ScotRail Chooses MRI Software to Streamline Management of Property Portfolio

Scottish government-owned train operator leverages MRI Horizon to centralise data, automate processes and drive efficiencies across station rentals

ScotRail, the publicly owned Scottish railway network operator, has selected MRI Software’s Horizon solution to manage its rental and lease portfolio, comprising 220 units across 356 stations. MRI Horizon is an innovative real estate cloud solution used by leading property owners and operators in the private and public sectors to manage complex lease portfolios, improve business performance, and reduce operational risk.

The decision to deploy Horizon was part of ScotRail’s digital transformation strategy, implemented after the company came into public ownership in 2022. After reviewing its processes and deciding to bring previously outsourced activity in-house, ScotRail needed to find a property management solution to gather data into a new, easy-to-use centralised system. ScotRail chose Horizon after a competitive and regulated procurement process.

“Everyone involved was immediately impressed by how user-friendly Horizon was and the functionality available,” says Kerry McKerron, Senior Product and Revenue Development Manager at ScotRail. “Our team could quickly and clearly see how Horizon would fit with our processes and benefit the business. After speaking with other MRI Horizon users in the same industry who successfully use the solution, it wasn’t hard for our team to make the decision.”

ScotRail has already deployed Horizon, with a team of five successfully using it day-to-day after the company and MRI worked closely together to get the system up and running as quickly as possible. ScotRail is now using Horizon to manage lease agreements with tenants that are using station spaces to run cafes, shops, and other retail outlets.

Since implementing MRI Horizon, ScotRail has experienced several benefits across the organisation:

Increased data visibility through a centralised property management database
Improved data accuracy for better decision-making
Deeper, easily accessible insights and faster, reliable reporting with business intelligence dashboards

“ScotRail joins a growing number of UK public sector organisations that use Horizon in different ways to manage the complexities of their property portfolios – either as landlords or occupiers,” says Garreth Cosgrave, Business Development Manager, Strategic Accounts at MRI Software. “What makes Horizon so useful for companies like ScotRail is its scalability and flexibility. It is a cloud-based solution that can fit into any organisation’s existing processes.”