RailComm aids RailAmerica dispatch system
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefJacksonville, Fla.-based RailAmerica has been using RailComm’s Domain Operations Controller (DOC®) train control system to dispatch multiple subdivisions of its short line railroads since 2002. Now the DOC® System at RailAmerica’s American Rail Dispatch Center will soon be able to be accessed through a web-enabled software-as-a-service (SaaS) delivery, RailComm says.
SaaS provides a “pay-as-you-go” model, thus eliminating capital equipment procurement constraints. Through this delivery, railroads can be remotely dispatched by RailAmerica wherever an Internet connection is available. It is now possible to relocate dispatchers to alternative locations, if the need arises.
RailAmerica management members can log in from their offices, homes, or even from hotels to directly view dispatching activities and obtain management reports. Since the DOC® control application resides on servers within the RailComm-managed data center in Rochester, N.Y., the requirement for local IT support at each railroad is greatly reduced, Fairport, N.Y.-based RailComm notes.
