Intelligent Rail Summit ‘24: Estonia to play ‘pivotal role’ in future of rail tech
It’s almost here! RailTech’s Intelligent Rail Summit ’24 is coming to Estonia in six weeks. As the biggest names in the industry prepare to gather in Tallinn, some of our top speakers—including the CTO of Rail Baltica’s project coordinator—explain why this year’s location is about to be one of the most important sites in Europe for intelligent tech and rail innovation. And, of course, why you shouldn’t miss this year’s conference.
It’s not just hype. Intelligent technology is rapidly transforming Europe’s rails. Amid the EU’s bold push to expand and standardise networks across the continent, the tech that stabilises operations, enhances safety, and optimises efficiency is becoming ever more important. But how do we go about successfully integrating such rapidly advancing tools—AI, big data, and machine learning—on such a massive scale? Well, Estonia, once dubbed “the most advanced digital society in the world,” is a good place to start.
Having pioneered its own state-of-the-art e-governance system and spearheaded an enviable local tech scene, Estonia has innovation and applied intelligent technology hardwired into its DNA. AI, cloud-based services, and the consequent need for impeccable cybersecurity systems essentially drive the country. Therefore, it’s no surprise that it’s a founding nation behind Rail Baltica, one of Europe’s most technologically advanced and ambitious infrastructure megaprojects.
Intelligent Rail Summit meets Tallinn
Tallinn is a key node in the pioneering programme to integrate the Baltic States’ rail network with the EU by 2030. It will be the site of some of the continent’s most advanced rail systems, which will have to seamlessly integrate into the wider Central European region and beyond. Therefore, it has to get the latest technology, in terms of both choice and application, right.
No one is perhaps better acquainted with this than Emilien Dang, the Chief Technical Officer and board member of RB Rail AS, the joint venture company established by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to coordinate the Rail Baltica project. Managing all technical aspects of the programme alongside partners, he will also be one of our esteemed guest speakers at IRS24.
A valuable platform
“Intelligent Rail Summit ’24 offers a valuable platform to explore the latest advancements in train monitoring, asset management, predictive maintenance, as well as AI and cybersecurity innovations in the rail sector,” Dang told RailTech.
For the Baltic region, he said the project would not only enhance connectivity with European standard railway lines, “but also introduce cutting-edge expertise in modern, sustainable high-speed rail construction, implementation, and operations.” He added that this knowledge transfer would undoubtedly play “a pivotal role in the future development of railway technologies across the region.”
Applied innovation is also an important theme for another of IRS24’s key speakers, Peter Boom. The Director of Rail Asset Management and Digitisation at Royal HaskoningDHV, one of the industry’s key engineering consultancy groups, told RailTech that this year’s programme will be largely about doing things “smarter, faster, more efficiently.”
Integrating intelligent tech
A veteran in the field, Boom is going to be speaking about the implementation of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and how it can function as an enabling layer for Digital Twinning and advanced Asset Management. “I’ll be addressing the significance of BIM for a structured and harmonised information exchange between asset owners, design/engineering companies, contractors, and suppliers during different stages of the asset life cycle.”
That means exploring the close link between BIM models, big data, AI, and digital twinning. “In the end,” said Boom, “it’s all about the entire ecosystem adopting a unified way of data handling.” For him, “Intermodal, sustainable and innovative; that’s the future of transport we’re working on.” His company Royal HaskoningDHV is bringing both its aviation and rail expertise to the UK architecture firm Foster + Partners, which has been tasked with delivering the massive Polish transport development project CPK. This will reach all the way up to Tallinn.
The perfect forum
“The heart of this network,” said Boom “is the new Warsaw airport, destined to connect not only Polish cities and citizens: together with Rail Baltica, the Czech HS Rail programme, and the V-4 HS Rail project, the CPK Project will deliver a new dense and interoperable transportation network across the entire region,” said Boom. That technical and applied know-how is what you can expect to find at IRS24.
And as Emilien Dang states: “As Rail Baltica continues to advance the most ambitious infrastructure project in the Baltics, staying updated on the latest technological innovations is critical to achieving greater efficiency, safety, and sustainability… The summit in Tallinn serves as the perfect forum for industry specialists to collaborate, share insights, and explore how intelligent technologies are transforming the future of Europe’s rail systems.”
From the real-life application of AI to the twists and turns of the continent’s most ambitious infrastructure project, come and help us shape the future of the rail sector. Find out more about the exciting programme here.
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