LANDER’S ACTIVITY HAS ALWAYS BEEN CLOSELY LINKED TO THIS CITY BOTH FOR ITS PROXIMITY AND ITS OPENNESS TO NEW IDEAS.
With more than 1 million inhabitants and 700 years’ history, Bilbao has become the prototype of a modern city thanks to the wise combination of tradition with contemporary times. It is an open city where you can find spectacular architecture in the Guggenheim Museum, the Padre Arrupe footbridge, and then cross the river Nervión on a suspension bridge constructed in 1893. The city is immersed in a metamorphosis, leaving behind the post-industrial period to give way to new technology-based industry, positioning it as one of the main centres for economic development in the north of Spain.
Both due to its proximity and its openness to new ideas, Lander’s activity has always been closely linked to this city. Bilbao has been a pioneer in the implementation of our systems. Without a doubt, it has contributed greatly to the success of Lander. Out of several projects, we would like to highlight two for the great impact they have had on traffic and the transit of people, both linked to the rail sector.
Between May 2006 and September 2009 a project was carried out for the development and maintenance of Technology Classrooms equipped with railway driving simulators for RENFE. With its implementation an instrument capable of realistically replicating the consequences of the students’ actions was achieved in the field of safety and in their working environment. Thus stimulating the practice of safe and efficient procedures when applying driving regulations.
During the project, 10 Driving Technology Classrooms were installed and connected to each other, which led to Renfe’s National Network of Simulators. This network makes it possible to centralise the databases corresponding to the students and the exercises used in the courses given in the different classrooms.
The other project worth highlighting is the development of a simulator for the Bilbao Underground. The project began in June 2008, and its development concluded in October 2010. In July 2009 a simulation classroom was installed in the Etxebarri station. This classroom comprises one instructor station and two training stations to train driving staff.
The project’s main objective consisted in designing a simulator which could be used to train, teach, recycle, asses and improve both the current and future driving personnel. To cover Renfe’s specific training needs, a library of more than 30 traffic incidents was developed. For this purpose an extremely flexible training tool was designed and developed which guaranteed training for a wide range of traffic situations, at any rate directing efforts towards a substantial improvement in traffic safety, which was reflected in the safety rates of Renfe, with a reduction in the number of accidents and incidents.
The scope in which the training system was implemented were the statutory regulations and protocols applicable to railway driving (communications, signalling etc.), doing away with other aspects, such as the knowledge of operational systems of each of the trains to be simulated, training for their specific breakdowns etc.
The project developed for the Bilbao Underground consisted in realistically simulating all of the various units which travel along its different lines. To make this possible, besides the driving desks of this series, we have also simulated all of the panels which are distributed along the units which are accessible by driving personnel. Thus the simulator is capable of teaching procedures associated with more than 180 faults. To make it easier for students to understand the systems that are incorporated into the different units, the simulator offers the help of Simplified Diagrams. These diagrams have been designed specifically for the training of driving staff.
Another objective of this simulator has been to cover training in statutory regulations and protocols that are applicable to rail driving (communications, signalling etc.) To that purpose more than 20 incidents inspired by real needs detected in the Bilbao Underground system have been designed and developed.
