Vehicle Track Interaction Strategic Model
VTISM has been developed by Serco's assurance business and DeltaRail Group as part of contracts funded by RSSB and Network Rail. The Vehicle Track Interaction Strategic Model (VTISM) links inputs such as track and vehicle characteristics and asset management strategies to outputs such as track component life and infrastructure costs. This enables substantial savings to be made on the railway by optimising maintenance and predicting the impact of changes to subsystems on the vehicle-track system.
At the 2007 National Rail Awards, Serco, in conjunction with Network Rail, RSSB and DeltaRail, were adjudicated as joint winners in the prestigious Innovation of the Year class for its work in developing a strategic model that accurately and quickly predicts track costs for different train configurations. The judges described the development as "stunning engineering" which "established a significant world lead"
VTISM has been an outstandingly successful development project. For the future we now have much greater knowledge in advance of the High Speed Train replacement programme (IEP).