Message from David Lawes, Railway TPN YP Chair.
I am truly excited to be the next Chair of the IET Young Professionals Rail Network, having been part of various rail committees for the past 4 years.Firstly, I’d like to say a huge thank you to my predecessor Matthew Bagshawe, who has looked after the committee for the past three years. Matthew grew the committee and its success and I aspire to build on what he’s achieved.
For me what is most important about chairing this network is actively contributing to the promotion of the rail industry to young professionals. It’s key to our industry to inspire, employ and retain talent; providing opportunities to explore and experience the industry is essential in doing this.
My aim is to make our rail events accessible to all our young professionals, including those considering rail as a career. Providing technical visits and online content will be keys way to achieve this. Already in the past six months our committee has organised two technical visits, both hugely popular. Our visits to the new Crossrail station at Canary Wharf and Network Rail’s first deployment of Traffic Management highlighted how new technology is being integrated into the railway, a challenge that is both exciting and impressive.
I will be supporting the IET’s collaboration with other Technical Professional Networks and other institutions. I believe it is essential that we view the railway as a system; collaboration and knowledge-sharing are a good start. Keep a lookout for a joint IMechE-IET one day seminar scheduled for Autumn 2017; an excellent opportunity for young rail engineers from all disciplines to come together to be inspired and learn more about the rail industry.
If you would like to join the IET Young Professionals Rail Network, or have any suggestions for content or events, please contact us on here or email Lynsay Callaghan (LCallagham@theiet.org).