Case Studies
Transforming Bisan Depot Through Ai-Driven Overhaul Automation
SMRT Trains, Bishan Depot, Singapore
A 40-year-old depot. A growing fleet. No room to expand. The mandate was clear: double heavy overhaul capacity within the existing footprint, reduce manpower dependency, improve quality, and do it without interrupting passenger services.
STRIDES designed and delivered Depot 4.0, a semi-automated, AI-driven overhaul system
built around the depot’s physical and operational constraints. The result was a fully
commissioned, integrated maintenance capability that halved overhaul time, doubled annual
capacity, and reduced manpower requirements, all while the depot remained fully
operational.
The Challenge
SMRT Trains, operator of Singapore’s North-South and East-West MRT lines, faced a critical
capacity constraint at Bishan Depot. A 40-year-old facility required to support a growing
fleet, it had no option for physical expansion. Capacity had to double within the existing
footprint, manpower dependency had to reduce, and quality had to improve, all without
reconstruction or extended downtime.
Conventional approaches weren’t viable. The depot’s physical constraints, ageing
infrastructure, and continuous operating requirements ruled out rebuilding or service
suspension. A solution was needed that worked around the depot as it existed, not as it
might have been redesigned.
The Approach
STRIDES led the design and delivery of a semi-automated, AI-driven overhaul system engineered specifically around Bishan Depot’s constraints. Rather than requiring the facility to conform to new technology, the solution was adapted to fit the depot’s physical layout, operational rhythms, and workforce realities.
Automated Guided Vehicles replaced the most labour-intensive and injury-prone manual handling tasks, reducing physical strain and improving technician welfare across overhaul bays.
A Command and Control system replaced spreadsheet-based planning with a digital operational view, giving supervisors real-time visibility across every bay and enabling faster, more coordinated decision-making. Digital quality records introduced end-to-end traceability across the overhaul process, replacing paper-based workflows and strengthening audit readiness.
AI-driven predictive analytics shifted the maintenance model from reactive repair to proactive intervention, improving rolling stock availability and reducing unplanned failures. A Zero Trust cybersecurity architecture, full OT/IT network segregation, and 24/7 monitoring were built in from the outset, establishing the resilience and security posture required in a critical metro environment.
The system was commissioned in December 2023, delivered as a functioning, integrated capability with the depot continuing to support full passenger services throughout.
Measurable Impact
Overhaul capacity same depot footprint
6-car overhaul duration
manpower requirement 159 → 100 technicians
Depot 4.0 is proof that constrained, ageing infrastructure can be transformed through disciplined engineering, intelligent automation, and systems integration, without reconstruction, without extended downtime, and without starting from scratch.
Services
Brownfield Infrastructure Transformation / Automation & Robotics Integration / Digital Operations & Command Systems / Depot & Fleet Management / Maintenance Digitalisation / Planned Maintenance & Work Scheduling / Cybersecurity & OT/IT Architecture