'Outstanding Contribution' award for Beijing metro team

09/01/2012

'Outstanding Contribution' award for Beijing metro Line8 assessment team

Left: Beijing Metro - one of the most modern subway systems in the world

Lloyd’s Register has been awarded a certificate for ‘Outstanding Contribution’ by the Beijing MTR Construction Administration Corp (BMTRC) in recognition of our role as Independent Safety Assessor for the signalling system installed on the recently extended subway line.

Line 8 is the North-South route that runs beneath the centre of city and first opened in 2008 as the ‘Olympic Line’, a short (4km) three-stop service linking important sites for the Games of that year. Work then began to turn Line 8 into one of the city’s main commuter routes. The 10km northern section entered trial operations on 31st December 2011, whilst a southern extension, due to open next year, will add a further 7kms.

Lloyd’s Register’s responsibilities on the project included, amongst others, the full independent safety assessment of the signalling system, assessment of safety documents, audit of test reports and witnessing of safety meetings.

The project’s tight deadlines – we were appointed barely eight months before the line was due to open – became even more of a challenge due to the fact that, because the extension integrates with existing operations, much of the on-site testing had to be performed out-of-hours, meaning our assessors frequently undertook acceptance testing overnight or during the weekend in order to be in a position to provide the necessary certificates.

Below: Members of Lloyd's Register's Beijing Metro ISA team