Sociedad Ibérica de Construcciones Eléctricas (SICE), will execute the project for the Communications System of the new Line 7 of the Santiago Metro (Chile). This award maintains the company as a reference in the region in technology applied to infrastructure, the main IT player in transport and a partner for the Santiago and Lima metro systems.
The project consists of the development of the engineering, supply, installation, testing, commissioning and maintenance of the communications systems on Line 7 for a period of 10 years, under the high quality standards required by Metro de Santiago, combining the high reliability of its operation with the best service and passenger experience, respectively.
SICE’s performance in this project with the IHMCOM (Human-Machine Communications Interface) positions the company as a high-level technological integrator. It is an intuitive and user-friendly computer development carried out by SICE exclusively for Metro de Santiago in collaboration with world-renowned suppliers. It is also the first time that LTE technology is used for the Broadband Network (RBA), making Metro de Santiago one of the pioneers in the use of this technology in a means of mass transport.
The communications systems to be implemented, both in stations, tunnels, workshops and depots and in the rolling stock itself, include the following subsystems:
The system is expected to enter into operation in 2027. From this moment on, SICE will provide Metro de Santiago with predictive, preventive and corrective maintenance coordinated from the company’s headquarters in Chile, where the company has been permanently present for more than twenty-two years, and where the training of SICE and Metro teams in these systems has been continuous. In addition, models of all the systems will be installed in Metro’s laboratories, where the appropriate training will be carried out, simulating and reflecting all the operational casuistry, but without affecting the real operation of the line at any time.
The new Line 7 consists of 19 new stations, serving seven districts of the MR, three of which had no metro service until now. It is 26 km long, which translates into a 35-minute journey, with a maximum depth of 45 metres under the city. In addition, its construction will use for the first time the NATM “careful staged excavation” system for most of its length.
The new Line 7 will be automatic, i.e. it will have no drivers or ticketing services, which means that a high level of technology and safety must be implemented in all its systems. SICE currently carries out the maintenance of these systems for Metro de Santiago itself on lines 6 and 3, the most recent automatic lines, built and inaugurated in 2017 and 2019.
All this means a long work for the company, aimed at meeting the expectations that the metro and its users have placed in SICE. The company is proud to be a technological partner of Metro de Santiago, with whom it has already collaborated on ticketing, tolls, security and access systems for people with reduced mobility (PRM), as well as communications systems. A more accessible and safer Metro for all users.
