The company delivering HS2 today announced the cohort taking part in its seventh Innovation Accelerator programme to develop new railway technology to help build the line and underpin future train service reliability.
As the programme to deliver HS2 begins to pivot towards rail systems installations, so its Innovation programme is looking to harness the latest technology and ideas from outside the industry to support the reliability and robustness of the operational railway.
Working in partnership with Connected Places Catapult and the Department for Transport, HS2 Ltd has chosen six technology-focused UK-based companies to develop fresh ideas to meet the Accelerator’s three challenges of automating asset management, maximising site productivity, and future-proofing operations.
During their 20 weeks on the Innovation Accelerator programme the six firms – all classed as small and medium-sized enterprises – will work with HS2 and its partners to refine each of their ideas. Afterwards they will showcase their innovations to the industry players and hopefully generate more business with their developed technological solutions.
HS2 Ltd’s senior innovation manager, Jon Kelly said:
“This new Accelerator programme, with its rail systems operations and maintenance focus, underlines how HS2’s delivery is progressing as we’re now looking for innovations in how the railway operates and is maintained.
“As with the previous six Innovation Accelerators, products and solutions successfully developed under this new scheme to drive efficiencies and smarter working can streamline delivery of HS2 as well as future rail investment and construction programmes.”
Connected Places Catapult’s Ecosystem Director for Rail and Stations, Dr Alan Peters said:
“I’m delighted to see the innovative solutions coming forward through the HS2 Accelerator. This programme is supporting small businesses to develop solutions that will enhance asset management, safeguard critical systems, and boost on-site efficiency. These advancements are vital for ensuring safer, more efficient operations that can meet the demands of tomorrow’s rail network.”
The SMEs joining the seventh iteration of HS2’s Innovation Accelerator include:
Archangel Imaging’s AI-equipped security camera technology is already used in the defence sector, and the company will now use its time on the Accelerator programme to refine its product to monitor security across HS2’s vast estate stretching 140miles between London and the West Midlands.
Complete Cyber will develop its product to bolster the security technology of the digital signalling that will operate HS2 and is also being introduced across the conventional rail network.
Machines for Construction’s robotic technology will be further developed to perform repetitive tasks such as installation of the overhead electric cables that will power the trains. Crucially, through a process of ‘practice makes perfect’ it will learn on the job to do tasks with increasing efficiency.
Mind Foundry will seek to harness its AI-enabled technology to aid HS2 infrastructure engineers to monitor the condition of the line’s structures and equipment for performance changes. This will underpin the railway’s reliability by enabling a ‘predict and prevent’ approach to renewals and replacements.
PRAM’s versatile radar technology will be refined to help monitor and manage the condition of railway assets such as viaducts and embankment cuttings. Its real-time, data-driven intelligence has the potential to play an important role in supporting HS2’s reliability by assuring its civil structures – especially in light of more extreme rainfall and drought.
StirlingX’s uncrewed aerial systems have the potential to inspect and monitor infrastructure and assets to identify risks and hazards – particularly in the conventional railway that was largely built in the 19th century.
The seventh Accelerator will run until May 2025 after which the firms’ solutions will be showcased to industry investors and HS2's supply chain, consisting of thousands of companies ranging from the largest international engineers to specialist suppliers to the project.
Since its launch in September 2020, the HS2 Innovation Accelerator has supported 37 small businesses through the earlier six cohorts, that have collectively secured 29 pilot projects across HS2. These businesses have raised over £220million in investment and funding, and more than doubled their headcount since participating – creating over 430 new jobs in the UK.
As construction continues at pace between the West Midlands and London, HS2 now supports more than 31,000 jobs. When complete, Britain’s new high-speed railway will create quicker and more reliable journeys, driving economic growth while crucially freeing up space for more local trains on the most congested part of the existing West Coast Main Line.
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