Rail as an crucial factor contributing to socio-economic development MyZA

CEO of Gautrain, Jack Van Der Merwe will present his views on public private partnership model the need of the hour for the African Railways at the 2nd Annual African Railway Summit on 5th – 6th November 2013 at Radisson Blu Gautrain Hotel, Johannesburg.

Gautrain being Africa’s first high-speed railway with the maximum speed of over 160 km per hour, CEO of Gautrain, Jack Van Der Merwe will present his views on public private partnership model the need of the hour for the African Railways at the 2nd Annual African Railway Summit on 5th – 6th November 2013 at Radisson Blu Gautrain Hotel, Johannesburg. He will further assist in recognising rail as an crucial factor contributing to the socio-economic development of South Africa. General Manager of PRASA, Sorin Baltac will discuss a case study on PRASA’s signalling and telecoms projects. He will cite some of the future requirements to considered for efficient establishment of well connected railway systems in the region.

With better rail systems the region will witness a growth in the trade system as well. To harmonize all the modes of transportation a senior official of Walvis Bay Corridor Group, will explain the role of rail in intermodal connectivity to enhance pit to port efficiency at the summit describing the integration models between rail and road. In furtherence to the presentation, a case study on future plans to improve intermodal connections by Barbara Mommen, CEO of Maputo Corridor Logistics Initiative will add to the practical application on transforming transport corridors into viable development corridors and supporting regional cooperation and the integration of markets for transport services.

Focusing on the ongoing regional projects in Nigeria, Rwanda and Namibia the summit will look at the holistic development of railways across the region. In a special CEO Panel duiscussion CEOs from Gautrain, TransNamib, Shosholoza Meyl, Transnet Freight Rail will review the the strategies and partnerships for revitalizing regions. With the South African government announcing to invest over $5 billion to promote rail passenger transport in South Africa over next few years, it has become essential to discuss railway issues and new strategies. To learn the outcome of the current investment Dr. Christian Schlosser, Policy Specialist , Former Chief, Urban Transport, UN-Habitat representing German Federal Ministry of Transport and Urban Development will provide his views on best practices of passenger rail in Germany and what could be the conclusions for a similar planning exercise in Africa.

INGETEAM Traction the Bronze Sponsor for the summit, is a designer and supplier of complete solutions of traction, control and auxiliary systems for rolling stock, based on in-house developments of power and control electronics. Their capacities and the experience on the railways sector allows them to offer advanced solutions, leading to minimised operational costs and focusing on reliability, availability, maintenance and energy consumption. Telecommunication and signaling solution providers like Huawei and Saryx Information Systems will be present at the summit. Ingrid Osborne, Director of Saryx Information Systems will illustrate the practical applications of a RailStress Monitor™ at Transnet SOC Ltd. Cummins a global leader in the manufacture, sales and servicing of diesel engines and related technology will showcase their engineering solutions at the 2nd Annual African Railway Summit. Hammerglass who offers completely unbreakable glazing solutions for all types of trains will exhibit their their range of products that also includes solar protection glass that reduces heat radiation by 50%.