Analyzing Operational Efficiency and Planning Practices in Rail Maintenance Facilities : A Value Stream Mapping Case Study of a Wagon Maintenance Depot with Recommendations for Improved Efficiency

Sammanfattning

This Master’s thesis investigates operational efficiency and planning practices within rail maintenance facilities, focusing specifically on wagon maintenance at Green Cargo’s depot in Eskilstuna. Rail freight serves as a climate-smart alternative as the transport sector faces pressure to decarbonize, but its competitiveness relies on both operational availability and precision, ensuring that wagons are maintained correctly and available when needed. Maintenance operations in this sector are characterized by high task variability and uncertainty in demand, which can challenge operational efficiency. The study applies an adaptive Value Stream Mapping (VSM) approach to visualize physical and information flows. On-site observations and semi-structured interviews with planning and workshop personnel were conducted to provide a detailed mapping and analysis of operational processes. In addition, historical repair data from 2025 was analyzed to identify patterns in repair frequency and variation across different wagon types. The findings indicate that maintenance lead times are strongly influenced by structural constraints within the workshop layout, resource dependencies and administrative interruptions rather than the technical execution of repairs alone. Entry and exit occur at the same end, which together with specialized tracks, limited brake testing equipment, restricted shunting flexibility, creates positional dependencies and recurring bottlenecks. High-frequency repair categories such as brake and welding work further contribute to significant variability in processing times. Administrative approval procedures linked to predefined price ceilings and limitations in material handling further reduce flow continuity and visibility of operational performance. Operational and strategic recommendations include constraint-based inflow planning, SMED-based task externalization and expanded resource capacity for brakes and welding. The study also suggests improving digital monitoring and exploring future standardized flow-oriented workshop layouts. The study concludes that maintenance stability requires an integrated systems perspective. Effective coordination of layout, planning and resources is essential to reduce lead times and boost fleet availability.