A project which is looking to further drive professionalism across the light rail sector has reached a major milestone with the publication of new National Occupational Standards (NOS) for roles in tram and tramway engineering. These are now available for organisations who operate in the sector to help provide a benchmark across the industry.
Craig O’Brien, Engineering Manager at UKTram, said: “Over the past 12 months, drawing on the experience of members and experts from across the sector, we’ve carried out a thorough review of existing engineering roles and the key competencies required. As a result, we’ve now established these new NOS that are structured to reflect the common functions and activities undertaken by individuals engaged in those roles. Their publication marks a significant milestone in our mission to promote best practice in both training and competency, providing a valuable tool to underpin recognised qualifications and training programmes.”
It is hoped that the NOS can be used to develop in-house training schemes, vocational qualifications and apprenticeships. They can not only be used as a competency benchmark but also to support career and performance development, performance assessment and to establish formal job descriptions.
One of the first organisations who have benefited from them is Siemens on the Edinburgh Trams network where Infrastructure Manager, Cathal Dwane, said: “The creation of a standard approach to training and competence management in the light rail industry has been a common goal for all. The completion of the new NOS has now given the foundations, not only for our training structures here in Edinburgh, but throughout the industry.”