Log in
A Portsmouth team has helped revolutionise how flight data from aircraft flight recorders is being analysed. This has improved the corporate performance of a leading UK company in a globally competitive market by helping it expand its business in the UK and to subsequently compete in the dynamic North American market. Historically, data was manually evaluated on a flight by flight basis. Research by the Portsmouth team means such data can now be analysed automatically by artificial intelligence (AI), saving significant man-hours, and allowing the company to diversify domestically into a related market and to expand internationally. The techniques developed were subsequently applied in a new market, enabling the new corporate partner to realise savings estimated at £100,000 p.a.
Methods have been developed to characterise and evaluate the performance of mass transit systems which have then been applied in 60 of the world's major cities. The financial benefit, as quantified by mass transit operators, is in excess of £0.5 Billion between 2003 and 2013. Examples of impact include cost savings for escalator renewal by London Underground (2009-ongoing), influencing fares policy in Hong Kong (2003, 2012) and the adoption of performance measurement systems, developed by Imperial, by Chinese metros (2010-ongoing). This impact has been enabled by the creation and subsequent facilitation of 5 global consortia comprising over 70 metro, suburban rail and urban bus operators.
Flight safety has been a major focus in the past sixteen years at the Civil Safety and Security Unit (CSSU), affiliated with the University of Leicester's School of Management. The knowledge created has had three impacts. First, the development of a tailored fatigue-risk management system (FRMS) now in operation in a night-freight airline. FRMS provides for the development and validation of rosters that optimise crews' economic and safety performance, saving lives and money. Until this research no UK-registered night-freight airline had operated a FRMS. Second, the research underpins the evidence-base for the British Air Line Pilots' Association (BALPA) in its lobbying of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Third, the research is supporting the Society for the Welfare of Indian Pilots (SWIP) in its campaign for safe flight-time limitations (FTLs).
This research by the University's Transportation Research Group (TRG) has contributed to the development of sustainable road transport networks both in the UK and other leading cities worldwide. In summary:
Impact: Policy / animal welfare / economic. European Directives on Animal Welfare have been changed to improve animal comfort during transport. Our research has provided a basis for establishing comfort/discomfort at an objective, physiological level through response modelling and the quantitative assessment of the effects of thermal conditions. The definition of optimum transport environments has underpinned improved transport vehicle design and operation and formed the basis of the development of regulations for improved animal welfare.
Significance: ~60 billion animals are transported world-wide each year.
Beneficiaries: EU policy makers (leading to revised Directives), UK Government departments (especially Defra), and animals during transport.
Attribution: Prof. Mitchell (SRUC).
Reach: All EU Member States, Canada, and the US.
Research undertaken by the Institute for Transport Studies (ITS) at the University of Leeds from 1997 to 2013 has played a key role in developing the methods and evidence base for demand forecasting and economic appraisal in transport. The primary impact of this research has been changes to official guidance Manuals, which are prescribed to scheme promoters, operators, consultants and other agents. In applying these Manuals, a secondary research impact has been to improve the quality of transport decision-making and Value for Money (VfM) of public expenditure. Against this background, ITS Leeds research has achieved the following impacts throughout the period 2008 to 2013 (and ongoing):
The research into green freight transport and logistics has had several key impacts. It facilitated freight transport becoming part of the London Mayor's Transport Strategy (which aims to improve efficiency and reduce negative impacts of freight) and that this strategy incorporated van-based activities as well as heavier goods vehicles. It provided evidence for policy makers and industry of the potential for modal shift to rail freight and new methods of measuring rail freight activity to inform decision making. The joint development of a technique for calculating fuel consumption and carbon emissions of road goods vehicle activities was adopted by the Department for Transport (DfT) and DEFRA in guidance to industry about emissions reporting.