Supply Side: Wabtec, Rail Vision

The winning teams of Wabtec's "Exceed Campus Challenge" in India developed innovative proposals for a range of technical challenges facing the rail industry. (Wabtec Photo)

Wabtec Corporation (Wabtec) announces winners for its “Exceed Campus Challenge” in India. Also, Rail Vision Ltd. (Rail Vision) appoints Mark Cleobury as Chairman.

Wabtec on Jan. 19 announced the winners of the company’s 2022-23 “Exceed Campus Challenge” in India. The winning teams developed innovative proposals for a range of technical challenges facing the rail industry.

The competition winner was Team Pastra from PES University in Bangalore. The team’s presentation focused on “Artificial Intelligence for Safety in Industrial Sites.” Achal Shetty, Alokpunj Bagrodia and Mohit Venkatesh represented their college.

The first runner up was Team Psiphi, an all-women’s team from MKSSS Cummins College of Engineering in Pune. Oorja Patil, Shruti Pawar, Swarali Savale and Vaishnavi Sutrave presented a solution for an “Onboard Bogie Condition Monitoring System.” The second runner up was Team QuadSquad from PSG Tech in Coimbatore. Team members Hari Prakash R, Harita J, Bhavani K and Kenan Jerolin showcased a proposal on “Vision Enhancement Solution for Loco Pilot during Fog, Rain and Curves.”

These winners were among 149 teams and more than 500 students from 36 colleges across India that competed in the challenge. Of the 149 teams, eight qualified for a final round and presented projects to the leadership at Wabtec India Technology and Engineering Centre in Bangalore. The top finalist won a total cash price of Rs.2.25 lakh.

“The Exceed Campus Challenge is the ideal forum for cultivating tomorrow’s thinkers and doers,” said Sujatha Narayan, Senior Vice President and Regional Leader for Wabtec Corporation in India. “This year’s winners demonstrated the innovative spirit, dedication and passion necessary to be successful in the rail industry.”

Wabtec requested applications for the challenge, which was open to students in their first year of college through the final year of a Ph.D., in August 2022. The “Exceed Campus Challenge” addressed topics such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, condition monitoring, vision enhancement, hydrogen-powered locomotive, and braking performance.

“Our campus outreach program has been growing over the past couple of years,” said Anup Kumar Pal, Director of Human Resources for Wabtec Corporation India. “The ‘Exceed Campus Challenge’ presents a unique opportunity for prospective employees to gain insight into the rail industry. It also provides exposure to our culture, labs and resources.”

Ra’anana, Israel-based technology company Rail Vision announced Jan. 19 that is has appointed Mark Cleobury as Chairman of the Board. He will succeed Shmuel Donnerstein, who has served as Rail Vision’s Chairman since 2020. Donnerstein will continue to serve Rail Vision as a Board Member.

Cleobury, who currently serves as Senior Vice President of Knorr-Bremse’s Rail Systems Division, brings more than four decades of global experience in the rail industry. Prior to serving as VP, Cleobury previously held positions of increasing responsibility at Knorr-Bremse, including serving as a Member of the Management Board of Knorr-Bremse Systems for Rail, Vice President Sales and Systems for Client Management Trains, Manager Sales and Systems Trains, Key Account Manager, and Project Manager.

In addition to executive roles during his 20-year tenure at Knorr-Bremse, Cleobury held several global directorship roles within the group, including serving as Vice President for the Knorr-Bremse Company in the U.S., a Director of Knorr-Bremse Investment (UK) Ltd in the UK, Chairman of Knorr-Bremse Nordic Rail Services in Sweden, a Director of Knorr-Bremse Rail Systems (UK) Ltd in the UK, a Member of the Board of Knorr-Bremse Rail Systems Italia S.r.L in Italy, a Member of the Supervisory Board of Knorr-Bremse systemy Kolejowe Polska Sp. Zoo in Poland, a Director of Knorr-Bremse Systemes Ferroviares France SA in France, Consiglio D’Amministrazione at Microelettrica Scientifica s.p.a in Italy, a Director of Knorr-Bremse Systems for Railways in Russia, and a Director of Knorr-Bremse 1520 in Russia.

Prior to joining Knorr-Bremse, Cleobury served as Head of Sales and Project Planning at ZF Bahntechnik GmbH in Friedrichshafen, Germany; Head of Sales and Prokurist at ZF Hurth Gotha GmbH in Gotham, Germany; and several roles at Hurth (GB) Ltd, in Leamington Spa, England, including Sales Manager and Company Secretary, Manager Transmission Division, and Specialist Sales Engineer.

“Mark’s appointment to Chairman of the Board comes at a transformational time for Rail Vision as we enter a period of expected accelerated growth,” commented Rail Vision CEO Shahar Hania. “I believe Mark’s wealth of experience will prove invaluable to Rail Vision as we continue to drive our mission of becoming a global leader in railway obstacle detection and data solutions.”

Commenting on his appointment, Cleobury said, “I am honored to accept this role at such an exciting time for the company. Rail Vision is at the forefront of technology that is providing increased safety and efficiency to rail operators around the world, while also reducing their cost and environmental footprint. I look forward to contributing my expertise in the rail industry to drive further success for our customers and shareholders.”