Bangkok Metro Purple Line

Challenge

The 23km Purple Line was the fifth rapid transit route to open on Bangkok's growing MRT network. It serves 16 stations on a route that extends from the north western residential districts to the Blue Line loop the encircles the city centre.

Developer and operator, Bangkok Expressway and Metro, appointed Ricardo to provide Independent Verification and Validation (IVV) services in 2014 to support the project from the fitment of rail systems in the newly built tunnels through to testing and initial operations.

Approach

IVV is a process for confirming whether the design and construction of a railway is meeting the client’s requirements for safety, functionality, RAM and quality. Verification aspects assess whether the railway is being built correctly. Validation ensures it will be fit for purpose upon completion. Our work was carried out over three phases: initial risk assessment; audits of key risk factors; and finally confirmation of readiness for operation.

Results

Ricardo's outputs gave the client confidence that all potential risks were well understood (with appropriate control plans put in place) and that the new line was safe for operation from day one.

What is Independent Verification and Validation?

When constructing a new railway, it is best practice to identify high-risk areas at the earliest possible opportunity.

Independent Verification and Validation (IVV) does this by systematically confirming whether the new railway complies with the client’s requirements for Safety, Functionality, RAM and Quality.

• Verification activities assess whether the project team has built the railway correctly i.e. supporting the project owner to have the railway it’s specified.
• Validation activities track the overall project ensuring it is ultimately fit for purpose upon completion.

This requires a combination of deep railway systems expertise and comprehensive understanding of operational best practices.

The process involves audits and assessments that are used to gather evidence throughout the project lifecycle, and requires a combination of railway systems expertise and a deep understanding of operational best practices .

The activities follow a proven, structured process with a thoroughness that ensures all necessary checks are completed within the required timeframe. The entire exercise will culminate, if successful, with the issue of formal certification.