Appendix 1: Expectations for managing day-to-day maintenance and renewal work

Maintaining and renewing the rail network.

For the purposes of our performance audit, we set out our expectations for Ontrack for managing day-to-day maintenance and renewal work on the rail network. Our expectations were:

Detailed performance expectations
1.1 Operational plans
  • There are operational plans to implement maintenance and renewal programmes from the asset management plan.
  • It is clear what work is scheduled to occur over the time period the operational plan covers.
1.2 Prioritising work
  • It is clear how maintenance and renewal work is prioritised.
  • Prioritisation takes account of asset condition information and is informed by information from the risk framework. (Links to 3.5 in Appendix 3).
1.3 Resource allocation
  • It is clear what and how resources are allocated to implement operational plans. For example: equipment, materials, staff time and budget, and track closures.
1.4 Service delivery mechanisms
  • There are clear mechanisms for work items or groups of work items in operational plans to be delivered. For example, internal service level agreements, external contracts, and service delivery processes.
  • It is clear where responsibilities and accountabilities sit within the service delivery mechanism.
  • It is clear what information flows need to occur as part of the service delivery mechanism. For example, the asset planner may need to provide information about the asset condition or resource management planning requirements, or the service delivery manager may be responsible for advising a customer when work is completed and speed restrictions can be lifted.
1.5 Guidance information
  • Those delivering the maintenance and renewal work have the information they need to do the work. For example: engineering drawings, material specifications, condition of the asset to be maintained or renewed.
1.6 Work standards
  • There is detailed information (for example specifications, standards, guidance, procedures) so those doing operational tasks know the standard of work that is expected.
1.7 Unplanned work
  • There is guidance and processes to direct when and how unplanned work should occur.

page top