DCA’s cab design process featured by Modern Railways

Published on: 31st August 2015

In this article, Modern Railways discusses DCA’s seven step approach to integrating Human Factors thinking into the design of train cabs.

We first formalised this approach during our work with Hitachi Rail Europe on the Class 800/801 trains and have since applied a similar methodology to the Class 385 cab for Abellio ScotRail.

In both cases an early engagement with drivers was crucial.  This engagement was built around a series of increasingly representative cab and desk mock-ups.  As the project progressed and the cab design became gradually more resolved, so the fidelity of the mock-ups also increased, until final design sign-off was achieved against a representative full sized interior and exterior mock-up.