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webinar

Start getting telecoms ready for the transition to FRMCS and AI era

19 March 2025

10:00am

Join this webinar and hear industry experts explain how to smoothly migrate your railway telecom infrastructure in 2025, while considering the life cycle of existing applications.

Register to join this webinar for free now!

Start getting telecoms ready for the transition to FRMCS and AI eraRailway organizations are facing intense challenges from rapid digitalization. But the right results can deliver essential improvements — including more efficient operations, greater train control safety, and better customer service and passenger experience. In addition, AI capabilities hold out the promise of proactive maintenance, as well as faster responses to events for rolling stock and crew. The foundation for gaining these improvements lies in a robust, extended, flexible and high-performance telecom system, which provides vital connectivity from an operation and control centre to trackside to the train. This communication network is built out of three major technologies — FRMCS, IP/MPLS and DWDM — which are capable of transporting future applications.

However, railway organizations must also consider the life cycles of their specific applications, which are typically longer than those in IT — and may raise key constraints. For instance, a transition to new technologies cannot leave behind applications such as signalling or emergency voice. And of course, GSM-R must run until 2032, at least, in most countries. This situation means many rail organizations now face a dilemma. Their current telecom network is becoming obsolete because it’s based on SDH (or even MPLS-TP). So, they need to rapidly develop a strategy that addresses the urgency of technology obsolescence, while combining a long-term vision for creating a telecom network that’s a reliable foundation for railway digitalization.

In this webinar, you will:

  • Learn how railways can evolve their telecoms to maintain safe operations today while preparing for the future
  • Discover the impact of technology evolution on operations and workforce, with insights from a railway operator, an international consultant and a technology leader
  • Gain expert views concerning strategies for overcoming technology challenges

SPEAKERS

Anne-Marie Ntibazonkiza, Network Infrastructure Team Coordinator, Infrabel

Having trained as an industrial engineer in electromechanics, Anne-Marie has always been passionate about telecommunications. She worked for 8 years at Colt Telecom where she learned to master SDH, PDH, and DSL technologies. In 2010, she joined Infrabel where she held various Project Management and team management positions. First for the deployment of a DWDM network, then an IP/MPLS network. Since 2024, she has been working specifically on GSM-R and the migration of these services to an IP/MPLS network.

 

Zineb El Aissaoui, Telecom Lead for Engineering and Design in Railways, Egis Rail

Zineb EL AISSAOUI is Telecom Design Lead for Railways projects at Egis, where she leads engineering activities related to telecom systems for railway projects. Zineb is involved in several National and International projects where she is responsible of ensuring that telecom systems meet the technical specifications, standards, and safety requirements specific to the railway industry.

With over 10 years of experience in the Railway Transport sector, Zineb has held key roles, including System Engineer at Thales, where she worked on the design and build of telecom systems within a high-speed railway project. She then moved on to serve as Telecom Engineer at Sintra, where she was involved in the design of telecom systems for multi railway projects covering high speed and conventional Networks.

 

Benoît Leridon, Transportation Segment Leader, Network Infrastructure, Nokia

LinkedIn profile (click here)

Benoît Leridon is the Transportation Segment Leader for Network Infrastructure at Nokia where he is responsible for global business development targeting transportation verticals. Benoît has 25 years of telecom pre-sales background covering enterprise and carrier markets for data, and voice solutions, and joined Alcatel-Lucent in 2010 after holding different pre-sales management positions in companies such as Wellfleet, Bay Networks and Nortel.

FAQs

Is the webinar free?
Yes – there is no charge to watch the webinar, either live or on-demand.

When will the webinar take place?
The webinar will be taking place on 19 March 2025 at 10:00am (UK TIME)

Can I watch the webinar later?
The webinar will be available to watch on-demand shortly after the live broadcast takes place.

What are the benefits of attending live?
During the live webinar, you will be able to pose questions to the speakers, which will then be answered during the live Q&A session at the end of the webinar.

How long will the webinar be?
The live webinar will last for up to one hour.

Who will be moderating?
Elizabeth Jordan, Editor, Global Railway Review.

What do I need to watch this webinar?
All you need is a computer with an internet connection. It is advised to use headphones where possible for your own comfort.