*|MC:SUBJECT|*

Day Two at RIA Innovation Conference

Delegates returned to the ICC Wales for Day Two of the Innovation Conference, following a vibrant first day which concluded with a festival-style networking dinner, acoustic live music and games tables.

New publications

RIA Innovation Director Milda Manomaityte welcomed delegates back and began the second day with the launch of the latest RIA thought leadership report; ‘Destination: Revenue Growth.’ The report analyses the gaps between the Government’s aspirations, policy and implementation on fares and ticketing. It makes a number of key ‘asks’ to drive revenue growth without increasing ticket prices. Read the report here.

The asks are:

A Stable National Vision. There needs to be a stable national vision for the future of rail retail.
Standardised and Specified Interfaces. Interfaces between different ticketing ecosystems, across transport modes and constituencies, need to be standardised in a way which both allows interoperability and enables innovation.
A Level Playing Field. There needs to be a level playing field for all, including access to all core data, fares, and features, to achieve the vision of an environment supportive of rail retailers and one which encourages competition and accelerated innovation for the customer’s benefit.
Common Contractual Frameworks. Multimodal Common Contractual Frameworks need to be established, but not mandated. These would provide a clear structure within which Mobility Service Providers could operate, fostering an environment conducive to new entrants, inter-modality, innovation and collaboration.

Keynotes

Alexandra Luck, Head of Programme - National Digital Twin Programme, Department for Business and Trade, introduced the programme, which aims to develop the standards, frameworks, and guidelines for a functioning market in digital twin technology for the UK. She also covered the Demonstrator Programme, where technology and research are taken and applied to real-world situations, using flood response in the Isle of Wight as an example.

Dr Joanna White, Roads Development Director, National Highways, spoke to the audience about their innovation programme at the organisation. Their strategy is built around four key themes: net zero carbon by 2050; zero harm by 2040; cheaper, faster construction by 2030; and connected journeys by 2025. National Highways are using innovation to solve their key challenges of safety and carbon emissions, whilst working with multiple strategic partners, including Network Rail, Connected Placed Catapult, and Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS).

Murven Wan, Mechanical Design Engineer, Transmission Dynamics presented the range of products developed by Transmission Dynamics to monitor and report on asset state in real-time. Their systems allow for the detection of four different types of damaged OLE wires, and can also detect bird strikes, vandalism, arcing and foliage infringement. Additionally, their Smart-Bug product can monitor the integrity of rail wheel sets, and help to predict when they will need to be maintained or replaced.

Spotlights

Nine more exhibitors 'spotlighted' their latest offerings with short presentations on their stands. The exhibitors were:

Transport for Wales
UKRRIN
Rail Delivery Group (Rail Data Marketplace)
Tended
Roxtec Ltd
Cordel Ltd
Natural Cement
Echion Technologies
Network Rail

Future Focus Zone

The Future Focus Zone is a specialised section created to highlight revolutionary advancements and pioneering work from academic and research institutions. Those exhibitors were:

University of Birmingham
University of Huddersfield
The National Robotarium
Brunel University London
University of Sheffield - Advance Manufacturing Research Centre
UK Atomic Energy Authority - RACE
Cranfield University - Centre for Robots & Assembly
University of Southampton
University of Hull
University of Bristol
University of South Wales

Keynotes

Dr Steven Carden, PA Consulting Transport Innovation Lead and Tom Salter, Deputy Director National Security Science and Research at the Department for Transport (DfT), gave an overview of the ongoing work by the DfT on transport security and resilience.

Tom covered a few real-world examples, including one example of how to mitigate the risk of terrorist threats on the rail network. To mitigate this risk, the DfT worked with the British Transport Police and other partners to implement the ‘See it, Say it, Sorted’ campaign.

The final message of the session was ‘the most value comes from both parties approaching it intelligently and transparently’.

UKRRIN panel

UK Rail Research and Innovation Network Panel (UKRRIN)

Chair: Joanna Binstead, Siemens Mobility
Prof Paul Allen, Centre of Excellence in Rolling Stock
Prof Paul Plummer, Centre of Excellence in Digital Systems
Dr Joel Smethurst, University of Infrastructure

The panel covered multiple topics, discussing how to make the most of a good pipeline of work to achieve efficiencies and improve reliability. Additionally, they considered how an open and transparent culture that utilises everyone’s strengths can help unlock further innovation and cost savings.

When asked about the possibilities for AI in rail, the panel suggested that AI can help to predict the risks of trains passing signals at danger by considering different driving styles, weather conditions and track conditions.

Professor Allen urged conference attendees to make use of and provide data for the Rail Data Marketplace.

Closing remarks

Sven Strassburg, Principal Solution Architect, IBM Technology, EMEA, talked about ‘the new paradigm of AI’, and how generative AI can open up new possibilities. He used the example of monitoring a bridge in multiple different ways and using statistical methods and AI to increase its lifespan. IBM believes that AI should be open, trusted and targeted.

Sven finished by raising the sustainability consequences of increased use of AI, saying it should always be as targeted as possible to minimise future environmental impacts.

Finally, RIA Technical Director David Clarke closed the conference by announcing that the RIA Innovation Conference 2025 will take place on 25-26 March and return to the ICC Wales, Newport.

Thank you from Team RIA

Team RIA would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who joined us in Newport. We had a fantastic time hosting, and we hope you enjoyed attending. We look forward to seeing you and other RIA members next year back at the ICC Wales!