On 12 October the UIC Panel of Structural Experts (PoSE) was able to meet once again at a hybrid meeting. The traditional autumn meeting took place in Budapest, kindly hosted by MÁV Zrt. at its headquarters.

The meeting was well organised, with excellent support with technical equipment for web access in particular. More than 20 participants discussed the various agenda items, half online and half in the meeting room. MÁV Deputy General Manager István Virág welcomed the participants and wished them a successful meeting.

Some items had to be postponed due to Bernd Rositzka’s illness, but Mercedes Gutiérrez will inform UIC and colleagues of the relevant outputs from the meeting. The participants wished Mr Rositza a speedy recovery.

Martin Muncke, current chairman of PoSE, gave his farewell presentation and Didier van de Velde was confirmed as the new PoSE chairman. He will take up his role at the beginning of 2022. All of the participants present received the new PoSE logo pin, an expression of gratitude for their support and cooperation.

On the second day, the traditional technical visits were organised by MÁV. The participants visited a very interesting construction site for new bridges in southern Budapest, where three new bridges will replace two older constructions. There have been a number of challenges in assembling the new parts and moving them into place due to the narrow dimensions at the site. The first bridge is now in service, the second will be inaugurated by the end of the year and the third in the next few years. In the afternoon, the experts visited the reconstruction of the well-known chain bridge in Budapest city centre, one of the oldest Danube bridges. They saw for themselves the challenge that the restoration entailed, with parts or entire beams modified while taking into account the requirements in terms of heritage and structural safety.

It was very interesting to see the various solutions and the experience of the designers and workers, which served to resolve most of these problems.

The final decisions were made on the last day of the meeting, and the minutes were checked as usual with a short discussion. Mr Muncke closed the meeting and handed over the baton to Mr van de Velde.

UIC would like to thank Mr Muncke for his steadfast dedication to UIC groups over the past twenty years and hopes that he will continue to contribute to progress in the railway community as part of the team of structural experts.