The International Rail & Forum Conference (IRFC) is a major event in the calendar of the international railway sector. This is where top managers, rail and logistics experts, customers, prominent politicians and institutions from all across Europe meet. The sixth annual IRFC is taking place in Prague on 22-24 March 2017 at the Clarion Hotel Prague with the motto Let’s make European Railway EASY! The AWT Group, a member of PKP CARGO Group, is a partner of the conference.
The IRFC conference is continuing the tradition of railway experts getting together, which began in 2008. During this time, a long line of prominent experts have addressed many of the current questions and issues that have arisen in that period. This time, the main topics of the conference will again be projects and trends under discussion a lot lately.
The participants of the conference will be particularly interested in the influence and impact of legislation on their daily practices. Other topics to be discussed include the liberalization, standardization, competitiveness and sustainability of rail transport. Among the speakers will be leaders of international organizations and institutions, including EUAR (European Union Agency for Railways), UIC (International Union of Railways), OSJD (Organization for Cooperation of Railways), UNIFE (Union des Industries Ferroviaires Européennes), CER (Community of European Railways) and Shift2Rail (Joint undertaking for European rail research and innovation). These organizations are also the patrons of the conference, together with the Ministry of Transport CR and the Economic Committee of the Czech Parliament.
One of the main topics will be digitization in the railway sector. Another current topic that encompasses IRFC 2017 is the interoperability and implementation of TSI TAF/TAP. The traditional block of lectures will be topics focused on innovation in the technology of transporting consignments, special cargo, dangerous goods, single-car cargo, safety, monitoring, etc., by rail. Conference participants will also have the possibility to learn what’s new in the carriage industry of Asia-Europe, their needs, other directions, and the future.
Under the program, the second day of the conference will feature representatives of AWT. Barbora Lubojacká, IT Director of the AWT Group, will be presented in the section Rail Innovation, Projects and Information Systems with a lecture on the topic fourth railway package and interoperability – an opportunity or mortal wound for the carrier?
“The fourth railway package substantially changes the railway market and our task will be not only to adapt to the new conditions, but if it’s possible, to find challenges and opportunities in them for our company,” says Barbora Lubojacká.
In the section Railway Technology: Viktor Bystrian, CCO of the AWT Group, will make his own presentation with innovations and the best examples in freight transport and logistics.
“The IRFC International Conference is among the most important events of its kind and already has a real European character to it. This is a unique meeting of experts and representatives of major European rail carriers, where they can jointly address current issues. In the context of our lectures, we want to discuss innovations with our colleagues coming from the fourth railway package or to mention our achievements in the automotive and intermodal segment and present another course in the development of the AWT Group and PKP CARGO,” says Viktor Bystrian.
