What is "Tops" in the ERA System???

[JJ73]

Hiya  🤔

I was looking at the "TRACKS OF CHANGE - EXPLAINING OUR ERA SYSTEM" page & I noticed it said 

6	British Rail Pre-TOPS	1957-1971	Class 71
7	British Rail TOPS	1971-1986	Class 87

What does it mean by "Pre-Tops" & "Tops"???

& what does the word "Sectorisation" mean???

Thank you :)

[walkingthedog]

It stands for Total Operations Processing System. Simplistically it was a way of categorising equipment. This is a made up example.

 

Before TOPS a diesel might be numbered D456. No indication of what it is apart from being a diesel. After TOPS it would be 37 456. It’s a Class 37. Once more these are not real numbers before I get jumped on, just an example. 

[Postman Prat]

Simplified, TOPS is a computerisd system whereby every loco, or other vehicle,is tracked . In that way they can, for example, keep tabs on when a certain vehicle requires overhaul, that sort of thing. To make it work all locos were renumbered - the first 2 numbers are the class, the third the subclass and the reaining 2 are the individual locos. This was introduced in 1971

 

In the 1980s the entire system was split into business units e.g NSE, InterCity and all costs incurred by each units were allocated to that sector. Freight was treated the same way. Each sector had its own locos, rolling stock and I believe even track, and if another sector wanted to use something 'owned' by an other they had to pay for it.  e.g. the loco allocated for a prticular InterCity train fails - you have to borrow  a Railfreight Coal to run the service. You have to pay a hire charge for the standin loco.

 

There's a lot more to it than what I've just put but I haven't the time, or knowledge, to go any further.

 

Hope this helps

 

 

[Postman Prat]

Hi WTD

 

Thanks for putting TOPS in full - I just could not remember the full, correct version.

 

Would I jump on you for not knowing that D456 didn't exist? The D400s were what became class 50s, the 37s were D6600-D6608, D6700 - D6999        😉

[walkingthedog]

Think I know and I promise I haven’t Googled. Left hand down a bit.

[trainlover23]

Without resorting to Google who can identify what were BR's TOPS class 99?   😉

 

(and what was significantly unique about their BR corporate livery)

Not using Google they are reserved for steam locos . i am not sure if it is purely narrow gauge or all staem that is permitted to run on the National Network.

If narrow gauge they were the Vale of Rhediol locos and they were the only steam locos that carried BR Corporate Blue. 

[2e0dtoeric]

I thought TOPS meant Tired Old Paper Shufflers!  😛

[JJ73]

Simplified, TOPS is a computerisd system whereby every loco, or other vehicle,is tracked . In that way they can, for example, keep tabs on when a certain vehicle requires overhaul, that sort of thing. To make it work all locos were renumbered - the first 2 numbers are the class, the third the subclass and the reaining 2 are the individual locos. This was introduced in 1971

 

In the 1980s the entire system was split into business units e.g NSE, InterCity and all costs incurred by each units were allocated to that sector. Freight was treated the same way. Each sector had its own locos, rolling stock and I believe even track, and if another sector wanted to use something 'owned' by an other they had to pay for it.  e.g. the loco allocated for a prticular InterCity train fails - you have to borrow  a Railfreight Coal to run the service. You have to pay a hire charge for the standin loco.

 

There's a lot more to it than what I've just put but I haven't the time, or knowledge, to go any further.

 

Hope this helps

 

 

Thank you  😀

[JJ73]

It stands for Total Operations Processing System. Simplistically it was a way of categorising equipment. This is a made up example.

 

Before TOPS a diesel might be numbered D456. No indication of what it is apart from being a diesel. After TOPS it would be 37 456. It’s a Class 37. Once more these are not real numbers before I get jumped on, just an example. 

Thank you :)

 

[JJ73]

I thought TOPS meant Tired Old Paper Shufflers!  😛

Funny!!!  😆

[trainlover23]

Under British Rail TOPS class 99 were the Sealink ferries.  😀

 

The unique feature about their BR livery was the reversed double arrow on one side of the funnell!   😉

OOPS I must have got muddled up with the German DB system were 99 are used for narrow gauge ie 099 steam 199 electric 299 diesel etc

[michael_winstanley]

 

 

[LCDR]

 Then there was "Back On To The Old Manual System" when the computer crashed!

[LCDR]

 TOPS was purchased from Southern Pacific and certain Americanisms entered the railway vocabulary as a consequence.

For example the guards van was coded CA, short for Caboose and 'train formation' became 'Consist'.  It had a language all of its own. When I started working in a TOPS office my world started to revolve around  'Yard Files', 'Train Lists' Consists', 'Releases', 'Placements', 'Pipelines', and such like futuristic jargon. And abbreviations relating to mini-programs (Apps to you youngsters) became part of our speech. We claimed wagons which were missing from another yard by 'TK'ing them, for example.

 

Happy days!

[81F]

 TOPS was purchased from Southern Pacific and certain Americanisms entered the railway vocabulary as a consequence.

For example the guards van was coded CA, short for Caboose and 'train formation' became 'Consist'.  It had a language all of its own. When I started working in a TOPS office my world started to revolve around  'Yard Files', 'Train Lists' Consists', 'Releases', 'Placements', 'Pipelines', and such like futuristic jargon. And abbreviations relating to mini-programs (Apps to you youngsters) became part of our speech. We claimed wagons which were missing from another yard by 'TK'ing them, for example.

 

Happy days!

No wonder the goods brake van disapeared from freight trains during the '70s - no one could find a caboose!

lol :)