Page 2 - ASME JRC 2018 Program

Chair’s Welcome Message

What a great way to begin the 2018 JRC! Pittsburgh has been a railroad town for over 160 David Thurston, PhD
years. These hills have hosted countless suppliers, universities and researchers, and that
tradition continues today. There are several unique locations related to rail and transit that Chair 2018 JRC Organizing and
should be of interest to you, and we have provided the opportunity to see some of them on Planning Committee
the tours sponsored by the conference.
Chief Engineer, Train Control,
This version of the JRC would not be possible without the considerable efforts of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Organizing Committee, without whose countless volunteer hours of setting venues,
reviewing papers, and providing the leadership to make this all possible. IEEE, the lead
organization for this year’s conference, is pleased to partner with our sponsoring
organizations including ASME, ASCE, APTA, AREMA, INFORMS-RAS, and the National
University Rail Center (NURail) to produce the sole academic conference devoted to rail in
North America. This year’s edition brings over 140 technical papers and presentations
covering all aspects of railroad engineering from fourteen countries and five continents.

With the help of the Port Authority of Allegheny County, we are pleased to offer you a
fascinating tour of an example of early 19th century engineering in the Monongahela Incline.
Designated as a National Mechanical Engineering Landmark, the incline today functions as a
vital system delivering needed services for the people of Pittsburgh. I thank the Port
Authority for their gracious hospitality in offering this tour. Another tour of interest is the visit
to the McConway & Torley Pittsburgh facility. This facility is almost as old as the American
Railroad industry itself dating from 1868. This historic steel foundry began rebuilding in the
late nineteen seventies, with the last phase of modernization completed in 1996.

We are excited to have our invited speakers this year. A recognized and respected industry
leader, Mr. Skoutelas has served on numerous boards and committees for transportation
organizations in leadership positions, including the President and CEO of the American
Public Transportation Association (APTA), the Transportation Research Board, National
Transit Institute, Pennsylvania Transportation Institute, and the Transit Cooperative Research
program. We are also proud to have Dr. Piervincenzo Rizzo, Assistant Professor at the
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh where he
founded the Laboratory for Nondestructive Evaluation and Structural Health Monitoring
studies. During his career, Dr. Rizzo received several honors and awards. From the ASNT, he
received the 2002 Fellowship Award, the 2007 Faculty Grant Award, the 2009 and 2015
Fellowship Research Award.

To round out the conference, we have added two Seminars and a Workshop covering
relevant topics today. These include subject matter experts and include subject matter
experts on Positive Train Control via a Hosted Server Applications, and Big Data and
Analytics for Signaling. The workshop is an opportunity for attendees to experience RailEval,
a web-based tool for rail system evaluation including new services on existing infrastructure.

With all that we have to offer, I’m sure you will find this version of the JRC the best ever!
Please enjoy all the conference has to offer.

David Thurston

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