ensure that all retrofits meet the stringent standards expected in modern passenger rail transport. Our team consists of experienced professionals with in-depth knowledge of railway systems who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the project. By integrating seamlessly with SJ’s operations, we facilitate effective communication and coordination between all stakeholders, proactively address challenges and ensure that project milestones are met efficiently. Our holistic approach ensures that from initial design to final implementation, every aspect of the project is handled with precision and care.

Customer benefit

By entrusting PROSE with this extensive modernisation project, Swedish State Railways (SJ) has gained access to a team of highly experienced experts with a deep understanding of the complexities of modernising outdated train fleets. Our involvement ensures the project runs smoothly and effectively, maximising the potential for on-time and on-budget delivery. Our expertise helps to anticipate potential issues and mitigate risks to ensure that the modernised trains meet current and future rail transport requirements. Immediate benefits for SJ include improved train performance and increased passenger satisfaction. Ultimately, this project supports SJ’s goals of improving operational efficiency and providing a superior travel experience, reinforcing the company’s reputation as a leader in sustainable and innovative rail transport solutions.

 

 

Process for managing component reverse engineering

Customer: AB Transitio, Sweden

Project tasks

  • Develop a reverse engineering process
  • Ensure parts availability
  • Address business aspects

Our Approach

AB Transitio owns and leases out various EMU and DMU fleets in many regions of Sweden. For rolling stock owners, the lack of documentation and obsolescence, which can occur for different reasons, is a common challenge. Through this project, AB Transitio aims to establish a standardised process and methodology for managing specific cases of obsolescence using reverse engineering. The above-depicted process defines the general tasks, requirements, and responsibilities for handling reverse engineering cases, regardless of who operates and maintains a particular fleet.

PROSE has extensive experience in reverse engineering, safety management and vehicle acceptance procedures. Based on this expertise, we have developed a step-by-step process for the reverse engineering of parts, systems or components. This process ensures that all relevant standards and regulations are complied with. The result is a financially sound, maintainable and sustainable solution that ensures the vehicle can be maintained, repaired and overhauled throughout its life cycle.

Customer benefit

Reverse engineering plays a crucial role in fleet management and ensures sustainable, stable, and long-term maintenance of the fleet. By applying the methodology and process developed by PROSE, customers have access to parts and components that are available for maintenance, repair, or overhaul throughout the vehicle’s lifetime. This process also takes into account the commercial aspects of each case and ensures that the organisation carrying out the work has the necessary skills and expertise.

 

 

Authorisation Support – Repainting of ET425.5 EMUs

Customer: Transdev Hannover GmbH, Germany

Project tasks

  • Project management
  • Requirements capture
  • Authorisation support
  • Communication with NoBo and DeBo
  • Preparation of evidence and admission documents
  • Preparation of a change notification

Our Approach

Transdev Hannover GmbH changed the existing colour scheme of 13 EMUs of the type ET425.5 from the Deutsche Bahn “Verkehrsrot” to the Transdev branding in blue and white. PROSE supported with authorisation management concerning TSI LOC&PAS, TSI PRM and German NNTR as well as requirements capture and evidence documents. The main obstacle was to find a way to establish the evidence documents of the fire protection as no spare parts existed to conduct the necessary experiments.

Due to the great experience and good networking within the industry, it was possible to agree on a feasible way of proving fire protection with the assessment bodies as early as the tendering phase. In combination with the close support of the customer in every phase of the project, loops or lengthy discussions could be avoided.

Customer benefit

PROSE led Transdev Hannover through the authorisation process including communication with the assessment bodies and project management. This ultimately resulted in the timely submission of the documents and rapid final processing by the national safety authority (EBA) including the final “Go”.

 

 

QA of suppliers and production for driver’s desk refurbishment in C20 Metro

Project tasks

  • Quality assurance of sub-suppliers
  • Supervision of prototype phase
  • First class installation
  • Delivery inspections

Our Approach

PROSE have worked closely with the suppliers from an early phase in the development process to ensure a smooth transition from development through prototype to the production ramp-up phase and to ensure stable quality throughout the serial production.

