Huawei Showcased Future Railway Smart Solutions at Asia Pacific Rail 2023

• By 2030, global IT spending in railways is projected to reach $57.9 million, with aggressive investments in railway development observed in the APAC region.

• Several nations in the region are leveraging new ICT solutions to make trains safer, greener, and more efficient.

As the world's leading ICT solutions provider, Huawei has showcased its cutting-edge Future Railway Smart Solutions at Asia Pacific Rail 2023, the region's most influential railway event. As Diamond Sponsor, Huawei demonstrated its commitment to delivering smart, efficient, and sustainable railway systems throughout the APAC region.

The Asia-Pacific region, home to 4.2 billion people (61% of the global population), is witnessing rapid expansion and urbanization, leading to increased demand for improved transportation services. By 2030, global IT spending in railways is projected to reach $57.9 million, with aggressive investments in railway development observed in the APAC region. Several nations in the region are leveraging new ICT solutions to make trains safer, greener, and more efficient.

"With 20 years of experience in the rail industry, particularly in our recent focus on digital transformation, Huawei has clearly defined our mission in this industry, that is to reshape connections, reconstruct platforms, and enable intelligence," said Mr. Xiang Xi, Vice President of Huawei Global Transportation BU during his keynote speech.

The rail industry is undergoing rapid digital transformation in recent years, and Huawei is committed to enhancing safety and efficiency in rail operations and maintenance with its latest ICT solutions. Leveraging on advanced digital technologies including Data Capture and Analysis, Autonomous Systems, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, FRMCS, MSN, Station Network, Storage, and IoT, Huawei is transforming how transport systems are managed, used, and reimagined. Technology advancements are centrally focused on seamless integration of various modes of transport as well as integration with other aspects of society.

"Smart station is an innovative solution to improve the experience of passengers and efficiency of operation, it can consolidate all the data and information from all the applications in the station. The new ICT infrastructure is the foundation for smart stations. We should replace the siloed ICT like server, storage and network, even the data etc. by cloud-powered digital platform " Said Mr. Steven Xiong, CTO of Rail Industry of Huawei Enterprise BG.

With a focus on addressing key challenges and opportunities in both mainline and metro, Huawei uses the latest ICTs to help cities in the Asia Pacific to upgrade their infrastructure, creating new momentum for urban development and a digital APAC.

"Today, most railways still operate using narrow bandwidth wireless networks for dispatch and rail signalling such as GSM-R or Tetra Radio and these technologies are out of date and cannot support smart rail requirements, FRMCS is a new wireless communication network for the railway, utilize 4G technology originally from service provider to provide highly reliable and high bandwidth train to ground connectivity," said Mr. Jackie Miao, Director of Huawei Asia Pacific Enterprise Transportation Account Department.

Huawei showcased several best practices and its cutting-edge solutions during the event, such as the IP and Optical communication backbone, which forms the skeleton of the future railway system; the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS) and Wi-Fi 6, which gives wireless broadband connection between train and ground; the Intelligent IT, which brings new collaboration experience and advance storage with Huawei's new technology to fight ransomware; and the Smart Station Solutions which optimize O&M and passenger experience.

"Modern railway networks demand high security, high bandwidth and smart automation. Huawei's innovative optical technology enables seamless and effortless upgrade," said Mr. Pan Chock Teck, Senior manager of Huawei Asia Pacific Enterprise Transportation Railway Solution.

This year, Huawei has hosted high-level conferences with thought leaders, major stakeholders, key customers, and authoritative organizations in the region during the event to explore the potential advancements of the rain industry in the APAC region.

Huawei has established the Aviation & Rail BU that constantly explores industry digitalization and technological innovation by focusing on industry scenarios. Huawei currently serves over 130 airports and airlines worldwide, more than 300 urban rail lines across over 70 cities, and more than 150,000 km of railways.