A NORTH-EAST IT company is creating 15 jobs after it won a multi-million pounds Network Rail contract.

Gateshead-based On:trac has developed eTrac an application which maps the landscape to create live diagrams in both 2D and 3D.

The software will be used to generate 26,000km of track diagrams to give Network Rail workers a detailed picture of the environment they are working in, and flag up potential trouble spots such as areas susceptible to flooding.

This is the first system of its kind within the UK which the firm said can help revolutionise planning and health and safety management in the rail industry.

eTrac was initially trialled in the Anglia region and due to its success is now being rolled out across the rail network over the next six months.

Martyn Cuthbert, the firm's managing director said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for On:trac to demonstrate what can be achieved when you bring together lots of data and control, manage and share it using the very latest technology.

“eTrac is not limited to the transport industry. We are already in discussion with some key players in the construction, nuclear and engineering sectors and we have meetings arranged with companies in the Middle East and the US later in the year.”

The contract will create 15 new support jobs at On:trac's North-East office.

Mr Cuthbert added: “We are proud to be based in the North-East and have received lots of support from the local Colleges and Universities as we have grown. That has given us access to some of the best people the IT industry has to offer and certainly, the most passionate.”