The ORBIS Digital Railway Programme, led by Network Rail, was the largest digitisation programme undertaken in the UK transportation sector at the time.

This multi-billion-pound initiative modernised the national rail network by replacing traditional trackside signalling with continuous digital in-cab signalling. The programme formed part of the UK government’s 10-year ‘Digital Railways’ plan, with DXC selected as the technology partner.

At programme inception, many rail assets were still maintained through physical hard copies of track infrastructure and diagnostic records, with some original records dating back to the Victorian era remaining in active use. ORBIS was established to help Network Rail rebuild its data sources, define a new information architecture, design new products using geospatial interfaces, and create new symbology sets for rail network assets.

The programme marked a step change in how rail assets across the UK were identified and tracked for maintenance. Its benefits were multidimensional, improving safety for track crews while increasing cost efficiency for engineers and maintenance planners. Network Rail gained the ability to monitor component lifecycles digitally, while geospatial mapping made features and components easier to locate. Maintenance costs for labour and replacement components also became subject to greater control and observability, based on the estimated lifespan of each component.

I directed the research and product design for a complex portfolio of railway infrastructure systems and services within this major digital transformation programme. The customer’s objective was to geolocate and map every physical feature across the UK rail network, assign geospatial coordinates, and introduce a new classification system. My team researched track assets and evaluated them for inclusion within a new asset taxonomy. This taxonomy became the framework for the information architecture of Network Rail’s GeoRINM software product, developed by DXC in collaboration with EY, ArcGIS, Atkins Rail Consultants, and Network Rail personnel, including track maintenance officers, cartographers, and planners.

I led the full system and experience design lifecycle, with responsibilities spanning research, stakeholder engagement, and close collaboration with Network Rail department leaders and an EY consultancy team. DXC and EY delivered a series of workshops and research engagements with engineering, works, and maintenance departments. I oversaw the design lifecycle end to end and acted as the primary point of contact for engagement with Network Rail’s design bodies. Governance was rigorous and strictly applied, with oversight from three separate groups: Ergonomics and Human Factors, the Design Authority, and ORBIS. My remit covered the design of digital systems, the visual representation of assets, and the development direction of the interactive experience, including interface design patterns, visual design systems, testing and validation cycles including UAT, and deployment adoption strategies.

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