Latest news with #KHI
The Star
an hour ago
- Automotive
- The Star
Singapore's 2024 MRT breakdown could have been prevented with better coordination: SMRT CEO
SINGAPORE: The six-day disruption to train services on the East-West Line (EWL) in September 2024 could have been prevented with better coordination among all parties involved, said SMRT group chief executive Ngien Hoon Ping on July 31. Setting out the rail operator's view of the breakdown – one of Singapore's worst so far, affecting 2.6 million passengers – Ngien said the right lessons needed to be learnt so that the same mistakes are not made again. This means working more closely with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and equipment manufacturers during fleet and systems renewals. 'We need robust, forward-looking life-cycle planning, clear roles and responsibilities, and much tighter cross-agency collaboration moving forward,' said Ngien during a press conference on the latest financial results for SMRT's train division. On July 31, SMRT said the 2024 EWL breakdown has prompted 'deeper reflections' on the challenges of operating rail assets beyond their intended lifespan. Noting that MRT trains in Singapore are designed to be operated for 30 years, the operator called for a structured framework to manage ageing trains, suggesting that LTA issue a formal certificate to rail operators if such trains are used beyond their intended lifespans. Such certificates are already issued for new trains before they enter service. The process involves checks by the train manufacturer and an independent assessor to ensure all safety specifications are met. The 2024 EWL disruption was traced to a faulty part on a 37-year-old, first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) train, which caused extensive damage to 2.55km of track and trackside equipment as it was being withdrawn from service. Investigations found that SMRT had extended the interval between overhauls for the KHI fleet without a detailed engineering and risk assessment. However, LTA did not review the extension either, nor did it require SMRT to seek its approval. SMRT, meanwhile, has cited repeated delays in the delivery of new replacement trains that would have allowed it to retire the faulty train earlier. The new trains were ordered by LTA in 2018, two years after the authority took over ownership of SMRT's rail assets under a revised financing model. Under this model, LTA makes decisions regarding upgrading and asset replacement. The new trains were meant to arrive from 2021, in time for the KHI trains to be decommissioned. But they were delivered only from 2023 onwards. This was one of the factors that LTA took into account when it lowered the fine that SMRT would pay to the Public Transport Fund, to S$2.4 million (US$1.85 million) from S$3 million, as a penalty for the September 2024 incident. The decision came after SMRT made its final representations on the matter. SMRT chairman Seah Moon Ming said on July 31 that the rail operator was faced with a 'tough choice' over whether to overhaul the old KHI trains or wait for the new ones made by French company Alstom to arrive. He said MRT trains are usually overhauled after clocking 500,000km, which is about every four years, and the planning for such works takes place about 1½ years in advance, so that the operator can source the necessary parts. The KHI trains were last overhauled in 2018. After repeated delays to the new trains, SMRT decided to overhaul the KHI fleet again in 2022, Seah said. But SMRT had trouble procuring spare parts due to global supply chain disruptions during the Covid-19 pandemic. Hence, it could start on modular overhaul works only in December 2023 using the limited parts available. By September 2024, 18 out of 66 first-generation KHI trains were overhauled. But the faulty train that caused the major disruption that month was not among them. Ngien, who was LTA chief executive from 2016 to 2020, said more proactive and deliberate decisions about the KHI overhaul could have been made earlier if there was better coordination between asset owner LTA and the rail operator. He also revealed that the new Alstom trains had issues with overheating batteries when they were first delivered in 2023. 'Frankly, it's not reasonable to expect the operator to have a contingency plan to continue to overhaul, just in case, in 2021, the trains (were not delivered). Even so, there must be certain discussions and agreement as to the funding,' Ngien added, noting that SMRT paid for the additional overhauls to the KHI fleet. In its statement on July 31, SMRT lauded the announcement in March that up to $1 billion in additional government funds will be invested over the next five years to improve the management of rail assets here. 'This is a positive step in addressing the challenges Singapore faces in managing train fleet transitions,' it said. SMRT said it also plans to deepen direct engagement with equipment manufacturers, pointing to its partnership with Alstom to accelerate the testing of the new North-South and East-West line (NSEWL) trains being delivered. 'This proactive approach allows potential reliability and interoperability issues to be resolved ahead of full deployment. We remain on track to retire all first-generation KHI trains by end-September 2025,' the operator added. There are 13 KHI trains still operating today, and they are used only during weekday peak hours. Meanwhile, 63 new Alstom trains have entered service on the NSEWL so far, out of the 106 trains on order. - The Straits Times/ANN
Asahi Shimbun
a day ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Defense Ministry punishes 93 MSDF members in KHI gift scam
