Located on the southern tip of the UK, in Ramsgate, Kent, lies the operation centre for Southeastern Trains.  Serving over 170 stations throughout Kent, East Sussex and London and employing over 3,800 people, Southeastern Trains is owned by Govia (which is responsible for over 30% of all UK passenger rail journeys) and is a major train operator in the UK.

Over the past year, Southeastern Trains has upgraded security at its Ramsgate Engineering Depot, where its trains are maintained, cleaned and serviced. Ramsgate is also an important location for the comings and goings of many of the company’s staff.  The initial requirement for the project was to increase security at barriers in and out of the site, ensuring access was strictly monitored.

The installer, ICL, approached Castel because its Softphone Intercom product fitted the client’s requirements perfectly. The CAP IP V1B (single-button video) intercom has now been installed at the depot’s gates and barriers. The system calls back to operators who use Castel’s Xellip Media Softphone on their PCs to answer calls and view images. Calls are diverted out of hours to the Southeastern Trains control room, which is at a different location.
Thanks to the ease of installation of the Castel equipment and the way in which Castel’s intercoms can be integrated into Southeastern’s expanding system, further access control solutions at the site have been earmarked for development throughout 2014.

Darren Elvin, Managing Director of ICL Solutions, the installation contractor, recommends Castel. “We have worked with Castel on a number of projects now," he said.  “Recommending them for this project was easy for us, as we knew that their product would fit the bill. Being able to rely on both the quality of the product and service, we knew the client would be happy with the finished solution."