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Short Line Data Systems Inc. ROCS Update – June 2004
Website: www.sdsrocs.com
Greetings –
This month we are going to take a look at where we are right now, where we are going in the near term, and what is further down the line.
Where we are right now.
Version 8 has been installed at all customers, with the ADBF changing over at the beginning of the month. One of the interesting facts at the moment is that this is the first time that we can remember that everyone is using the same version of the software. We are putting some small changes in the systems as they become necessary, but the big changes will be coming with Version 9.
Where we are going in the near term.
Now that Version 8 has been completely deployed, we are concentrating on the development of Version 9. As we have mentioned in the last few months, this is going to be a pretty major upgrade to the system, and the improvements will be quite noticeable. Let’s take a look at the current list of changes:
New Architecture – The biggest change “under the hood” of the system is a revised file structure. This new structure will make it much easier to run the system on a server network, and also improve the security of the data files.
Trace Timer – This new feature allows the user to set when a trace request will be sent out to Railinc. We have used this feature at the M&E to send a request before we arrive for work in the morning, and when we perform our first download of the day, we have updated tracing.
Expanded Movement Record – Described in previous updates, this feature gives the user extra spots for record extra car movements. Possible uses for this feature are movement billing or billing for incorrect interchanges.
Car Hire System – As previously mentioned, we are adding Car Hire Data Exchange (CHDX) messages to the car hire system. These messages will replace the Appendix G report that is printed out and sent with the car hire payments, eliminating manual data entry on the part of the car owner. We are also adding two new reports to the system, one for viewing the difference between the reported and LCS interchange times, and one showing the car hire exposure for a selected period.
Customer Status Changes – We have added the Expanded Movement Records, as mentioned above, as well as a couple of other new features. We have added the UMLER car type to the Customer Status screen, as well as two timers that show the time a car has been on the railroad, and how long it has been since the car was placed. We have also made some layout changes to the screen, which should improve the ergonomics of the screen.
There will be some more features added before the release, and as always, we’ll add new features at any time if they necessary.
Down the line.
As we mentioned last month, there has been a lot of discussion about the event reporting guidelines, and how will they affect the short lines. This new emphasis on “what does it mean to me” has led to the tasking of the ASLRRA’s technical committee with looking into what technology is available to help achieve these goals.
Any discussion about event reporting must first start with the fact that out of almost 600 short lines in the industry, close to 25% of the lines do no event reporting at all. This is unacceptable if we as an industry are to compete with the other forms of shipping available. This is why the EDI suppliers and the Class 1 railroads are starting to work together through the Short Line Integration Team(SLIT), and hopefully together we can get every railroad reporting. That said, let’s look ahead.
The current guidelines call for basic events to be reported within 24 hours of the event occurring. If a railroad can do this 75% of the time, then they have successfully met the guidelines. This is not a hard guideline for most railroads to meet, but what comes next is where the role of technology starts to figure in.
On July 1, the time frame drops from 24 to 12 hours. This is still a generous amount of time, but there is beginning to be a need to get the information from the train crew faster than the crew reporting their work at the end of their work day. This can be helped by better communications between the office and the train crew, but there are limits to how much better voice communication can help you.
On January 1, 2005, the time frame takes a steep drop to three hours. Some railroads will be able to meet the goal with better voice communications, but there may be a better way to do this with technology. Here is a point where having some form of computer with the train crew might solve the problem. There are some solutions out there at the moment with an associated cost, but there might be other ways to do it for other cost points. This is where the Technical Committee comes in. It is a group of small and large railroads, suppliers, and AAR & ASLRRA representatives with a strong technology and engineering background. The committee will look to membership of the ASLRRA to find out what their needs are, look at what technology is available to meet the needs, and report to the membership and the suppliers on their findings. This could lead to products aimed directly at the short line industry, better serving our needs.
While remote computing is one of the first topics this committee is tackling, it will most certainly not be the last. We are also starting to discuss radio frequency issues and some other emerging topics for the industry.
We will keep you posted on the progress of the Tech Committee and the SLIT, and if there is a topic that you would like either of the groups to look at, please let us know.
Well, that’s just about all for now. We do want to thank CN for inviting us to their short line conference at the beginning of May. It was a great experience to participate with the attendees, and we hope that we were able add something to their experience.
Stay safe,
Steven Friedland President |
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