Zonegreen’s Depot Personnel Protection System (DPPS) has been installed on Road 14 at Norwich Crown Point Depot as part of the ongoing £40 million upgrade. Continuing to working with contractors, Taylor Woodrow and depot operator, Abellio Greater Anglia, Zonegreen have now finished work on Road 14. This follows the completion of the first phase of the project with Roads 16 & 17 being fitted with DPPS.
Physical protection for staff working on the double ended road, is provided through the use of a derailer at the Yarmouth Road and a wheel stop at the Norwich end of the shed. Two road end panels (REPs) have been installed; staff log onto these to operate the system with personalised, electronic datakeys and to create safe zones to work in. Beacons and klaxons have been fitted to provide both audible and visual warnings of a vehicle movement.
Outbound vehicle movements are controlled by a signalling interface that allows trains to be routed out of the depot without the inconvenience of time consuming stop starts. Only when no personnel are logged onto the DPPS and the interlocks are in a safe position, can an outbound route be set.
Zonegreen’s Depot Manager has been installed; displaying the status of DPPS and logging a permanent record of all activity of the road.
Last year, Zonegreen installed DPPS on roads 16 and 17 at Crown Point, where is has been interlocked with gantry gates, to prevent access to new high-level maintenance areas, until overhead lines have been isolated. The Stadler trains have a low floor to assist passengers, meaning many serviceable components are housed on the roof.
The DPPS also interfaces with the Norwich depot’s signalling system for outbound movements.. This allows trains to be routed safely and quickly, without time consuming stop-starts, once all personnel have logged off and equipment stored correctly. In addition, Zonegreen has installed its Depot Manager software to complement the safety system. It displays the names of personnel logged on and acts as a permanent record of all maintenance activity.
Christian Fletcher, Zonegreen’s technical director, said: “The vast changes taking place at Crown Point are continuing apace and it is a privilege to be a part of such a significant rail industry project. Depot operator, Abeillo, chose DPPS, as it can be tailored to the facility’s unique layout, installed whilst operations continue and it is dynamic enough to adapt to this ever-changing industry, guaranteeing the safest working environment for personnel.”