Rail Baltica and Riga Technical University are hosting industry leaders to explore digital innovation in railway design, construction and asset management.
Rail Baltica and Riga Technical University (RTU) have welcomed more than 100 railway infrastructure professionals, digitalisation experts, academics and industry representatives to Riga for BIM for Rail Bootcamp 2026.
The two-day event has been organised by Haskoning in partnership with ProRail and Banedanmark and is being hosted by RTU and Rail Baltica. The annual bootcamp is designed to strengthen collaboration between academia and industry while promoting the adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and digital technologies across the rail sector.
Participants from across Europe are attending the event to exchange knowledge, share best practices and explore how digital tools can improve the delivery and management of railway infrastructure projects.
Rail Baltica showcases digital railway delivery
This year’s bootcamp is being held in Riga in recognition of Rail Baltica’s strategic importance as one of Europe’s largest high-speed railway projects currently under development.
The project relies heavily on digital engineering methodologies to support coordination between countries, organisations and project partners involved in the delivery of the cross-border railway.
Pēteris Druķis, Head of the Institute of Civil Engineering at RTU, said: “Riga Technical University’s Institute of Civil Engineering sees BIM for Rail Bootcamp 2026 as an important platform for strengthening collaboration between academia, infrastructure developers and digital technology experts.”
Emilien Dang, Chief Technical Officer and Member of the Management Board at RB Rail AS, said: “The future of railway infrastructure depends not only on physical connectivity, but also on digital connectivity.”
The programme includes plenary presentations alongside 32 interactive workshops covering BIM implementation, digital project delivery and infrastructure asset management.
Delegates will also visit the Rail Baltica Riga Central Station and RIX Riga Airport construction sites, where digital technologies are already being used to support project delivery.
Prof. Līga Gaile, Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at RTU, said: “Today, we are no longer speaking only about tracks, stations or infrastructure. We are speaking about a digital, interconnected European mobility ecosystem.”
The event continues with further workshops, technical discussions and site visits focused on the future development of digital rail infrastructure across Europe.
No comments yet