MollerLassen ApS has been part of the investigation of the train accident on the great belt bridge January 2, 2019. The report was released by the Danish Accident Investigation Board (AIB) December 18, 2019. We are very proud to contribute to maintain the general safety level in Denmark, where our expertise was used to identify possible route causes to the accident. We were also very glad that we could contribute to give the victims and their relatives respect and clarification. An accident like this, shall be taken very seriously and our investigation can hopefully contribution in the future work for preventing this to happen again.
Our aim, as a subcontractor to AIB, was to examine approvals, maintenance and requirements for the saddle, maintenance regime in general (ECM) and safety management in relation to maintenance and instructions relevant to the accident.
We delivered two report to AIB and they are a big part of the final report from AIB. An accident like this, is a complex investigation. All possible sceneries must be considered, and everything documented with source and reason.
When working with an accident like this, it is very important to identify route causes, and not “who’s to blame”. The overall aim of the investigation is to ensure the high level of safety in the rail business and to identify hazards in the systems involved. When hazards are identified, it is possible to mitigate the hazards.
A unique factor for this investigation is that it was conducted across borders, across companies, across systems and across governments and authorities. This shows the interdependencies of all interfaces between (involved parties) companies and systems
This knowledge is difficult to gather under normal circumstances, even during audits, where the perspective is one side of the interface, regardless how skilled the lead auditor is. It is not impossible, but it requires a lot of experience, energy and know-how.
