Ricardo receives Technology Innovation award at World Rail Transit Forum in Beijing

Ricardo has been awarded with a ‘World Rail Transit Technology Innovation Award’ during a recent industry ceremony in Beijing (November 14th).

The award was issued during the World Rail Transit Forum 2024, an annual event that brings together network owners and operators, domestic and international equipment manufacturers, transit industry associations, universities and research institutes to discuss developments in areas such as safety, productivity and smart operation. 

The award presented to Ricardo was in recognition of our work helping China’s rail sector align with international cyber security standards.

Integrating with globalising standards

The increasing importance of information security and protection against malicious cyber-attack within the rail sector over recent years has seen the international market form an Operational Technology (OT) based on methodologies proposed by IEC 62443 and EN TS 50701 (and the corresponding technical references).

However, given the varying characteristics of cyber security around the world – including the regulations, technical standards and industry guidelines issued by various countries - so the methods and practices applied from one region to the next can also differ. Chinese suppliers, for example, found entering international markets a challenge because its cyber security methodologies were not fully integrated with global practices.  

Applying their in-depth understanding and project application of IEC 62443 and TS 50701, the Ricardo team in Beijing helped to appraise and analyze the characteristics of both standards and assess their differences with China's classified information security protection. The team also assessed how rail transit organisations around the world applied each standard into day-to-day network security protection, studying several international rail case studies in detail.

Beijing site Leader Huang Feng received the award on behalf of the team. Meanwhile, Ricardo technical consultant, Han Shuang, delivered a well-received presentation on rail transit network security protection.

Ricardo's expertise and international experience of integrating cyber security measures into routine operations can help transit operators and the supply chain improve network security management, enhance their system security level, and improve an organisation's ability to respond to potential incidents. Find out more about our Independent Security Assessment (Cyber) services.