The Defense Ministry disciplined 93 Maritime Self-Defense Force members for decades of collusion with a leading defense contractor. Akira Saito, chief of staff of the MSDF, was among those caught in the fallout involving Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. Over a period of 40 or so years, KHI lavished the crews of submarines with gifts paid for from a slush fund based on bogus invoices to subcontractors. Also on July 30, the ministry released its final report in a year-long special investigation into the scandal. However, it failed to uncover the full extent of the cozy ties between the MSDF and KHI. Under the disciplinary measures that took effect on July 30, Saito faces a one-month reduction in pay for his failure to properly supervise subordinates. In addition, 73 supervisors and two commanding officers received reprimands, while 17 submarine captains received warnings. 40 YEARS OF MISCONDUCT The final report cited fictitious transactions between KHI and its three subcontractors based on funds earmarked by the Defense Ministry for submarine maintenance and repairs. KHI created slush funds to the tune of 1.7 billion yen ($11.4 million) through the fictitious transactions over the six years through fiscal 2023, the report said. Kawasaki used the funds to supply goods requested by submarine crew members without going through official procurement procedures. The items included vital repair materials, refrigerators and heating appliances for submarines. Separately, 13 crew members and supervisors were found to have received personal items unrelated to their duties. The goods included gaming consoles, golf equipment and wristwatches, totaling around 1.4 million yen. Most of them received items worth tens of thousands of yen, and one member received goods worth about 500,000 yen. They are all being investigated for suspected breaches to the Self-Defense Forces Personnel Ethics Law, and additional disciplinary action is being considered. The illicit gift-giving is believed to have continued for at least 40 years. The final report described it as 'a structural problem within the organization that would not be acceptable to the public.' Of the 1.7 billion yen in slush funds, about 451 million yen was paid to subcontractors, and Kawasaki itself used part of the funds to purchase personal items and beer coupons. While the specific uses of most of the funds could not be identified, the report confirmed that only a portion had been used to benefit MSDF personnel. No recent evidence was obtained for entertainment such as dining hospitality, largely due to the reduced opportunity because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the absence of receipts or objective proof. PROCEDURAL FLAWS IN PROCUREMENT The report pointed out that the root of the problem lay in slow and inefficient procurement procedures within the MSDF, which made it difficult to obtain key items in a timely manner. As a result, supervisors often resorted to having Kawasaki perform work in advance and paying later, essentially on credit, creating the ideal environment for a slush fund. To prevent a recurrence, the report proposed several reforms, such as separating the roles of order placement and acceptance inspector among supervisors, providing compliance education and improving procedures for procuring submarine equipment and personal gear. The scandal came to light in July last year following a tax audit by the Osaka Regional Taxation Bureau. In March this year, KHI was ordered to pay around 1 billion yen in taxes for hidden income and other unreported income over a six-year period.
The Star
6 days ago
- Automotive
- The Star
Singapore rail operator to pay lower fine of S$2.4m for line disruption; must invest at least S$600k to boost reliability
SINGAPORE: Rail operator SMRT will pay a lower fine of S$2.4 million (US$1.87 million) for a major six-day disruption on the East-West Line in September 2024, after it submitted representations to the Land Transport Authority (LTA). This is down from the financial penalty of S$3 million that LTA intended to hand out in June when the investigation findings into the incident were released. Announcing the updated penalty in a statement on July 25, LTA said the penalty will go to the Public Transport Fund to help lower-income families with their public transport expenditures. The authority added that it had directed SMRT to invest a minimum of S$600,000 to strengthen its capabilities, and address areas for improvement from the incident, so as to improve service reliability. 'In reaching this decision, LTA took into consideration the considerable challenges SMRT had faced in planning and executing their overhaul regime for the Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) trains, particularly in procuring the necessary spare parts for the overhaul due to global supply chain disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.' The incident, which involved a faulty part on a first-generation KHI train, downed MRT services between Jurong East and Buona Vista stations and affected about one in six train trips daily from Sept 25 to 30 in 2024. An LTA spokesperson told The Straits Times that SMRT will need to channel S$600,000 towards improving its capabilities within a year, and submit a declaration and documented proof of this. In a Facebook post shortly after LTA's statement, SMRT Trains president Lam Sheau Kai said the operator will strengthen its direct engagement with original equipment manufacturers of trains and systems. The operator will also deepen its technical and engineering expertise through closer collaboration with these companies. On LTA's directive to invest a minimum