BIM in railway infrastructure: Lecture by Dr. Veit Appelt at the workshop of the German-Thai rail transport partnership in Bangkok meets with great interest

A large international (online) stage was offered to Dr. Veit Appelt, lecturer at the Chair of Road Planning and Road Design and the Chair of Planning and Design of Railway Infrastructure, in mid-November during his lecture on "Building Information Modeling (BIM) in Railway Infrastructure". Dr. Appelt represented the Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences at the 5th Workshop "Railway Infrastructure Planning Management and Development" of the German-Thai Railway Transport Partnership (GTRP) on November 12-13, 2020. The lecture was initiated by Dr.-Ing. Sven Hietzschold, acting head of the Chair of Planning and Design of Railway Infrastructure, and in cooperation with the Dresden infrastructure planners of A+S Consult GmbH.

"The presentation held by Dr. Appelt of the TU Dresden Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences (…) contributed substantially to the success of the workshop. Dr. Appelt gave a good overview of the state of the technology and its international dimensions which generated great interest among the audience," says a letter of thanks from the German Embassy in Bangkok that reached the faculty these days. "We are looking forward to collaborating with the TU Dresden in the future. lt could further enrich the bilateral railway partnership, " writes Dr. Alexander Raubold, Counsellor for Economic Affairs at the Embassy, in the letter.

The workshop was a mix of in-person and online event, held in English in Bangkok, Thailand. The Ambassador of Germany to Thailand, Mr. Georg Schmidt, opened the event together with the Governor of the Mass Rapid Transport Authority of Thailand (MRTA), Mr. Pakapong Sirikantaramas. Leading representatives from Germany and Thailand, among others the head of the Planning Division of the Thai Ministry of Transportation, Mr. Natthaporn Buaphut, the Chief Technology Information Officer of the Deutsche Bahn AG (German Railways), Mr. Rolf Härdi, the System Integration Manager from Siemens Mobility Thailand, Mr. Michael Wilken, and numerous representatives from academia and industry in Thailand were present.

The GTRP is based on the Joint Declaration of Intent among the Federal Ministry of Transport in Germany and the Thai Ministry of Transport from 2016. It aims to foster the exchange of experience and technical knowledge among both countries.

The next international stage for Dr. Veit Appelt as a lecturer at the TU Dresden will be on December 14, 2020, when he will participate in the (virtual) BIM conference TRA (Traffic and Roads Agency within the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority RTA) at the Innovation Lab in Dubai.