Customer benefit

By improving the supplier delivery early in the project, the customer could benefit from minimizing quality issues just before the start of production. PROSE’s wide range of available services helped the customer in many stages of the project.

 

Maintenance plan for a maintenance shop of the Swiss Federal Railways

Customer: Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) Passenger Division, Switzerland

Project tasks

  • Creation of maintenance plan

Our Approach

​PROSE developed the plan in close cooperation with SBB’s responsible persons. The understanding of the maintenance shop in Basel gained from past assignments and experience with other maintenance facilities helped ensure efficient project implementation.

Customer benefit

SBB received a production concept that describes the interaction of the production resources in the context of the business process model to enable an in-depth understanding of the site within SBB. The target group of the production concept includes the management personnel at the site, partner organisations within and outside the site, the management of SBB Passenger Traffic Production and the facility management.

Development of rail operation and technology strategy 2050

Customer: Rhätische Bahn AG, Switzerland

Project tasks

  • Strategy development
  • Analysis and conception
  • Stakeholder management & methodology
  • Project management, incl. Stakeholders, Communication and Change-Management

Our Approach

Due to the technology’s long life cycle and high investment volume, investments in railway technology require a comprehensible focus and demonstrable benefits. In collaboration with the RhB specialists, PROSE developed an operational target picture and operational use cases for the year 2050 based on the identified challenges of daily operations. Based on this target picture, the benefits created by technology and target systems are clearly identified, and the technology strategy can be aligned with the fulfilment of the target picture.

Based on the operational target picture, the ACTUAL system architecture and the known life cycles were recorded with the RhB experts. Based on the information on the current situation, PROSE was able to develop a proposal for the TARGET system architecture, including migration planning and implementation concepts.

With the help of modern methods and targeted workshops, PROSE and RhB achieved the project goal in a very short time and presented the first results to the strategic steering committee.

Customer benefit

RhB benefited from the PROSE experts’ overall system knowledge and technical expertise in railway operations & automation. In combination with the methodical and analytical approach of the PROSE project team, RhB was able to develop and discuss initial approaches for the implementation of the strategy across all areas. This includes, for example, a migration map with the life cycle of systems and vehicles to identify possible migration windows for the systems, the visualisation of the operational target processes with the target degree of automation and possible implementation variants on the RhB route network.

   

Fire Safety Assessment and Consulting

Project tasks

  • Consultancy
  • Development and creation of fire protection concepts
  • Development and creation of evacuation concepts
  • Analyses of fire protection requirements
  • Compilation of required fire protection test reports
  • Communication with authorities, manufacturers and testing laboratories
  • Integration of fire safety systems
  • Preparation of approval documents relevant to fire protection

Our Approach

PROSE analyses the given situation and develops solutions that meet the applicable fire protection requirements. To this end, PROSE advises the customer and identifies various solutions in order to find an efficient way of achieving the required fire protection for railway vehicles in accordance with EN 45545. Our experts calculate the thermal load of the vehicle during the design and propose measures for its reduction.

Customer benefit

The customer benefits from our many years of experience in the field of fire protection for all types of rail vehicles in accordance with EN 45545, including not only advice but also the creation of concepts, the preparation of the necessary fire protection certificates, contact with manufacturers of fire protection-compliant components and communication with approval authorities. The aim is to place fire protection suitable vehicles into service.

Grand-Tour luxury train maintenance plan

Customer: Arlington Fleet France, France

Project tasks

  • Project management
  • Maintenance management
  • Homologation support

Our Approach

The “Le Grand Tour” project is creating a luxury cruise train in France, using refurbished coaches from Deutsche Bahn. Arlington Fleet France (AFF) is overseeing the project, using existing maintenance data from DB and new system designs.

In the first phase, PROSE formalised existing data from Deutsche Bahn, which is crucial for creating the maintenance plan. Now, in the second phase, we’re taking the lead in drafting the maintenance plan and the Maintenance Documentation File, ensuring compliance with homologation requirements for seamless introduction and operation on the French network.

Customer benefit

Based on PROSE’s extensive experience, the entire maintenance plan was created by integrating the existing and newly added systems. This allows the customer to have a solid maintenance file for the train approval and the vehicle authorisation and, subsequently, to plan future maintenance operations.

