Development of a punctuality improvement method

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a punctuality improvement method system and to show how it was developed for application in the railway industry. Design/methodology/approach – The method is based on principles from quality management theory and developed through four cases: delayed departures from a freight‐terminal; delays caused by wheel damages at freight‐train cars; delays at a single track railway line; and delays created at a railway junction. Findings – The result is a method called PIMS: Punctuality Improvement Method System. PIMS does especially focus on the coupling of results from quantitative analyses with experience‐based knowledge. It also focuses on the interaction between the improvement project and the base organizations. Research limitations/implications – The research and development work was performed by researchers from academia in cooperation with practitioners from the railway industry. Practical implications – Punctuality is claimed to be one of the most important quality factors in railway operations and improvement of punctuality is therefore an objective in most railway companies. Punctuality depends on how all actors involved in railway operations perform, and cooperation and communication within and between railway organizations is therefore essential to achieve improvements. Originality/value – In Norway, there was a lack of an established method describing how to organize and accomplish punctuality improvement work. Thus, the authors initiated a project to develop a coherent method to solve identified punctuality challenges. Through the cases, the method has proven its capability to generate feasible improvement measures and measurable punctuality improvements have been achieved.