iESM Working Group ‘Watch Lists’

The Working Group is always looking for new areas of emerging engineering safety management practice where there is good practice that would be valuable to share. Currently the Working Group is looking at the following topics which are increasingly becoming relevant to our industry:

• The use of an ‘Agile Methodology’ for the development of safety critical systems. Traditionally, engineering safety standards have taken a requirements-focussed ‘waterfall’ approach to system development where the emphasis is on following requirements through the ‘V-lifecycle’. Increasingly industries are being challenged to take more of an agile approach, where systems are developed dynamically, often in ‘sprints’. This could lead to changes to the traditional way of assuring safety critical systems so the Working Group is paying close attention to practice emerging in this space.

• Artificial Intelligence - AI. The Working Group is paying close attention to the application of AI and machine learning in the role of engineering safety. There are various emerging technologies in the rail industry which have the potential to advance railway systems, with the industry being challenged to apply these systems in a safe manner. Again, the Working Group is paying close attention to this field and will stay on the look out for emerging good practice

If you have anything to share on the above topics we would love to hear from you. You can contact us through the Contact page.