SINGAPORE — Five engineers from the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) will be seconded to SMRT Trains from next month to help the beleaguered rail operator in their efforts to review and improve train maintenance.

The DSTA team, which will be attached to SMRT for up to six months, will recommend improvements to SMRT’s operations and support capabilities, including policies, processes, procedures, competency and training, SMRT announced on Thursday (Nov 9).

The attachment is part of SMRT’s efforts to “gather the best engineering talents and all necessary resources in Singapore to support SMRT in its drive towards rail operations and maintenance excellence”, said Mr Seah Moon Ming, Chairman SMRT Corporation and SMRT Trains.

“SMRT needs to critically review its Operations & Support and maintenance policies, manuals and procedures, and update these to world-best standards in railway management,” Mr Seah added.

At the same time, a team of experts from Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation have also been roped in to assist with the comprehensive review of SMRT’s rail operations and maintenance, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan announced in Parliament on Tuesday.

In his Ministerial Statement in Parliament on last month’s tunnel flooding incident, Mr Khaw said that the Taipei Metro team will do a thorough and independent review of SMRT’s operations to flush out any gaps and recommend improvements in the areas of system management, engineering and maintenance.

Recounting a recent meeting he had with the former chairman of Taipei Metro Professor Tsay, Mr Khaw said: “Taipei Metro has done very well for rail reliability and I have shared their achievements with this House before. They had plenty of problems in the beginning.

“This particular gentleman, Professor Tsay, turned the company around. So at the meeting last week, I asked him to help assemble a team of experts to address the issues we face. He was happy to help,” Mr Khaw added.

In an internal memo to staff on Wednesday, SMRT Group CEO Desmond Kuek urged staff to emerge “better and stronger” from the tunnel flooding episode, which also subsequently revealed that maintenance records had been falsified by several staff members over a 6-month period.