of S$600,000 in beefing up its capabilities, Lam said the development and upskilling of its workforce have long been SMRT's priorities. In addition, the operator will continue supporting the secondment of LTA engineers to SMRT – an initiative introduced in 2018. It will also work closely with LTA and Alstom, the manufacturer of the new R151 trains, to roll out the fleet progressively. By 2026, there will be 106 R151 trains on the North-South and East-West lines. As at June 29, 61 of these trains were in service. The last of the KHI trains will be phased out by September. Investigations into the disruption showed that SMRT had extended the interval between overhauls for the faulty train without a detailed engineering and risk assessment. On its part, the operator had flagged supply chain disruptions arising from the pandemic, which delayed the delivery of new trains meant to replace the first-generation models and spare parts needed for overhauls. LTA had originally notified SMRT of its intention to impose the S$3 million penalty on May 30, and gave the operator two weeks to submit its representations. SMRT did so on June 6. While the details of SMRT's submission were not disclosed, representations may include reasons why the operator believes it should not be penalised as well as other applicable mitigating factors. LTA reviewed SMRT's representations before a notice of the penalty was sent to the rail operator on July 25. SMRT has 14 days to appeal to the transport minister if it wishes. If that happens, the final decision lies with the minister, who can opt to reject the appeal, or allow it and change LTA's decision. Responding to ST's query, Lam did not say if SMRT would lodge an appeal with Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow. But he said the company had received LTA's notice to impose the penalty and noted that LTA had considered its representations. LTA reiterated that Singapore's rail system continues to be one of the most reliable worldwide. Since 2019, the mean kilometres between failure of the MRT network has remained above the one million train-km target, it noted. This means MRT trains travelled for more than one million kilometres between delays of more than five minutes. The revised S$2.4 million penalty is the second-highest to be levied on a rail operator, after the S$5.4 million fine that SMRT incurred over a 2015 disruption that crippled the entire North-South and East-West lines for more than two hours during the evening peak period. In June, LTA said a S$3 million penalty for the September 2024 disruption was 'proportionate' to the circumstances surrounding the incident. The authority said it also considered the cost that SMRT had borne from the repairs, and from providing free bus and shuttle train services at the affected stations. Investigations pointed to degraded grease as the likely cause of the incident. This led to a faulty part of the train's undercarriage falling out on the morning of Sept 25, 2024. The part – an axle box, which holds the train's wheels to the axle, a rod connecting a pair of wheels – was dislodged near Dover station while the train was being withdrawn from service to Ulu Pandan Depot. This caused one of the train's 12 bogies – a structure below the train carriage – to derail. The six-carriage train could continue travelling, as the other 11 bogies remained on the rails. But the derailed portion of the third carriage caused extensive damage to 2.55km of track and trackside equipment, such as power cables and the third rail, which supplies power to trains. Associate Professor Walter Theseira, a transport economist at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, told ST that in the context of rail operations, the $600,000 requirement for improvements is not a very significant amount. It could fund reviews and process improvements, but would not suffice for any substantial engineering work. He also said new trains are 'not a cure for reliability by themselves', as they will result in better reliability only after teething issues have been sorted out. Prof Theseira also believes LTA should examine its own capability to judge the quality of a maintenance regime. 'While the operator is on the ground and has first-hand knowledge, it may also be that the regulator should have a well-formed second opinion.' - The Straits Times/ANN
CNA
7 days ago
- Automotive
- CNA
East-West Line disruption: LTA cuts SMRT's fine to S$2.4 million; amount to go to Public Transport Fund
SINGAPORE: Public transport operator SMRT's S$3 million (US$2.34 million) fine imposed for last year's East-West Line train service disruption has been cut to S$2.4 million, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Friday (Jul 25). The authority has also directed SMRT to invest a minimum of S$600,000 to strengthen its capabilities and address areas of improvement from the incident to boost service reliability for commuters. The S$2.4 million penalty will go to the Public Transport Fund to help lower-income families with their public transport expenses. Last month, LTA announced it would slap SMRT with a S$3 million fine after an investigation into last September's six-day train disruption found lapses - including maintenance intervals being extended beyond stipulations - in part due to delays on new train arrivals caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The train in the incident was among 66 in SMRT's first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) fleet, which were rolled out in the late 1980s. They were to be progressively replaced by new Movia trains starting from 2021, but due to the pandemic, there was a delay of 1.5 years, and the first Movia train