Research from our Logistics Institute is providing a range of rail solutions to improve efficiency, reduce emissions and allow the rail industry to compete effectively with the less environmentally friendly but more dynamic road freight industry.
The University of Hull owned subsidiary Lampada Digital Solutions has managed all the software-related services for the new rail solutions since 2022, including software development and licensing. Together with Network Rail, the company have now won the ‘Rail Team of the Year’ category at the annual Rail Staff Award in recognition of work to develop the latest product, the Digital Freight Load Books (DFLB). This prestigious award is recognition that Lampada, as a relatively small company, can deliver world class projects with major customers, on time, on budget and exceeding expectations.
The Logistic Institute started developing the first rail solution, NR+ - a digital platform for rail planning information in 2017. It received funding from the Department of Transport in 2019 to further develop the platform. In 2021, the Institute received funding to develop the Railfreight Energy and Emissions Calculator (REEC), working with Freightliner, one of the largest rail freight operating companies in the UK and Aether, a technical specialist in emissions analysis.
In 2022, the rail solutions built in the Logistics Institute were moved to Lampada to be further commercialised and developed. Then in 2023, Lampada won a Network Rail tender to develop a digital platform to maintain and use the Digital Freight Loads Books, known as DFLB. This is a formal source that determines the maximum weight and length of specific freight train configurations at any point on the rail network. DFLB represents a major step forward in modernising the way that Network Rail manages data required for rail freight planning. There are currently 600 active users of DFLB in Network Rail and across the freight operating companies.
Our rail solutions have been recognised across several partner awards during recent months. At the Rail Freight Group Awards, Freightliner won the ‘Sustainability and Safety’ award in recognition of working in partnership with the Logistics Institute to develop the REEC solution and the ‘Rail Freight Project of the Year’ award for a major timetable restructuring project, using REEC to perform the required analysis.