Operations Planner

At the heart of the rail network for over three decades, Porterbrook is the UK's leading rolling stock financier and asset management company with 4000 vehicles in our diverse portfolio of passenger and freight trains.

By working together with our partners, we deliver high-quality, agile rolling stock solutions that ensure the railway remains safe, reliable, sustainable and fit for the future.

We don't just provide trains - we provide a customer-focused platform for long-term success. Since 1994, Porterbrook has invested over £4bn in new rolling stock including £1bn of capital in new trains, fleet upgrades, traction innovation and rail infrastructure in the last five years.

With our strategic and empathetic funding solutions, we're actively looking to invest a further £1bn in the years ahead.

Our Long Marston Operations Team provide onsite logistical solutions and support services, tailored to our internal and external customers' needs. The successful candidate will be joining a dynamic, professionally trained depot team.

A great opportunity for an exceptional Operations Planner, to join the Porterbrook team.

Key responsibilities:

• Develop train movements plans to enable optimised safe delivery of all rail operations undertaken at the Long Marston Rail Innovation Centre - ensuring peaks and troughs are balanced
• Support the Operations Manager with resource allocation, balancing train driving, shunting, and training & competence requirements
• Implement robust arrangements for the communication of train movements plans to all affected parties (internal & external) to ensure priorities are aligned and agreed, and minimise short notice requests
• Attend weekly planning meetings to enable the train movements plans to be created, and to ensure priorities are aligned and agreed, and to minimise short notice requests
• Work with the Operations Manager to ensure no conflicts between test track and non-test track train movements
• Produce daily work schedules for train drivers and shunters
• Monitor fatigue risk profiles of operations team members to enable proactive intervention by the Operations Manager where tolerable thresholds approach exceedance
• Liaise with internal and external stakeholders (incl. Train Operators, and Network Rail) to ensure mainline arrivals and departures are included within train movements plans - with hours of site access agreed by all parties, and arrangements in place to minimise 'out of hours' access
• Ensure the site stabling plan is kept up to date at all times, to enable available capacity to be visualised, and future requirements modelled
• Liaise with other Porterbrook departments to ensure a coordinated and controlled approach to the access of trains stabled on site, and that the appropriate permits are issued
• Undertake real time monitoring of daily service delivery, informing the Operations Manager of any delays which could prevent full delivery of the plan (i.e. delays due to train failure, late mainline running, infrastructure defects etc...)
• Ensure track restrictions and speed restrictions are clearly identified on the operations planning board and are communicated to all affected parties
• Produce key performance indicators (KPIs) to enable monitoring of train service delivery
• Support the Operations Manager with additional operations team activities as required

What you'll need to have:

• A level or equivalent level of experience
• Relevant rail experience or extensive planning experience in a similar industry
• Knowledge of a Train Planning system and TRUST (Desirable)
• Experience in working collaboratively with a wide range of stakeholders
• Experience in planning and problem solving to deliver objectives

It would be great if you also had:

• Ability to work flexibly to strict timescales and under a high degree of pressure
• Well organised with a strong attention to detail
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Ability to plan and deliver activities to deliver business objectives
• Ability to exercise sound judgement with good sense of controls
• Computer literacy

We have a collaborative work ethic with our team members across the company, and with our customers and suppliers. In Derby, London and the Long Marston Rail Innovation Centre we have the right people, with the right skills, in the right jobs, all striving to drive excellence through strong partnerships that create value for all.

We promote a high-performing culture where everyone is supported to…