Prologue

Most of us will probably look back at the year 2020 and would want to throw away our diaries, in an attempt to try to forget about this long depressing year where we all learnt a new acronym: COVID-19.

Although the pandemic is still very much with us and the situation in certain regions or countries is rather overwhelming, there are encouraging signs that the end of the tunnel is not too far away.

Reflecting back on the year about to end we first struggled to find any good news to report. Maybe because there wasn’t any or if there was, it was becoming rather insensitive to talk about it given the level of suffering some around us had to go through. Having said that, if there are good news to tell, it could also inspire others to stand still in the storm and hold out hope.

Opportunities post COVID-19

At 3ECO Ltd. we are lucky enough that the pandemic has not impacted us too dramatically. Being able to adapt quickly to working from home we managed to achieve some of our goals nevertheless. The list of opportunities out there is still substantial in our industry where a lot is happening with HS2 in particular. Last week 3ECO Ltd. was among the hundreds of potential suppliers that attended HS2 #Meet the Contractor sessions between the 23/11 and the 25/11. A great opportunity to listen to key members of the scheme and get involved with the details of how to get involved with the works.

Our industry is blessed by a clear commitment from government, businesses and other relevant authorities to continue to invest in infrastructure and transportation systems nevertheless. So we certainly cannot complain if we compare ourselves to other industries such as retail or hospitality.

Rail for London Training

Back in early 2018 when two of 3ECO Ltd. co-founders left Crossrail after almost a decade spent on this project alone, the simple idea that our experience and competence could still be of interest to some people felt like a rather challenging endeavour.

Still it was not an impossible one.

And as reported here last year, after several months of exploration, some doubts and hard work, we were awarded a couple of training related contracts with Rail for London for the future Elizabeth Line. A year down the line and we are pleased to report that the feedback we received from delivering our training to our colleagues at RFLI is very encouraging.

And although we already had quite a strong understanding of training processes from relevant past experiences of delivering courses, we learnt a great deal more working alongside them, improving things along the way and refining a product that people seem genuinely happy with overall.

Service Provider Contract Award

Earlier this month RFLI formally announced the appointment of a Service Provider to support them during the Trial Operations phase, the long awaited back end period of the Crossrail Project that is required prior to passengers and public opening.

One of the clear missions of the appointed Service Provider is to provide RFLI with technicians, Authorised Persons, Nominated Persons and Senior Authorised Persons able to carry out maintenance and HV & OLE isolations related works on the future Elisabeth Line during the Trial Operations’ period of the project. In addition, the Service Provider’s responsibility includes the mentoring of RFLI staff so that they are able to take over key maintenance operations and deliver the works independently when the Elizabeth Line opens to the public eventually.

Following successful tendering, Morson and 3ECO Ltd. together have been appointed as the Service Provider to support Rail for London in readiness for handover from Crossrail Ltd.

We are very happy to be able to continue our successful collaboration with Rail for London Infrastructure and to once again find ourselves at the heart of this great project. Despite understandable frustration from the public and others, the Elizabeth Line is a fantastic benchmark endeavour that will keep London moving for many years to come. Although a long awaited conclusion, we are quite convinced people will forget about all the difficulties as soon as they will be able to enjoy its great benefits.