    

Aerodynamics simulation (CFD)

Customer: Various customers

Project tasks

​During the development process or during modernisation, aerodynamic influences such as crosswind or vehicle air conditioning of a vehicle must be assessed. Often the final verification requires investigations in a wind tunnel or climatic wind tunnel. However, CFD (Computational fluid dynamics) simulations are ideal for an initial assessment and optimization, as they generally provide reliable results at significantly lower cost.

Analyses:

  • Crosswind stability (aero-dynamic coefficients and wind characteristics curves) according to EN 14067-6
  • Climatic studies and thermal comfort

Our Approach

Crosswind assessment according to EN 14067-6

The EN 14067-6 provides for the evaluation of crosswind with aerodynamic coefficients, which can be obtained either by wind tunnel tests or by CFD simulations. PROSE can determine these coefficients by CFD simulations and derive characteristic wind curves. The influence of the vehicle design on the crosswind stability can be considered in the design phase. In the case of changes to the vehicle exterior shape during conversions, the influence can be assessed and in the case of minor changes, proof of crosswind stability can also be provided.

Investigation of vehicle air conditioning

CFD simulations allow first estimations for climatic-technical investigations according to European standards, which are based on tests in the climatic wind tunnel. An optimization with CFD simulations within the scope of the design of the air conditioning system generates additional safety and can avoid costly adjustments and repetitions of measurements in the climatic wind tunnel.

Customer benefit

PROSE can support you during the development process or during a modernization with CFD simulations to reduce costs and risks of wind tunnel and climatic wind tunnel tests.

 

 

Mechanical design and system integration

Customer: Various customers

Project tasks

  • Development projects:
    • Complete bogie design according to EN 15085
    • Complete car body design according to EN 15085
    • Interior and layout design
    • System integration (e.g. doors, brake system, HVAC, coupler etc.)
  • Vehicle modernisation projects:
    • Interior design
    • Layout concepts
    • System integration (e.g. ATC, infotainment system, magnetic rail brake, air conditioning system etc.)
  • Niche development projects (e.g. gauge changing and rack railway bogie, people mover or magnetic levitation systems etc.)
  • Structural bonding & welding competences:
    • Bonding according to DIN 6701-3 (A1) / EN 17460
    • Welding according to EN 15085-2 (CL 1)

Our Approach

Our focus is on the manufacturability and maintainability of a vehicle. We offer thought-through solutions in all our de-signs. We remain in direct exchange with our customer to ensure that the design process can be finished in a short time.

Customer benefit

With 3D model views we give visual answers to your ideas or thoughts. We have an agile way of working and can ensure that your feedback is shaping the visual idea and helping to complete it. Already in an early stage of the design process, the PROSE designer team ensures that the concept design is feasible. Our flexibility makes us respond to your requests at very short notice. We offer the complete batch of documentation for procurement and manufacturing.

 

Support with Assembly Line Layout – PRIMA Mid-Life Overhaul

Customer: AKIEM, France

Project tasks

  • Project Management
  • Concept & Development
  • Workshop Layout
  • Industrial engineering of mid-life overhaul of railway equipment

Our Approach

Akiem decided to transfer production to an industrial partner during the construction and commissioning of Akiem Technik’s site in Ostricourt as part of the PRIMA Mid-Life Overhaul (MLO) project. It is important that Akiem has an efficient industrial production facility in order to be able to ramp up production of mid-life operations on PRIMA locomotives in 2023 at the earliest. It is, therefore, necessary to set up an effective industrial production in the partner’s workshops.

We provided Akiem with our expertise and knowledge of workshop layout, and made sure they had the support needed at every stage of the process. The aim was to define all the production resources required for this modernisation project, and to ensure that the customer met their production rate targets. Keeping efficiency in the workshops and delivering productive solutions.

Customer benefit

PROSE has a long experience in assisting realisation and implementation of industrial layouts in the context of mid-life overhaul of rail vehicles. We can ensure the optimised flow of vehicles by developing the workload plan per workstation and the balancing of the workstations. The supply chain aspect and the management of logistics flows are integrated into the overall study. Making sure our customers get the best solution possible.

 

   

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