I’m not sure what Donald Trump knows about railways or signalling, but he has, in part, inspired this blog. Yes, I’m as surprised as you are!

The ‘America First’ agenda, which the President campaigned on, was an apparent move away from globalisation and reliance on, or involvement with, ‘external entities’. Globally, we’re seeing a shake-up of the established world order and international dependencies, as well as increased uncertainty. In the UK, there have been recent debates around our national capability versus reliance on other countries for steel production. In Europe, the French government is moving away from its reliance on US tech platforms. All over the world, countries are experiencing the impacts on energy production and supply resulting from wars, tariffs, and sanctions, placing more onus on national energy resources.

What has any of this got to do with railways? Well, I think that, in the context of a railway infrastructure manager like London Underground (LU), this inward-looking approach can be essential. It’s true that LU has relied, and will continue to rely, on the industry supply chain for railway systems and equipment; however, relying exclusively on ‘external entities’ for supply, support, and technical knowledge introduces significant business and operational risk.

Retaining internal technical capability not only provides an ‘insurance policy’ against this risk but also creates opportunities and wider benefits. Much like nations, suppliers and railways are set up to serve their own shareholders and customers, respectively. Where relationships are mutually beneficial, things generally run well; but unfortunately, situations can arise where solutions required by the railway are simply not financially viable for suppliers or cannot be delivered quickly enough to keep trains running.

Having internal engineering capability is even more important where rationalisation, standardisation, and modernisation of assets have not yet been achieved. The ability to produce reactive solutions, fault-find, and re-engineer legacy equipment quickly can be critical. This is made possible by eliminating the burden of producing externally compatible specifications, going through tender processes, managing external logistics, and addressing Intellectual Property implications. All of this can make the difference between a railway operating a full service or not the next day.

Delivering engineering solutions internally is not just about de-risking reliance on the supply chain, but also about providing exciting opportunities for engineers to truly engineer. As proprietary systems become more commonplace, and AI spreads it’s tentacles, we risk our engineers becoming less technical and more managerial. Conversely, ageing and unique infrastructure provides ample potential for innovation and sustainable solutions that focus on reuse, repair, and re-engineering rather than replacement.

I believe that railway infrastructure managers shouldn’t just aim to be ‘intelligent clients’, but should instead strive to be capable clients who can Make Engineering Great Again…