The objective of this study is to show the applicability of machine learning and simulative approaches to the development of decision support systems for railway asset management. These techniques are applied within the generic framework developed and tested within the In2Smart project. The framework is composed by different building blocks, in order to show the complete process from data collection and knowledge extraction to the real-world decisions. The application of the framework to two different real-world case studies is described: the first case study deals with strategic earthworks asset management, while the second case study considers the tactical and operational planning of track circuits’ maintenance. Although different methodologies are applied and different planning levels are considered, both the case studies follow the same general framework, demonstrating the generality of the approach. The potentiality of combining machine learning techniques with simulative approaches to replicate real processes is shown, evaluating the key performance indicators employed within the considered asset management process. Finally, the results of the validation are reported as well as the developed human–machine interfaces for output visualization.

The on-going H2020 project INFRALERT aims to increase rail and road infrastructure capacity in the current framework of increased transportation demand by developing and deploying solutions to optimise maintenance interventions planning. It includes two real pilots for road and railways infrastructure. INFRALERT develops an ICT platform (the expert-based Infrastructure Management System, eIMS) which follows a modular approach including several expert-based toolkits. This paper presents the methodologies and preliminary results of the toolkits for i) nowcasting and forecasting of asset condition, ii) alert generation, iii) RAMS & LCC analysis and iv) decision support. The results of these toolkits in a meshed road network in Portugal under the jurisdiction of Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) are presented showing the capabilities of the approaches.

The study monitored 10 real European buildings to identify comfort enhancement potential and energy saving potential based on changing the behavior of building users. The results show that the office building could have saved up to EUR 2500 in energy during the study period while the healthcare centers could have saved more than EUR 1000. The highest energy saving potential is related to the use of the Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) system. It has also been found out that there is a potential to improve comfort conditions in all the pilot buildings. The highest potential on comfort is identified in the improvement of the luminance conditions.