On track for resource efficiency with Network Rail

• Mace successfully audited the entirety of Network Rail’s NW&C region’s asset portfolio to assess energy consumption. 
• The data set was vast and diverse, including multiple asset types and involving unique delivery teams. 
• Mace illustrated energy usage trends across three routes, quantifying potential reductions and identifying significant savings, meeting 61% of Network Rail’s carbon reduction target. 

Network Rail manages over 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels, and viaducts, and 20 of the UK’s largest stations. Efficient energy and utility consumption is crucial for a sustainable and reliable service.  

Mace partnered with Network Rail to assess the North-West and Central (NW&C) region’s asset portfolio. The goal was to overview all assets’ energy performance, prioritise investments for control period seven (CP7) with a focus on carbon reduction, and minimise operation and maintenance costs. 

The challenge was interpreting a vast and diverse data set across three NW&C routes – North-West, Central, and West Coast South – each with unique delivery teams and asset types. 

Mace devised operational plans to help assets meet sustainability targets, streamlining data gathering and analysis by engaging Network Rail’s energy management teams through a central contact. This segmented data by source route and asset type, enabling accurate regional trend analysis. An energy dashboard was developed to visualise usage hotspots. 

Through this audit, Mace identified cost and carbon savings by illustrating energy usage trends across the three routes. The energy review highlighted high-consuming assets and notable electricity and gas consumption trends. The dashboard ranked assets and groups by energy and carbon. Additionally, the audit quantified potential energy and carbon reductions across existing NW&C projects, assessing 2,000 gas and electricity meters. 

Our assessment identified significant carbon savings and reduced annual energy costs. The analysis met 61% of Network Rail’s carbon reduction target for CP7, equating to 555 tCO2e annual savings. Reducing energy-intensive areas could unlock nearly £1 million in annual savings, demonstrating the synergy between cost and carbon reduction. As rail infrastructure connects communities, reducing environmental impact is key to future-ready portfolios.