North and East Digital Twin

Network Rail’s North and East Route intends to procure a proven, commercially available Software as a Service (SaaS) digital twin platform to support rail asset management. The aim is to aggregate disparate data sources into a single, user-friendly interface, enabling multi-discipline collaboration and supporting a more predictive, data-driven approach to maintaining the railway infrastructure.

The procurement will cover:

A web-based digital twin SaaS solution capable of visualising geospatial asset data, integrating real-time and historic data from sensors, condition monitoring devices, and IoT sources, and supporting advanced analytics such as asset health modelling, degradation prediction, and intervention planning.

Development of application programming interfaces (APIs) and associated data management solutions to enable secure, scalable integration with existing Network Rail systems, ensuring data longevity and interoperability.

Hosting and security: The solution should be hosted on a UK-based cloud service, preferably within Network Rail’s Azure environment, and support Microsoft Entra single sign-on (SSO). Compliance with Network Rail’s information and cyber security standards, as well as relevant industry standards (e.g., ISO 27001, GDPR), is mandatory.

User access: The platform must allow access for all Network Rail staff and authorised contractors at no additional cost, with robust user management and permissions.

Technical support and service levels: The supplier will be required to provide technical support, defined response times for outages, and ensure system performance meets agreed loading times.

The solution should be modular, allowing Network Rail to select features as required, and support an unlimited number of users on a monthly subscription basis. Suppliers are encouraged to demonstrate the full capabilities of their solutions, even if not all requirements are met, and to propose cost-effective approaches, particularly where hosting is on Network Rail’s Azure environment.