Case Studies

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London Underground 4LM Project

7th April 2022

The Project

Once complete the historic Four Lines Modernisation (4LM) project will have updated London Underground’s most important railway lines, accounting for 40% of the network’s traffic.

The 4LM project will upgrade the signalling systems of four of London Underground’s most important railway lines: Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan. When it’s complete, 4LM will boost the number of trains to 32 every hour. Peak passenger capacity will be increased by an overall average of 33%, with dramatic improvements of 65% on the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines. It is the world’s biggest project of it’s kind.

The Requirement

In May 2016, Advance TRS were approached by our client with an urgent requirement to create a staffing partnership to resource their 4LM project works. The works were set out in 3 clear stages. In addition to the resourcing requirements for each stage, considerable compliance procedures were required and put in place to ensure all workers are fully compliant to London Underground regulations.

  1. Mobilise 80 safety critical staff for a weekend possession. Full recruitment delivery responsibility for 80 workers | 4 week lead in | Identified and primed a talent pool of 150 possible staff | 100% fill rate | Full compliance and audit trail | 100% retention for next possession (no failures or rejections).
  2. Downsize workforce from 80 to 30 in between major possessions. Whilst reducing the workforce it was essential to keep key skill sets available for stage 3 keeping staff engaged for the next phase of immobilization. 
  3. Remobilise up to peak levels of approx 350 workers. Maintaining a high retention rate and 100% fill rate, Advance TRS currently supply approx. 200 staff working on our clients 4LM Project Package 1 works. Maintained a core staff of day and night workers and manage flex to accommodate planned possessions and workload. 

Engaging and Managing Second Tier Suppliers: To ensure 100% delivery, we identified, selected, motivated and managed a select group of suppliers to engage as second-tier support. This provided a multi-tier system that was as comprehensive and agile as needed. Whilst we utilised our own supplier network, we also consulted the client to include any of their preferred suppliers. 

Compliance, Health, and Safety As an experienced provider of safety-critical engineers, we employ a thorough compliance check on all candidates. This in-depth procedure includes right to work checks, reference checks, qualifications, certifications checks, medicals, drug and alcohol tests.

Our thorough compliance processes and procedures enabled us to deliver the following working hours without major incident on this project in 2017. 

  • Working Hours 2017: 489,981 
  • Safety-Critical Working hours 2017: 396,332

Our Solution

Our modular project capability options system allowed us to design a bespoke program with all the necessary elements and resources to produce success and not include superfluous services.

The initial consultation ensured that the correct delivery resources were deployed to produce the required outcome. By taking a fast but detailed Project Staffing Needs Analysis before implementing a bespoke solution with the following structure and dynamics, we ensured effective delivery for the first possession, with a 100% fill & retention rates for the next possession and ongoing work program.

As specialist rail recruiters, Advance TRS support a number of key clients sourcing rail professionals across the UK and from project conceptualisation to commissioning.

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