The AREMA 2004 C & S technical conference

Railway Track and Structures, July, 2004 by Bob Nash

The Gaylord Opryland in Nashville was home to the AREMA Communications and Signals Technical Conference on May 17 and 18. The conference was held in partnership with the Railway Systems Suppliers, Inc., C & S Exhibition, which provided for a memorable four-day experience.

The combined AREMA Technical Conference and RSSI Exhibition was the first jointly-held event since 1999, in Baltimore.

A year-and-a-half in the planning by the AREMA C & S Functional Group, headed by group vice president and conference program chair, Bill Peterson, the Technical Conference program was a big success. Total attendance was more than 210 participants.

The conference structure was changed from the traditional format and a number of firsts were added to provide maximum value to attendees.

The FRA, FCC, AAR and RSSI gave opening remarks and their best wishes to AREMA on the conference. They also provided important information from their perspective on the state of the industry, including upcoming regulatory changes.

One of the firsts at the conference was a panel discussion of six c & s industry leaders, moderated by Robert P. DeMarco, vice president of Simmons-Boardman Publishing. This was truly a highlight and unique event listening to our c & s leaders discuss safety, services, efficiencies, technology and regulatory issues. This was not only a learning opportunity for the attendees, but also for the panel members. AREMA hopes to hold more forums with the c & s leaders in the future to ensure AREMA is aligned with the c & s field's needs.

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Another first was the introduction of a "best practices" forum, where the participating railways each brought ideas they have adopted to share with the conference attendees. There were great ideas, such as construction planning practices, maintenance standards, use of PDA technology, and more. The "best practices" followed the conference theme of improving safety, service and efficiencies. Each attendee should have gathered several ideas to consider implementing within their own company. This forum was a big hit with all conference attendees and is sure to be featured at future AREMA C & S Technical Conferences.

There were also table topics discussed, facilitated and documented at Monday's luncheon. The summary of these discussions was presented at the wrap-up session of the conference on Tuesday afternoon. These 146 ideas will be reviewed by the C & S Functional Group and will result in assignments for the C & S Technical Committees. Along with several excellent presentations, the conference content was heralded as a great success. I would like to thank all of our sponsors for their support in covering costs for the luncheons, bags, etc., in order to keep admission fees low for the conference attendees.

I would also like to say "Thank You" to the AREMA headquarters staff and several of the Conference Operating Committee members for all the hours of hard work they put in behind the scenes to ensure a smooth and well-run conference.

September is quickly approaching and AREMA will be holding its Annual Conference and Exposition, September 19-22. This will also be held in Nashville at the Gaylord Opryland. This conference promises to be a value-packed event with a great slate of technical papers, presentations and exhibitors that you won't want to miss.

If you have not already signed up for the AREMA Annual Conference and Exposition, you can do so by visiting our Website at www.arema.org. Our AREMA staff will be glad to register you. See you in Nashville.

Robert L. Nash

AREMA[R] President

2003-2004