was only handed over in 2023. SMRT was required to continue carrying out regular maintenance for the KHI trains still in service, but by the time of the incident last September, only 18 KHI trains had been overhauled, with the train in the incident not among them. "In reaching this decision, LTA took into consideration the considerable challenges SMRT had faced in planning and executing their overhaul regime for the KHI trains, particularly in procuring the necessary spare parts for the overhaul due to global supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic," LTA said on Friday. "Singapore's rail system continues to be one of the most reliable rail systems in the world. Since 2019, the mean kilometres between failure (MKBF) of our MRT network has remained above the one million train-km target." The authority added that it will continue to work closely with tripartite partners to maintain the reliability of Singapore's rail system and provide smooth and convenient rail journeys for commuters. SMRT may appeal Friday's decision to the Minister for Transport, who will either reject the appeal and confirm LTA's decision, or allow the appeal and substitute or vary LTA's decision. The Minister's decision on the appeal is final. On Friday, SMRT's President Lam Sheau Kai noted LTA's directive for it to invest in its capabilities. "Workforce development and upskilling have long been our core priorities for SMRT, and this directive is fully aligned with our ongoing commitment to invest in our staff," he wrote in a Facebook post. On the challenges SMRT faced in overhauling the old KHI trains, Mr Lam added: "Had the pandemic not occurred, all KHI trains would have been replaced by the new (Movia) R151 trains as planned, and the incident might have been prevented. "He added that SMRT will strengthen its direct engagement with original equipment manufacturers of trains and systems, and deepen its technical and engineering expertise through closer collaboration with these partners. It will also work closely with LTA and train manufacturer Alstom to progressively roll out its new fleet of Movia trains and fully phase out the KHI trains by this September, Mr Lam said.
Straits Times
06-07-2025
- Automotive
- Straits Times
Over half of 106 new MRT trains added to North-South, East-West lines; fleet completion by 2026
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox SINGAPORE - More than half of the 106 latest seventh-generation MRT trains slated for the North-South and East-West lines (NSEWL) lines have entered service, two years after the first unit was deployed. As at June 29, 61 Alstom Movia R151 trains have entered service, a spokesperson for the Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times. With three new trains being introduced monthly since October 2024, up from two per month in 2023, the train fleet renewal is expected to be complete by 2026. The first R151 trains entered service in June 2023. The new trains replace the first-generation Kawasaki Heavy Industry (KHI) trains. In September 2024, the failure of a KHI train crippled service along a stretch of the East-West Line for six days, in one of the worst disruptions in Singapore's rail history. Transport operator SMRT, which runs the line, was fined $3 million by the LTA. The delay in new train delivery, stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic, was cited by SMRT as a reason for the KHI trains remaining in use and the operator extending the interval between overhauls beyond the manufacturer's requirement. The LTA said that there are 16 KHI trains in service on the NSEWL. By September, these trains will be phased out, according to a post by SMRT on its Facebook page on June 23. Designed in Germany, the new R151 trains are assembled in Changchun, China. They have built-in condition monitoring capabilities and diagnostic systems that can pick up faults early and track the performance of various systems in real time. The cars have bigger open spaces to increase passenger capacity while maintaining the number of seats. Other upgrades on board include wider windows and perch seats for passengers. The first 66 of the 106 trains were ordered in 2018 at the cost of $1.2 billion to replace the first-generation KHI trains. Another 40 trains, costing $337.8 million, were bought in 2020 to replace now-retired second-generation Siemens and third-generation Kawasaki-Nippon Sharyo trains. Alongside the KHI trains (introduced in 1987) and the R151, three other generations of trains, added between 2011 and 2018, are also operating on the NSEWL. These were manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries and CSR Qingdao Sifang. They bring the NSEWL total fleet to 169 trains. Work to renew the NSEWL started in 2012. Valued at $2.6 billion, the refurbishment included not only new trains but also a new signalling system that allows the trains to run at shorter intervals, upgraded power rails that supply electricity to the trains, and a track circuit system capable of detecting rail defects. LTA said that the improvements have boosted the NSEWL's reliability, captured by the lines' Mean Kilometres Between Failure (MKBF), which is the reliability benchmark used for subways globally. The authority added that since 2019, the NSEWL's MKBF has been over a million train-km between delays of more than five minutes, compared with 70,000 train-km for the North-South line and 60,000 train-km for the East-West line in 2012. In LTA's latest rail reliability report, covering up to September 2024, the MKBF for the East-West MRT line, after accounting for the major service disruption, stood at 2.03 million train-km, down from 3.36 million train-km in 2023.
