How Digital Signage Modernized Operations for Great Western Railway

Great Western Railway (GWR) operates one of the UK's most expansive and complex rail networks, carrying approximately 1.5 million passengers weekly across 9,000 services and 276 stations. Behind this vast transportation network lies Old Oak Common (OOC) Depot, a 24/7/365 maintenance facility responsible for servicing, cleaning, and stabling High-Speed Train (HST) fleets and locomotives.

To modernize depot operations, reduce human error, and meet strict safety reporting regulations, GWR partnered with Navaho Technologies to implement an electronic touchscreen whiteboard and digital compliance system. The initiative earned GWR a 5-Star "Best Practice" Award from the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR).

The challenge

Prior to digital transformation, OOC Depot relied on manual whiteboards with magnetic color strips (e.g. red for "stopped", green for "ready to go") and handwritten set numbers to track vehicle status. Movements were updated over phone or radio, creating high administrative overhead and introducing significant risk of human error due to misread or miscommunicated information.

Additionally, GWR needed a reliable, auditable way to display Health & Safety Executive (HSE) notices, track when and where policies were published, and keep verifiable logs for compliance records.

The approach

Navaho Technologies deployed a custom digital signage ecosystem centered around interactive touchscreen displays and custom MediaCAT software plug-ins:

1. Electronic whiteboard system: shunters use touchscreens running custom Navaho plug-ins to click a "road", select train sets, and program departure times, train directions, and cleaning schedules.
2. Real-time cross-department visibility: data instantly mirrors onto display screens in Team Leaders' and Production Managers' offices, allowing drivers and engineers to collaborate seamlessly.
3. Automated HSE compliance plug-in: Navaho combined an "Incident Board" plug-in with display board software, enabling GWR to show recent accident statistics, track active safety notices, and log exact publication timeframes by shift for regulatory audits.

The result

1. Award-winning operational excellence: awarded a 5-star "Best Practice" rating by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) for depot management and HSE compliance.
2. Reduced overhead and human error: replaced manual whiteboard updates and heavy radio traffic with instant digital updates.
3. Seamless staff adoption: retained the familiar color-coded logic of the old system on a digital interface, requiring zero operational downtime for retraining.
4. Network-wide rollout: following initial success at Old Oak Common, GWR expanded Navaho's digital signage solutions across major depots nationwide, including Bristol and Reading.

"To ensure the safe, secure and timely movement of trains, we had to update and improve our way of working... The answer had to be as simple as the existing color-coded whiteboard system."

— Engineering Manager, Old Oak Common Depot, GWR