Reshaping the future of control room management

In a large number of industries and sectors, high-performing control room operations are paramount. Acting as the nerve centre for real-time monitoring and intervention, control rooms manage and coordinate rail and air traffic, gas pipelines, nuclear power plants, chemical production sites, ambulance and healthcare services, and many other (often safety-critical) environments.

In addition, driven by the continuing and fast-paced introduction of new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, 5G connectivity, drones, and the Internet of Things, novel types of control rooms are expected to emerge in other and new settings. Some examples are control centres for real-time monitoring of self-driving cars, unmanned vessels, or smart cities.

The increasing use and importance of control rooms in very heterogeneous settings, implies a growing need for analytics tailored for control room management. Next to historical analytics, control rooms require real-time predictive and prescriptive analytics that cover the variety of decision making domains. First, the analytics should cover the operational management aspect (e.g. staff management). Second, network analytics are warranted on diffusion and propagation of e.g. delays, technical malfunctions or unexpected events. Last but not least, transportation analytics are required on the multi-mode transportation of passengers or goods.