The Institution of Railway Signal Engineers (IRSE) is a worldwide

professional body A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and the ...

for all those engaged or interested in

railway signalling Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormou ...

and

telecommunication Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

s (S&T) and allied disciplines.

Local sections

The IRSE is based in London, with international sections in: * Australasia * Hong Kong * India * Japan * The Netherlands * North America * Singapore * Southern Africa * Switzerland * Malaysia * Indonesia * France * Thailand In the UK: * London and South East * Midland and North Western * Plymouth * Scottish * Western * York There is also a Minor Railways section specialising in railways that are not part of the national network, including

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

and

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...

s. Additionally there is a Younger Members section which aims to contribute to and improve the benefits that the IRSE provides for its younger members, which includes the co-ordination of a number of events each year.

Membership grades

Membership grade is dependent on the individual member's experience and / or formal qualification. * Affiliate * Accredited Technician * Associate Member * Member * Fellow * Companion

Headquarters

The headquarters of the IRSE is in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

, London, in the offices of the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 120,000 member ...

Notable Members

Elsie Louisa Winterton became the IRSE's first woman member in 1923, whilst working as a draughtswoman for the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

IRSE Licensing Scheme

The IRSE Licensing Scheme was introduced in 1994 as a means of competence certification for people undertaking work in the railway signalling and telecommunications industry. There are over 50 licence categories that cover the design, installation, testing, maintenance and engineering management of both railway signalling and telecommunications. Possession of a licence (or evidence that you are working towards obtaining a licence) is essential for people who want to carry out S&T engineering work for

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

. Network Rail and London Underground require themselves and their contractors and consultants, ensure that all S&T engineers engaged in safety-critical and safety-related work possess IRSE licences.

Publications

* ''IRSE News'' – a near monthly journal featuring technical articles and papers, as well as articles of general interest to the signalling community. *

References

External links

*
Unofficial discussion forum for those considering taking the IRSE professional examination.
1912 establishments in the United Kingdom Institution of Mechanical Engineers Organisations based in the City of Westminster Organizations established in 1912 Railway Signal Engineers Rail infrastructure in the United Kingdom Railway signalling {{UK-org-stub