Railway Division Annual Luncheon: Goes from strength to strength

The Railway Division Annual Luncheon, held at Grosvenor House in London on 4 March, brought together around 1,300 senior railway managers and engineers.

The Luncheon was hosted by Chris Kinchin-Smith, the Chair of the Institution’s Railway Division.

He commented: “Railway Division Annual Luncheon is the largest single event in the railway calendar that brings together almost 1,300 senior railway managers and engineers in a social context; to network, to have an excellent lunch and to hear a keynote speaker making a topical speech about the railway industry.”

Philippa Oldham, the Institution’s Head of Transport and Manufacturing said: “There was a real buzz of excitement as the UK's top railway professionals assembled. All parts of the network were represented from rolling stock, to signalling, to freight and from high speed, to networks in the Highlands to those that run subsurface. The luncheon was a great triumph to the sector as it shows collaboration and enthusiasm across the network as a whole.”

The sponsors were Bombadier, SNC-Lavalin, Hitachi and Clemtech.

The keynote address was given by Sir Peter Hendy, Chairman of Network Rail. He gave a frank, amusing and uplifting speech in which he outlined his company's priorities. He discussed the importance of focusing on the customer relationship – both freight and passengers – and how that might work in a more devolved railway. He also stressed that Network Rail must deliver on its budget and time commitments, particularly in a climate where capital is constrained.  Just eight months into his role at Network Rail it was a particularly timely review of the industry.

Chris Kinchin-Smith responded to the speech and reflected on his year as Chair of the Railway Division. His themes were 'Growth and Transformation' of the passenger railway, and he emphasised the need to inspire many more young people to join the industry. He added: “There has never been a better time to be a railway engineer.” 

As is traditional for the Luncheon, he announced that his successor will be Richard East, Chief Engineer at Atkins, who will take over as Railway Division Chair in June 2016.