Based on the successful edition bringing together over 600 staff from the National Railway Administration of China (NRA), China Railway Corporation (CR) and China Academy of Railway Sciences (CARS) in September 2013, CARS organised a second conference with three parallel training sessions targeting the same audience and focusing on the maintenance of high-speed rolling stock, IT for passengers railway sales and marketing and natural disaster management for high speed railway systems.
Representatives of Beijing’s University of Transport (BJTU) also participated in the conference.

This conference was moderated by Mr Kang Xiong, CARS vice-president, and opened by the following speakers:

• Mr Wang TongJun, CARS president
• Mr Vincent Vu, UIC Director of Institutional Relations and Coordinator of the Asia-Pacific region
• Mr Iñaki Barrón, UIC Director of Passengers and High Speed

Three sessions were organised for the three days with the following speakers and subjects:

Session 1: Maintenance of high speed rolling stock

• Management of high speed fleet of rolling stock by Charles Bernheim, Rolling Stock Maintenance Director at Thalys International (which operates high speed trains France – Belgium – the Netherlands – Germany)
• High speed rolling stock maintenance in Spain by Leonardo Hernandez, Director of rolling stock at RENFE (Spanish railway undertaking)
• Rolling stock purchasing strategy; major risks and opportunities when purchasing high speed rolling stock by Michel Leboeuf, UIC Chairman of Intercity and High Speed Committee (IHSC)
• Contracting for maintenance; different strategies worldwide by Jaime Borrell, high speed train strategy manager at ALSTOM
• Introduction to UIC studies and projects by Iñaki Barrón, UIC Director of Passengers and High Speed
• Maintenance of KTX1 to develop KTX2 in Korea by KIM Dae Sik, Deputy Director RS, Korail

Session 2: IT for passenger railway sales and marketing

• Introduction to UIC studies and projects by Iñaki Barrón, UIC Director of Passengers and High Speed
• Marketing: Yield management by Michel Leboeuf, UIC Chairman of Intercity and High Speed Committee (IHSC)
• Marketing strategies for passenger trains by Maite Escolano, Commercial and Sales Director, COMFER SA
• Ticketing systems in Korail by Kwon Kidong, UIC/KORAIL Senior Advisor
• Competition in a liberalised railway market – the NTV experience by Andrea Giuricin, Head of studies office at NTV (private Italian railway undertaking in Italy)
• Advertising and communication in high-speed systems by Maite Escolano, Commercial and Sales Director, COMFER SA
• Advanced Ticketing Systems in Europe and Asia by Marc Guigon, UIC senior advisor for passenger transport
• Ticket sales: Fares, planning by Michel Leboeuf, UIC Chairman of Intercity and High Speed Committee (IHSC)

Session 3: Natural disaster management for high speed railway systems

• Classification and overview on forecast, societal impact, risk reduction, emergency management of natural disasters by Teodor Gradinariu, UIC Senior Technical Advisor
• Risks analysis of natural hazards, protection strategies of high speed and intercity lines against cross wind and flood issues by Pierre-Etienne Gautier, Director of Innovation at SYSTRA
• UIC work on natural disasters by Iñaki Barrón, UIC Director of Passengers and High Speed
• UIC concept on comprehensive protection for railways by Jacques Colliard, UIC Head of Security Division
• Safety management system for railway infrastructures in Korea by KIM Hyun Ki, senior researcher at KRRI

A technical visit of the CARS laboratories was organised by CARS.
The speakers visited the stations of Beijing South and Tianjin. They took the high speed train from Beijing to Tianjin.

Then three seminars were organised by CARS to discuss the three main topics. Each seminar included the speakers and a few experts from CARS on the subjects.